Gavin Darklighter

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Gavin Darklighter was a man who overcame humble origins on Tatooine to become a decorated pilot in Rogue Squadron, then Rogue Leader, then commanding admiral of a battle fleet. Born to moisture farmers, Darklighter grew up in the shadow of his older cousin, Biggs Darklighter—hero of the Rebellion. When he turned sixteen, Darklighter felt the pull of the stars, and determined to make his own way in the galaxy, joining the New Republic. With his parents' blessing, Darklighter entered the New Republic military and the piloting talents he had honed in his skyhopper at home landed him in the legendary Rogue Squadron, the successor to Biggs's unit. Despite his youth, Darklighter distinguished himself early, serving in the campaign to take Coruscant and resigning his commission to pursue Ysanne Isard, then rejoining with the rest of the Rogues and helping bring down Warlord Zsinj. During that time, Darklighter met and fell in love with a Bothan, Asyr Sei'lar. By the end of their service in the Thrawn campaign, Darklighter and Sei'lar were ready to marry and adopt children. This plan was cut tragically short when Sei'lar was reported dead during Rogue Squadron's campaign to oust the warlord Delak Krennel.

Darklighter bounced back, however, marrying Sera Faleur and raising a family of five children. When iconic Rogue Leaders Wedge Antilles and Tycho Celchu retired in the wake of the peace treaty with the Imperial Remnant, they handed command of the New Republic's most elite squadron to Darklighter. Darklighter proudly carried on the Rogue tradition during the Yuuzhan Vong War, fighting the invaders at every turn and recruiting future Rogue Leader Jaina Solo into the squadron. After the war, Darklighter transferred to Fleet Command, just as Antilles had some twenty years before. He quickly rose to the rank of commodore, during which time he served in the Swarm War, and then rear admiral. When the Confederation-Galactic Alliance War broke out, Darklighter continued to serve the Galactic Alliance despite having friends on both sides, but increasingly grew to resent Jacen Solo's methods of operating the Galactic Alliance. During the Battle of Balmorra, Darklighter gained command of the Galactic Alliance Fourth Fleet when his superior was killed in combat and was quickly able to force an enemy withdrawal. Darklighter continued serving the Galactic Alliance until the conclusion of the war.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Tatooine farmboy 1.2 Rogue 1.3 First combat 1.4 The drive to Coruscant 1.5 Covert on Coruscant 1.6 Keeping the peace 1.7 The Bacta War 1.8 The hunt for Zsinj 1.9 The Thrawn campaign 1.10 The return of Isard 1.11 Settling down 1.12 Taking the lead 1.13 A new enemy 1.14 Holding back the tide 1.15 Dark days 1.16 Striking back 1.17 The pursuit of victory 1.18 Entering the fleet 1.19 Admiral Darklighter 2 Personality and traits 3 Behind the scenes 4 Appearances 5 Sources 6 Notes and references 7 See also

[edit] Biography

[edit] Tatooine farmboy

Gavin Darklighter was born in 10 BBY on Tatooine to Jula and Silya Darklighter.^[4][2] Moisture farmers in the Anchorhead area, they led a life of hard work in difficult circumstances.^[5] Darklighter had two younger sisters, Rasca and Anya.^[5][6][7] His father, Jula, was the brother of Huff Darklighter, a wealthy local land baron; Huff did not share his fortune with Jula, preferring to instead subtly rub in his excellent circumstances during family gatherings.^[4]

His cousin Biggs Darklighter, Huff's son, was ten years older.^[2] Biggs and Gavin were not close, but Biggs would sometimes spend time with his younger cousin. On occasion, Biggs would take Gavin along when Biggs visited Luke Skywalker, during which trips Darklighter met Owen and Beru Lars. When Gavin was ten years old, Biggs was killed in combat, a Rebel pilot at Yavin 4. The entire family was saddened by his death, but Darklighter had simply not known him well enough for his loss to truly register.^[1] Following Biggs's death, Huff felt the desire for more children and divorced his current wife, who wished to bear no more. He then married Darklighter's aunt on his mother's side, Lanal, further uniting the family and giving Darklighter many more younger cousins.^[4]

Some time later, Darklighter's father purchased the Lars family farm from Throgg, whom Huff Darklighter had been planning to ruin financially due to the imposition of an alien landowner tax, and allowed Throgg to stay on as a tenant rather than let Huff ruin him and gain the farm. At some point, the Darklighters themselves moved onto the farm, and Darklighter spent several of his formative years where Luke Skywalker had grown up.^[1]

Darklighter lived a simple life on the family farm. He would visit Anchorhead on a monthly basis, and even made it to Mos Eisley on one occasion. Family celebrations, generally held at Huff's estate, were a highlight, though Darklighter resented being continually seated at the children's table.^[7][4] Darklighter was educated via classes taken over the HoloNet, as there was no local school in Anchorhead.^[7] That gave Darklighter a good deal of free time and, like many other Anchorhead youths, he spent much time flying his T-16 skyhopper through the desert, making runs through Beggar's Canyon, and otherwise honing his piloting abilities.^[2][1] By his mid-teens, Darklighter suffered a growth spurt, becoming a large and lanky youth who looked older than he was.^[1] As a teen, Darklighter developed a crush on Rebel leader Princess Leia Organa.^[6] He pursued local girls as well, though to no lasting relationships.^[7]

In 6 ABY, on his sixteenth birthday, Darklighter left the party as it concluded and walked up to the edge of the pit into which the farm was sunk. He looked out across the sand, wondering if Skywalker had done so, and was approached by his father, who told him that he had the "Darklighter look" on his face. Jula explained that all Darklighter men reached a point in their lives at which they looked at the outer world, at the possibilities beyond. Gavin's grandfather looked only at the end of his life, regretting missed opportunities. Huff, said Jula, had looked out long ago and chosen to ignore it, to build up his own world on Tatooine. Biggs had looked at the same age as Gavin and had left for the stars. Gavin told his father that he could feel his destiny out beyond Tatooine. Jula refused to stand in his son's way, and let him go and join the New Republic, with his blessing and the knowledge that he would always be welcome back on Tatooine.^[7]

[edit] Rogue

Darklighter joined the New Republic Starfighter Corps, serving as Biggs had. He immediately heard that Rogue Squadron, the New Republic's most elite starfighter unit, descended from Biggs's Red Squadron, was to be reconstituted and approached its commander, Wedge Antilles, and asked to be included in it.^[1][8] Antilles had been a friend of Biggs, and felt an obligation to Darklighter. Additionally, Antilles believed in him and his determination and dedication to prove himself. Darklighter's test scores were as good as any other Rogue Squadron candidate's, but his selection was opposed by Antilles's superior, General Horton Salm, who felt that Darklighter was simply too young for such an elite squadron. Salm instead preferred the inclusion of Deegan. In a discussion before Admiral Ackbar, Antilles successfully argued that Deegan's inclusion would over-represent Corellians within the squadron and that Darklighter would be a valuable addition. Darklighter was approved, provided he performed well in the Redemption scenario. The training and selection process was not formally over, however, and when Darklighter's time came to complete the notoriously difficult simulation, he succeeded in it and shot down Bror Jace, widely regarded as one of the two best pilot-candidates. He had performed excellently, gaining the second-highest score among the candidates, behind only Corran Horn, the second of the two top prospects.^[1] Within only weeks of joining the military and without any formal training, Darklighter was accepted to Rogue Squadron. He knew that his cousin's reputation had been key to his acceptance, however, and was determined to work his very hardest and earn the position himself.^[8][2]

Darklighter was assigned his own X-wing, the callsign Rogue Five, and an astromech which he named Jawaswag, and was given the wingmate Riv Shiel, a Shistavanen; Antilles thought the two would make an effective pair.^[1][2] Jawaswag quickly got in the habit of giving Darklighter weather updates for Coruscant and Tatooine as a greeting, which persisted even after memory wipes, causing Darklighter to become very fond of the droid.^[6] Darklighter was quick to make friends in the squadron, but frequently felt nervous and somewhat overwhelmed by being thrust from the relative isolation of Anchorhead into the cosmopolitan and mature world of the New Republic forces; his youth only compounded the problem. Darklighter took to the squadron, however, and was the one to create its twelve-starfighter crest, which quickly caught on as the symbol of Rogue Squadron despite having no official endorsement.^[1]

Though selection was complete, training was not yet over, and Darklighter continued to hone his skills at Folor Base. Darklighter's astrogation skills were weak, but he accepted tutoring from Lujayne Forge and quickly brought them up to par, demonstrating a natural aptitude. When Horn's targeting data was beamed back to the rest of the squadron without his knowledge during one run, giving all the subsequent pilots knowledge of target locations before they made their runs and leaving Horn with the lowest score of the group, Darklighter was among those who objected, feeling Antilles had been cruel and unfair in his treatment of Horn. After discussing the situation with Antilles, Horn himself told Darklighter and the rest that it had taught him a valuable lesson about flying without ego; any plans Darklighter had to write a statement to Salm protesting Antilles's methods were halted.^[1]

[edit] First combat

Only one month after the squadron roster was finalized, Rogue Squadron was moved to active duty. They were to be moved to Talasea, but for security reasons the squadron members were told that they were merely on an extended field training assignment and were not given their location. The trip to Talasea was intended to be a practice run, but on their way through the Chorax system, the Interdictor cruiser Black Asp pulled the squadron out of hyperspace. Darklighter and the rest of the squadron safely escaped, with Darklighter scoring his first kill against the Imperial TIEs.^[1]

The Rogues' next mission was to Hensara, where they were to rescue the downed frigate Battle of Yavin. When the Strike-class cruiser Havoc returned to the system during the operation, Darklighter flew against the TIEs it deployed, picking up one pursuer, which Horn destroyed. Darklighter picked up no kills in the engagement, however, unlike the rest of his comrades.^[1]

During the subsequent celebration back on Talasea, Jace began to pick on Darklighter for his lack of kills. His squadron-mates jokingly awarded Darklighter the award of "worst pilot in the squadron" and sent Nawara Ven to speak to the senior officers—Antilles, executive officer Tycho Celchu, and naval captain Afyon—and request a fitting punishment. Darklighter was embarrassed and resentful, and Antilles perceived that, knowing that Darklighter's skills were far from the worst in the squadron. Celchu suggested that Darklighter be apprenticed to the best pilot in the squadron, a solution with which Antilles concurred, thinking that Horn, who had the most kills, would not be particularly rough on the young man. However, Jace insisted that he was the best pilot in the squadron, citing his higher percentage of kills relative to the number of fighters he had engaged. Horn stepped in with an offer: he would average his kills with Darklighter's, giving all three men five kills, and continue the contest with the averages in place, requiring either Horn to perform twice as well as Jace or Darklighter to start performing as well as the other two. Jace accepted, and Horn sprang the trick of the agreement—by averaging the kills, Darklighter gained four from Horn, making Ven, not Darklighter, the worst pilot.^[1] Horn's display of confidence heartened Darklighter, and he would later tell his parents about the difference Horn's support had made, though he downplayed the nature of the incident.^[4]

A few nights later, Horn and Rogue Ooryl Qrygg were awake when Imperial stormtroopers landed at Talasea, its location having been deduced by Imperial Intelligence agent Kirtan Loor. The two defeated some of the troops outside the main building and proceeded within. Darklighter and Shiel were in the nearest room, and Horn woke Darklighter and warned him that there were stormtroopers inside the base, rigging it to explode. Horn gave Darklighter a blaster and moved to engage the two stormtroopers who had just entered the hall. Unprepared for a firefight, Darklighter stepped out into the hall before Horn had cleared it, getting off only one shot before he took a blast directly to the naked abdomen and went down, passing out.^[1]

The Rogues were evacuated and the stormtroopers defeated; Darklighter was placed in a bacta tank aboard the medical frigate Reprieve. He was removed at the same time as Horn, who had been shot later in the battle, in time for both to learn from Antilles that Forge had been killed in her bed by stormtroopers. Darklighter was devastated to learn that the friendly, bubbly Forge, with whom he had been close, was dead. It was the first time anyone he had truly known had died, as previous deaths, such as that of Biggs and the Lars family, had been the relatively abstract losses of people whom he was not accustomed to seeing regularly. When he expressed this emotion, Biggs was brought up, and Antilles shared stories of the man, giving Darklighter a better feel for his cousin as a person.^[1] The time Antilles spent with him comforted him greatly and helped him work through his grief.^[9]

[edit] The drive to Coruscant

The New Republic tracked the stormtrooper platoon responsible for the attack to Vladet, and Rogue Squadron was given the honor of leading the retributive strike. After a memorial service for Forge, the Rogues and Salm's Defender Wing struck Vladet. Darklighter was among the X-wings flying cover for the Y-wings bombing the Imperial base.^[1]

Vladet was merely a hit-and-fade operation, however. Rogue Squadron's next mission was to take Borleias, a world which would provide a stepping-stone with which to take Coruscant, capital of the Empire. Known to the Rogues only as Blackmoon, Borleias was to be taken in an operation overseen by General Laryn Kre'fey. Darklighter and the other pilots spent two weeks in intense training and simulations for the mission.^[1]

When the time came, Darklighter was among the Rogues, assigned to cover the assault shuttles descending to the planet's surface after the shields collapsed. Kre'fey had been far from meticulous in his planning, however, and Borleias suddenly began to demonstrate far greater defenses than Kre'fey's information had indicated. General Evir Derricote, the Imperial commander, had reinforced his base with extra starfighters and power generation capacity from the abandoned Alderaan Biotics facility on-planet, the existence of which Kre'fey had not even known. Peshk Vri'syk and Andoorni Hui were quickly killed, with several other Rogues having their fighters destroyed and being forced to go extravehicular. Shiel was wounded but continued flying, and Darklighter had to force him to seek medical care after the New Republic forces retreated.^[1]

Darklighter and the other survivors returned to Noquivzor, where they were based. Given data collected by Horn's astromech, Whistler, Horn and Antilles were able to devise a plan to take Borleias in a second assault, having discovered the existence of the Alderaan Biotics facility and a weak point in which the power conduit crossed a rift valley and was exposed. With the dearth of fighters and the difficulties of extraction if a pilot were to be shot down, it was to be a volunteer mission. Darklighter volunteered. As Shiel was grounded, Darklighter was paired with Rhysati Ynr for the mission. The pilots trained relentlessly for the run against the small conduit in the valley; with his Beggar's Canyon experience, Darklighter hit the conduit in simulation more frequently than any other pilot.^[1]

The night before the mission, Darklighter recorded a message for his parents in the event he was killed—something Biggs had never gotten the chance to do. The next morning, Darklighter departed with the rest for Borleias. Their insertion to the planet amid a meteor shower was clear, but a patrol of twelve TIE/ln starfighters was detected crossing their path. Gavin was among those who engaged the patrol while Antilles and Horn began the first canyon run. The two pilots missed, but Darklighter, Ynr, Jace, and Ven were too busy holding off the TIEs—shortly to be reinforced by TIE Interceptors—to make their runs. Antilles was successful as Horn, low on fuel, moved to exit. Darklighter became an ace in the dogfight, racking up his fifth kill, before he and the rest—minus Horn, who did not have enough fuel to leave and had to go to ground on Borleias's moon—headed back to base to refuel, but not before tangling with ten Interceptors while outbound to thin the ranks that would be searching for Horn. The squadron occupied its time on the return trip thinking up plans to rescue Horn, but were pleasantly surprised on their return to find that Horn had been rescued by Celchu and smuggler Mirax Terrik, who had gone to Borleias in Terrik's ship after becoming concerned about a possible security leak.^[1]

Commandos took Borleias, and the squadron moved its base there, spending a month simply patrolling Borleias space. When the freighter Vengeance Derra IV, a ship in the use of Warlord Zsinj, probed Borleias, it was eventually tracked to Mrisst, where Darklighter, now under the command of Lieutenant Pash Cracken in Two Flight, was among the pilots who destroyed the ship and forced another ship in league with it, Contruum's Pride, to stand down.^[7] At that time, Rogue Squadron began to prepare for the capture of Coruscant. They were to be inserted covertly on the planet and to scout its defense network for weak points. Councilor Borsk Fey'lya appended to the operation one of his own, which would release Black Sun operatives from Kessel to disrupt Imperial operations on Coruscant. Rogue Squadron was assigned to release them, and Darklighter flew cover while several other Rogues landed on Kessel and negotiated with the warden, Moruth Doole, for the release of several hardened criminals as well as innocent political prisoners. Around this time, Darklighter may have also received a promotion to lieutenant.^[7]

[edit] Covert on Coruscant

Very shortly thereafter, the time for insertion came. All the pilots were sent down in independent cells, none knowing if any others were along. Darklighter was smuggled onto Coruscant aboard Terrik's Pulsar Skate along with most of the rest of the Rogues. Upon first seeing the planet, he was taken aback by its level of development and activity, never having seen anything even close to Coruscant's urbanization. Upon landing, he was given his cover identity as "Vin Leiger", a small-time con man partnered with "Shaalir Resh"—actually his wingman Shiel.^[7]

Darklighter's group was assigned to scout out the Coruscant undercity and determine the Empire's level of control over it. He and Shiel spent much time alone, scouting the area around the Alien Protection Zone, a nonhuman ghetto better known as the Invisible Sector or Invisec. After one week, he and Shiel rendezvoused with the rest of the group—Ven, Ynr, Qrygg, and Aril Nunb—at the Azure Dianoga Cantina. Shortly after all arrived, a patrol of stormtroopers arrived to make a security sweep. They demanded Darklighter's identification, but it passed their check and, after a bribe from Ven, they departed. He was then approached by Asyr Sei'lar, a black-furred Bothan female. She asked Darklighter for a dance, but, nervous and uninterested, he refused. The Gotal at the next table, in league with Sei'lar, had used his ability to sense mental states, and informed Sei'lar that Darklighter had been nervous when she approached and relieved when she accepted his refusal. She, the Gotal, and many other members of the Alien Combine drew blasters on Darklighter, misinterpreting his emotions and accusing him of bigotry. They intended to kill Darklighter and leave his body as a message against the Imperials, who had been rounding up aliens.^[7]

He was taken into their custody, though his squadron-mates were allowed to tag along, disarmed. The Alien Combine members marched him to a warehouse-like area. As they were preparing to execute him, Ven, a former lawyer, began to argue persuasively in Darklighter's favor, pointing out that a mere feeling of relief was no proof of bigotry. Dmaynel Kiph, the leader of the Combine, was unmoved and ordered Darklighter's death anyway. As his executioner took aim, however, Imperial forces raided the gathering. Darklighter tackled Sei'lar to save her from incoming fire, then grabbed a blaster to begin shooting back. He was nearly killed by return fire before Sei'lar returned the favor, tugging Darklighter down and blasting the stormtrooper. The two fled outside, where they met up with the rest of the group—minus Nunb—and, due to coincidence, Horn. They also met up with Inyri Forge, Lujayne's sister and the lover of Zekka Thyne, one of the Black Sun figures released onto Coruscant, who had been chasing Horn. Her knee was injured, and Darklighter picked her up and carried her to safety with the rest of the group, led by Sei'lar.^[7]

Darklighter and the Rogues spent the next days working on setting up an operation to sabotage Coruscant's shields, working alongside Sei'lar's people and the Black Sun convicts under the control of Fliry Vorru. Darklighter, Horn, Terrik, and Iella Wessiri were involved in purchasing supplies for the underground operation. Darklighter became increasingly taken by Sei'lar, and finally worked up the courage to ask Horn about interspecies dating. Terrik and Wessiri intervened, telling Darklighter the story of Horn's brief relationship with a Selonian, Chertyl Ruluwoor. In the end, they reassured Darklighter that it was worth acting on his attraction.^[7]

When the time came to implement their plan to slip sliced memory cores into Coruscant's main computer control system, Darklighter helped Antilles deliver the sliced cores to the Imperials in charge of the computer system. However, the transfer was raided by stormtroopers, who had been tipped off by the untrustworthy Thyne. Darklighter took cover, firing back, until a hovertruck crashed into the Mekuun Hoverscout providing the majority of the firepower. The Rogues escaped and fled up a large building, but were pinned down by stormtroopers when Celchu suddenly appeared in a Z-95 Headhunter fighter, destroying the opposition. M-3PO, the squadron's protocol unit, brought up a transport, and the group evacuated; Antilles had brought the two to Coruscant without anyone else's knowledge as backup in the event that the unit was compromised, as Antilles expected it to be.^[7]

The unit, along with Sei'lar and several of her people, fled to an undercity safehouse. There, they plotted ways to bring Coruscant's shields down within 48 hours—an assignment they had only recently been given. When Antilles happened to mention taking the world "by storm", Darklighter was suddenly struck by inspiration: if the Rogues could conjure up a massive storm, it could bring down the electrical grid and rob the shields of power. After much conversation, a plan was devised to take control of an orbital mirror and use it to vaporize one of Coruscant's water reservoirs.^[7]

Darklighter was assigned to the team that would take control of the computer center that controlled one of the orbital mirrors. It had been evacuated after Antilles turned a construction droid against it, but Darklighter still carefully led the way to the control room, checking doors as he went. He stood guard as intelligence agent Winter sliced her way into the control room and waited down the hall as Qrygg retrieved breath masks from inside the room for the Human members of the party to use, as the chamber had been flooded with Fex-M3d gas. The operation was successful, generating a massive storm and bringing down the shields. However, Corran Horn was lost in the battle and presumed by all to be dead; he had in fact been taken captive by Imperial Director of Intelligence Isard.^[7]

[edit] Keeping the peace

Darklighter attended Horn's memorial service, an event overblown and propagandized by New Republic bureaucrats. Celchu, who had spent time in Isard's Lusankya facility, immediately fell under suspicion and was arrested and accused of sabotaging Horn's fighter to cause his death. Darklighter, along with the rest of the squadron, stood firmly behind Celchu. The "rest of the squadron" now included Sei'lar, who had formally joined the Rogues in the aftermath of Coruscant's liberation. Darklighter, by now seventeen, asked Sei'lar out, and the pair went on two dates inside a week. Darklighter was enthralled with Sei'lar and eager to share his enthusiasm about her with his friends. Sei'lar, in turn, enjoyed his innocence and fresh, optimistic outlook on the world.^[9]

Within a week of Coruscant's capture, the Rogues were tasked with hitting a space station in orbit over Yag'Dhul where Zsinj had stored a stolen supply of bacta. The healing fluid was desperately needed on Coruscant, which Isard had seeded with the Krytos virus, a virulent disease which infected several nonhuman species and plunged the capital world into chaos. Darklighter escorted the operation's Y-wings towards the station, then fled with them to draw the station's fighter complement into a B-wing ambush. With its fighter complement decimated, Antilles convinced the station to surrender.^[9]

Darklighter returned to Coruscant, where he spent time combating the Krytos virus. He checked the residences of Krytos victims and suspected victims, providing aid or removing bodies. In one particularly gruesome instance, Darklighter found an infected Gamorrean, Tolra, who had barricaded himself inside his house to avoid spreading the infection. His flesh had turned to jelly, but he was still breathing when Darklighter found him and died before the young man's eyes. Darklighter vomited, but was able to accept the death, call for a clean team, and move on—a comfort with death that frightened him and made him wonder if he was losing his compassion. Sei'lar assured him that he was merely maturing.^[9]

With the Celchu Trial ongoing, Rogue Squadron spent much of its time on Coruscant. Darklighter often made time to attend the trial itself, and was likely called as a witness along with most of the other members of the squadron. Around this time, Darklighter's designation was changed from Rogue Five, with Cracken taking the callsign.^[9] Darklighter and Sei'lar became quite fond of each other, becoming intimate as they continued their relationship.^[2][9]

On one particular evening, the pair attended a lavish party on a skyhook hosted by Liska Dan'kre, a Bothan school friend of Sei'lar's. Darklighter was slightly nervous at being so heavily outnumbered by Bothans, and his presence drew significant attention, though he initially mistook the party-goers' reactions as being to Sei'lar's gown. When Dan'kre led Sei'lar away to talk, Darklighter let her go and turned to the bar, where the other non-Bothans were congregating. After a brief conversation with Herrit Gordon, a New Republic diplomat who had been posted to Bothawui, Darklighter was confronted by Karka Kre'fey, the grandson of Laryn Kre'fey. Kre'fey asked Darklighter if the reports he had heard regarding his grandfather's unpreparedness for battle at Borleias were true. Darklighter replied that, in his opinion, they were, and was caught off-guard by a swift slap from Kre'fey. Kre'fey informed him that he had insulted the family honor and challenged him to a duel, but Darklighter refused. Kre'fey accused him of cowardice, but Darklighter refused to rise to the bait, determined to be the better man. He offered Kre'fey his hand, but the young Bothan refused and stormed off. When Sei'lar asked him what had happened, he brushed the incident off and remained at the bar, allowing her to spend time with old friends.^[9]

Darklighter also went along on a diplomatic mission to Ryloth, in which the Rogues were to convince the traders of Kala'uun to sell the New Republic ryll kor, a high-grade version of the ryll spice which proved effective against the Krytos virus as part of a drug cocktail. When they arrived, instead of trading, the Twi'lek warrior Tal'dira forced the merchants to provide the ryll kor as a gift, calling anything less unworthy of warrior honor.^[9]

Darklighter's next mission was to escort a convoy of bacta secretly provided to the New Republic by Xucphra Corporation. Darklighter, with the rest of his flight, was to take up position guarding the tail end of the convoy. As they arrived in the Alderaan system for the rendezvous, however, the Rogues found the convoy utterly destroyed and Zsinj's forces still in the area. The Rogues destroyed the Strike Cruiser Termagant with a proton torpedo volley, then entered a dogfight with the remaining TIEs. Darklighter wished to pursue and punish the TIEs when they withdrew into The Graveyard, but Antilles let them go, knowing they could not survive without a carrier and unwilling to get any more pilots killed. The TIEs soon surrendered, and Antilles ordered Darklighter and Two Flight to travel to Tatooine, hire a freighter from Mos Eisley that could carry the TIEs, and haul them and their pilots back to Coruscant for interrogation.^[9]

Darklighter spent time talking with the squadron and, remembering the time Antilles spent with him after Forge died, decided to offer the same support to Antilles, whose friend Terrik had been part of the convoy. He visited Antilles in his office, who expressed gratitude at the offer but declined to take Darklighter up on it at the time. He informed Darklighter that the New Republic was gearing up for a strike against Zsinj, in which Rogue Squadron would play an important part.^[9]

Not long after, the squadron was scrambled in the middle of the night to fly cover against a Palpatine Counter-Insurgency Front strike at a bacta storage facility. Darklighter tracked down and destroyed fleeing enemies as Antilles struck the terrorists' operational warehouse and destroyed the bomb-laded airspeeder that was to be used in the strike. As the operation wrapped up, however, the Rogues were shocked to find a Super Star Destroyer emerging from the Coruscant cityscape. The long-buried Lusankya battered its way through the shields and out to freedom as Darklighter and the other Rogues engaged its TIE escort. Pilot Erisi Dlarit was snared by Lusankya's tractor beams, and Darklighter was willing to take the fight to the massive starship to free her. However, Antilles called the squadron off, and it was revealed immediately afterwards that Dlarit had in fact been the spy inside Rogue Squadron, not Celchu.^[9]

With Horn's escape from Lusankya before its violent departure, all charges were dropped against Celchu. Rogue Squadron followed that up by running a series of missions against the Palpatine Counter-Insurgency Front, destroying its ability to strike at the New Republic. After that was complete, Darklighter, along with the rest of Rogue Squadron, was awarded the newly created Coruscant Star of Valor, the highest military decoration the New Republic could give, in a ceremony in which Terrik was also revealed as having survived. At that ceremony, however, it was also revealed that the New Republic would not take action against Isard, who had set herself up as ruler of the bacta-producing planet Thyferra via a coup, in order to prevent political fallout from dislodging the internally determined ruler of a neutral state. Outraged by the political maneuvering, Horn, Antilles, and then the rest of the Rogues, including Darklighter, resigned their commissions to pursue their own course of action against Isard.^[9][4]

[edit] The Bacta War

Antilles began building a private army to take down Isard. The Rogues—minus Cracken—Wessiri, Terrik, and Winter began the process of securing assets for use against Isard. The first was the Yag'dhul station from which they had earlier driven Zsinj, which would serve them as a base of operations. In an early briefing, Antilles outlined the situation. Darklighter was assigned, along with Terrik and Horn, to Tatooine to negotiate with his uncle Huff for supplies left over from the Eidolon cache that Rogue Squadron had uncovered a few years earlier and possession of which Huff had taken.^[4]

When they arrived on the planet at a docking bay owned by a distant relative, Darklighter recommended a rendezvous in Chalmun's Cantina while he secured a speeder. He was only able to afford an ugly, old, heavily modified speeder, and picked up Horn and Terrik, taking them out to his uncle's estate. Darklighter enjoyed a reunion with some of his large extended family before he entered Huff's library to wait for his uncle to conclude another business meeting. Gavin received a friendly greeting from Huff, but the older Darklighter was taken aback when Horn began pressing him on the deal by threatening to expose his involvement in smuggling. When it was revealed that Booster Terrik, Mirax's father, was in the next room, however, the legendary smuggler forced Huff to provide the arms at prices below market value.^[4]

The Rogue party accepted invitations to stay overnight at Huff's estate, and Darklighter's family traveled over from their farm to spend time with him. In the impromptu family reunion, Darklighter impressed his relations with tales from his service while downplaying the danger he had been in, conscious of the specter of Biggs's death. His parents openly displayed their pride in him, and Silya engaged in constant maternal concern. Jula later took Horn aside and thanked him for taking care of Gavin, but Horn assured the man that his son was capable of taking care of himself and was an excellent pilot and man. Darklighter's parents were very proud indeed.^[4]

By the time Darklighter returned to the Yag'Dhul station, the squadron had purchased its old fighters from the New Republic, friendly forces within the bureaucracy having classified the fighters as surplus. No longer in New Republic service, the fighters were given new, individualized paint jobs and transponder codes; Darklighter's X-wing was repainted to resemble Tatooine's top predator, the Krayt dragon. Darklighter's designation had also by this time been shifted to that of Rogue Three. The anti-Imperial guerrilla group led by Elscol Loro and Sixtus Quin had also joined the effort.^[4]

The Rogues began a program of raiding bacta convoys, stealing Isard's bacta and providing it to needy worlds free of charge. They were shortly joined by the Twi'lek warrior Tal'dira, whom they had met on Ryloth, and a squadron of his hybrid Chir'daki fighters. On one mission, the two squadrons attempted to make off with three bacta freighters which had been driven off course via sliced navicomputers. Two of the three freighters agreed to defect, but the most senior among the three captains made to turn his guns on one of the defecting ships. Darklighter and Shiel made a run against the Xucphra Alazhi, disarming it. The captain made the choice to stand down and defect, and Darklighter, Shiel, and two Chir'daki pilots were assigned to escort the Alazhi to its destination. As the ships prepared to leave, however, the Victory II-class Star Destroyer Corrupter under Ait Convarion, one of Isard's four Star Destroyers, jumped into the system, unleashing a torrent of fire. Darklighter's longtime wingmate Shiel, the two Twi'lek pilots, and the Alazhi were immediately destroyed. Darklighter jumped blindly into hyperspace to escape, and was presumed dead by his comrades.^[4]

Darklighter held the highly dangerous blind jump for fifteen seconds before decanting. To cover his trail and prevent being tracked by Corrupter, he made seven short jumps back and forth before making a longer jump to the Outer Rim. Darklighter put down on a small world, where he encountered difficulties and left for Yag'Dhul. Low on fuel, he made Halanit his first stop, a world the Rogues had given bacta earlier. The Halanits refueled his starfighter, but due to technical issues, the refueling took two days. Darklighter was treated as an honored guest for his stay.^[4]

However, Darklighter was awoken early by an explosion and was quickly made aware of the situation by Halanit's leader, Farl Cort. Corrupter was in orbit and launching an assault. In fact, it was to punish Halanit for the use of the stolen bacta, but Darklighter assumed Convarion had tracked him there and that he had brought death upon the Halanits. Darklighter commed Jawaswag to ready his fighter and had Cort lead him to the hangars. Darklighter ordered the unarmed Halanits to hold tight, giving Cort his blaster. He planned to blast off and lead the Imperials away, presuming he was their quarry. Due to fuel limitations he only had ten minutes of dogfighting time, and planned to use them to greatest effect. Darklighter brought down two Interceptors with proton torpedoes before the Imperials were even aware of his presence, then followed a third down into the Halanit colony, destroying it in view of Dlarit, who was present as commander of the Thyferran TIE complement. Darklighter paused briefly to annihilate several stormtroopers with his fighter's lasers before strafing more on his way out, nearly killing Convarion, who was on the ground. On his way out of the system, Dlarit spoke to him on the comm, urging him to surrender and accusing him of cowardice for running away from her. Darklighter refused to be taken in by appeals to pride and told Dlarit that he was not stupid enough to turn around to engage her while Corrupter cut him off. He promised to make Dlarit and the Imperials pay for the destruction of Halanit and jumped into hyperspace.^[4]

Darklighter made his way back to Yag'Dhul, where the squadron was briefed from his sensor data. Antilles decided to change the way bacta was distributed to avoid making any other worlds targets, and reassured Darklighter that Corrupter's assault had not been his fault. However, Halanit had been totally destroyed, and Darklighter demanded that the Rogues make Isard and her cronies pay. To that end, the Rogue continued raiding Thyferran shipping and assets. When Darklighter was not on such missions, he spent much of his downtime with Sei'lar.^[4]

Antilles's insurgent forces began purchasing supplies from Talon Karrde, and the first shipment was to be transferred at a rendezvous in the Alderaan system. The Rogues flew cover, but a spy in Karrde's organization had leaked the location, causing Isard to ambush them with Corrupter and an Interdictor rented from the warlord Teradoc. When the ambush was sprung, Darklighter followed telemetry from Antilles and then Celchu to launch repeated proton torpedo bombardments. Combined with the unexpected arrival of the Thranta-class War Cruiser Valiant, an escort ship for the legendary Another Chance which was responding to Celchu's Alderaanian transponder signal, the Rogues destroyed Corrupter. Another torpedo run badly damaged the Interdictor, which deactivated its gravity well projectors and fled.^[4]

When the Rogues moved to subvert Captain Sair Yonka of the Avarice, one of Isard's Star Destroyers, Darklighter was among those involved. Wearing the blue-dyed stormtrooper armor purchased from his uncle, he and several other Rogues crept near the cottage in which Yonka was having a rendezvous with his mistress. While the others covered them, Darklighter and Antilles crept into the residence. Darklighter stunned the woman and Antilles made Yonka the offer to defect. Darklighter was also among the flight escorting Karrde's final convoy to the Yag'Dhul station itself. With that, Antilles's preparations for victory were complete.^[4]

With the station's location revealed by the spy within Karrde's operation, Antilles assumed that Lusankya would arrive to destroy the station and prepared to evacuate the fighters and freighters. Unknown to Darklighter and most of the others, Booster Terrik would remain aboard the station, which had been fitted with several hundred missile and torpedo targeting units, allowing it to establish an overwhelming number of targeting locks on the Super Star Destroyer. Combined with a gravity well projector and a strong tractor beam array, Lusankya would be held in place and forced to surrender. The plan went off well, with the fighters and freighters jumping on a course to Thyferra to begin the final attack and Lusankya being pinned. The tractor beam lock was broken by the Virulence sacrificing itself, however, allowing Lusankya to return to Thyferra behind the task force. The Virulence, though, surrendered after Lusankya's escape.^[4]

The fighters did not make directly for Thyferra, however, allowing Lusankya to arrive there first, expecting the attack to already be underway. Instead, Yonka jumped his renamed Freedom into the system, deploying the X-wings from there; instead of being exhausted after twelve hours in their cockpits during transit, the Rogues were fresh and rested. Darklighter and other pilots took on the Thyferran Home Defense Corps pilots which were scrambled to meet them; instead of forming up, they came on piecemeal, allowing them to be easily downed one bit at a time. As the fighters were thinned out, Darklighter and the other Rogues began making torpedo runs against the Lusankya, feeding their telemetry to the freighters, which had been armed with the launchers that would otherwise have went with the sensor packages mounted on the Yag'Dhul station. The relentless bombardment was joined by the captured Virulence, which jumped into the system under Terrik's command and deployed Pash Cracken's A-wing unit. Darklighter began a strafing run against the massive ship shortly before it surrendered. With that followed up shortly by the destruction of the shuttle Isard was using to escape the system, the battle was over. She was presumed dead.^[4]

[edit] The hunt for Zsinj

Given their success, the New Republic eagerly welcomed the Rogues back into its service, playing the Bacta War off to the public as a covert but sanctioned operation, and telling the Rogues their resignations had never taken effect due to a supposed bureaucratic mishap.^[4][10] Darklighter, along with the rest of the squadron, accepted the offer to return. The Rogues took on the assignment of training the new, Republic-allied Thyferran Aerospace Defense Force as a brief break.^[4] During that time, Darklighter was invited to, and attended with the rest of the squadron, Qrygg's janwuine-jika, the ceremony in which he was declared janwuine, or worthy to speak of himself in the first person.^[4][11] Their duty on Thyferra was cut somewhat short and they returned to Coruscant, where they were met by the temporary Rogue Squadron, led by Derek Klivian, that had been filling in for the Rogues for publicity reasons. After a crowd-pleasing display of precision flying, they put down and were given a heroic welcome ceremony.^[10]

Antilles, however, departed to form Wraith Squadron, a unit of commando-pilots, leaving Celchu in charge of operations within the squadron. Rogue Squadron's lost pilots were replaced, and the unit was sent to join the task force under General Han Solo's command that was hunting Warlord Zsinj. The Rogues were present and ready for the Battle of Talasea, a trap for the forces of Zsinj's subordinate Admiral Apwar Trigit, but the Wraiths eliminated Trigit's forces on their own before the other forces were needed. The Rogues were also deployed at the Battle of Ession, decimating Trigit's fighter complement before his Star Destroyer, Implacable, was destroyed.^[10]

The Rogues were then transferred to Mon Remonda, Solo's flagship, to provide direct support to Solo's task force. They provided fighter cover for his operations and, when the Wraiths joined the task force, frequently worked in joint missions such as the feint at Lavisar. When the Solo Fleet planned an ambush of Zsinj and his recently stolen Super Star Destroyer Razor's Kiss, Darklighter and the Rogues flew against Zsinj's fighter escort, engaging in a grueling dogfight against fighters that included elements of Zsinj's skilled impostor 181st Imperial Fighter Group. Razor's Kiss was destroyed, but Zsinj escaped.^[12]

Mon Remonda, and with it the fighter complement, returned to dock for repairs. By now, Darklighter had gained the rank of lieutenant, which he may have held as early as the mission to take Coruscant. He had also changed designations once more, to Rogue Six, becoming Tal'dira's wingman. As Rogue Three's fighter did not match Darklighter's paint job as early as the return from Thyferra, Darklighter most likely held the new callsign throughout the entire Zsinj campaign.^[13]

The task force left dock and arrived in the Levian system, site of a recent raid by Zsinj. Zsinj ambushed them, however, and the Rogues destroyed a Carrack-class cruiser on the way out—through Zsinj's forces. The Rogues were next assigned to infiltrate Saffalore with the Wraiths and provide support to the Wraiths' mission to investigate a biomedical operation with ties to Zsinj. Upon learning they were only to provide support, Darklighter was annoyed at having to "baby-sit" the other pilots, but was mollified when told that they would have a target worthy of their skills. They made planetfall under the cover of a meteor shower. When the Wraiths got into trouble at Binring, the Rogues scrambled to cover them; Darklighter was, as he had hoped he would not, assigned to simply destroy marked targets to allow the Wraiths to escape, then escorted their speeder out.^[13]

On a mission to aid Jussafet Four, a world under attack by Zsinj's forces, Darklighter was shocked to see his wingman, Tal'dira, fire on Antilles as the fighters were being deployed. When the Twi'lek refused to stand down, Horn destroyed him. Darklighter continued on the mission, which was successful, but all the Rogues were deeply disturbed by the betrayal; Darklighter especially was stunned into a more serious and subdued mindset. After investigating the issue, they believed that Tal'dira had been forcibly brainwashed by Zsinj's agents. Darklighter would fly his next missions without a wingman.^[13]

Tension had been building in the task force, and Antilles enacted a plan to address it. He took over the officers' cafeteria, declaring that no rank insignia were allowed within, none of the individuals within were actually officers—just individuals who looked like them—and no pilots were allowed within without bringing their astromechs. Without the formalities of rank, the cafeteria was turned into an area of recreation, with sabacc, astromech races, and other such amusements. Off-duty crewers eagerly entered Antilles's "mutiny of anonymity". Darklighter himself entered a hand of sabacc with Sei'lar, Solo, Antilles, Chewbacca, and Todra Mayn of Polearm Squadron.^[13]

The next day, Darklighter and the Rogues covered the extraction of the Millennium Falsehood from Kidriff 5. The ship, a YT-1300 mocked up to resemble the Millennium Falcon, was piloted by Antilles and Chewbacca and was part of a plot to lure Zsinj into thinking Solo was making runs in the Falcon and lure him into an attack. Darklighter and the Rogues continued a fast pace of operations by flying missions constantly, sometimes twice a day.^[13]

The final confrontation of the campaign began with the Battle of Vahaba, in which the Solo Fleet ambushed Zsinj with an Interdictor. Darklighter and the Rogues flew against the Iron Fist, making a concerted torpedo run along with Gauntlet Squadron and Lightning Squadron before breaking up for strafing runs; Zsinj had not deployed his fighters. Iron Fist was badly damaged but managed to flee; the fleet tracked it to Selaggis. The Rogues fanned out through the system's asteroid field to track down the Iron Fist. Once it was located, they again engaged it, narrowly avoiding an ambush attempt when Zsinj began blasting asteroids near the starfighters, filling space with shrapnel. When the impostor 181st launched, the Rogues and Wraiths were pulled off to track it to the ruins of a colony; when the TIEs began strafing, the Rogues were forced to assume that survivors were being targeted. The two squadrons eliminated the false 181st and the ploy was finally revealed, which was followed up with an assault by Zsinj's new TIE Raptors. The Rogues destroyed them as well. In addition, Iron Fist was reported destroyed. Darklighter celebrated the reduction of Zsinj's strength and, with his position so diminished, the Rogues were transferred out of the task force to recover with easier duty.^[13] Darklighter also likely received some leave time at this point, which he used to visit his family on Tatooine.^[5]

[edit] The Thrawn campaign

Approximately one year later, in 9 ABY, Grand Admiral Thrawn began his campaign to retake the galaxy for the Empire. The Rogues protected the Solos during an early kidnapping attempt engineered by Thrawn, and were later assigned to escort the Larkhess to and from Sluis Van. During their layover at Sluis Van, Thrawn began one of the first battles of his campaign. Upon observing a suspicious freighter, Antilles scrambled the Rogues from the Larkhess; shortly after doing so, the freighter launched a mass of TIEs which had been hidden inside a cloaked cargo bay. Thrawn's flotilla arrived in short order to support them. However, with the aid of Skywalker, Solo, and Lando Calrissian, they were able to foil Thrawn's plot to hijack many of the capital ships at Sluis Van for repairs.^[14]

Rogue Squadron was also sent to escort Solo and Skywalker to the Katana fleet in an attempt to take possession of it. There, Councilor Fey'lya arrived and attempted to order their arrest, as they were acting on orders from Organa Solo which Fey'lya had had Chief of State Mon Mothma countermand. As they moved to stand down, however, Imperial forces arrived. Darklighter flew into combat with Antilles to protect Solo, Skywalker and their team. Fey'lya refused to provide support. With timely intervention by Organa Solo, Karrde, and Garm Bel Iblis, however, the attack was driven off.^[15] Darklighter fought faithfully throughout the many battles the Rogues found themselves in during the campaign, including action at Filve and the Battle of Qat Chrystac, in which Bel Iblis debuted the A-wing Slash using Rogue Squadron as the front squadron.^[2][16]

The Rogues were also present at the final battle of the conflict. By now Wes Janson's wingmate, Darklighter speculated on the presence of some of Karrde's people before the battle. The New Republic fleet was supposed to launch a surprise attack and secure a crystal gravfield trap from the Bilbringi shipyards, which was needed to detect the cloaked asteroids in Coruscant's orbit. However, Thrawn had anticipated them and the Rogues were caught in a fierce dogfight upon leaving hyperspace. Antilles was contacted by Aves, one of Karrde's top lieutenants, and the two planned to attack a Golan station in the shipyards, opening the shipyards to the New Republic and forcing the Imperials to reallocate forces to counter the threat. Darklighter was somewhat surprised at taking on such a strong target. Proton torpedo barrages softened it up, however, before two Assault Frigates arrived to pummel the station into submission. Shortly after that, however, Thrawn's fleet broke off and retreated; Darklighter did not know it at the time, but the Grand Admiral had been assassinated.^[16][17]

Darklighter attended a Rogue Squadron party upon returning to Coruscant. The party was violently interrupted, however, when Urlor Sette, one of Horn's companions on the Lusankya, arrived and was killed by an implanted capsule of venom in a taunt to the Rogues. Darklighter was disturbed, reminded of the gruesome deaths the Krytos virus had wrought. In the aftermath of Thrawn's defeat, Admiral Ackbar pressed on Antilles to accept a general's commission, telling him that his refusal to accept promotions was holding his subordinates back from promotions they deserved. Ackbar cited Darklighter as deserving a captain's rank among other examples, and captain was the rank Darklighter, only nineteen, received shortly thereafter.^[17] Darklighter had by now grown a goatee, begun cohabiting with Sei'lar, and developed into a veteran pilot. He was also considering marrying and starting a family with Sei'lar. Though the pair were biologically prevented from having children, Darklighter proposed that they adopt, suggesting two indigent children who lived outside the Rogue Squadron hangar, and Sei'lar insisted they adopt at least one Bothan. Darklighter felt that by adopting, they could undo some of the damage the Empire had done to the galaxy and heal some rifts. Sei'lar was worried about her family attempting to exert control over any Bothan child, but Darklighter accepted the realities of Bothan culture.^[17] Darklighter did not care for the more manipulative aspects of Bothan culture, but he had learned to speak the language and respected many aspects of it, such as its strong family loyalty. He was determined to give any child a strong grounding in his or her heritage.^[17][4][18] He also knew one parent would have to retire from the squadron, but neither was ready to make that decision yet.^[17]

Rogue Squadron's next strike was at Commenor, where the components in the implanted device which killed Sette had been traced. As Commenor was actually a neutral world, the Rogues were infiltrated on civilian transport and had their X-wings painted black for the operation. They set out for the abandoned Xenovet facility but were ambushed by Interceptors on the way there. Darklighter was not involved in combat, as the Rogues, Colonel Kapp Dendo's Commando Team One, and Captain Judder Page's Katarn Commandos quickly secured the Xenovet compound and found there several Lusankya prisoners housed in the facility's barn. Darklighter was assigned to escort the transport carrying pickup crews to the facility. Even more chilling than the wretched state of the prisoners, however, was their news that Isard was alive and active.^[17]

After the mission, Darklighter approached Horn to ask if he had ever thought about becoming a father. Darklighter and Sei'lar were planning to marry, and had begun the preliminary steps for adoption. Horn congratulated Darklighter on the news and assured him he would make an excellent father. Darklighter moved to his point, requesting to use Horn and his wife Mirax as references in the adoption process. Horn happily agreed. Meanwhile, however, Sei'lar had been called into a meeting with Fey'lya, who attempted to pressure her to withdraw the application to adopt a Bothan child. He felt that by marrying a human and adopting outside her species as well, she would provide a poor role model for other Bothans; being a popular figure, she could, Fey'lya thought, have a highly detrimental effect on Bothan culture. Fey'lya implied that, if she did not comply, he would block any adoptions and make the pair's life as difficult as possible. Sei'lar requested time to consider her choice, but had no actual interest in following Fey'lya's instructions.^[17]

[edit] The return of Isard

The New Republic had decided to make an example of Prince-Admiral Delak Krennel, an Imperial warlord who ruled the Ciutric Hegemony. To that end, Rogue Squadron was part of a fleet dispatched against Liinade III, a minor Hegemony world. The Rogues engaged and destroyed the fighter cover in space before moving into the atmosphere to cover the insertion of troops. They secured the world, but Horn found a secret research facility which had been analyzing plans for a Death Star-style superweapon which the New Republic dubbed Pulsar Station. Krennel issued a holographic message in which he accused the New Republic of framing him and positioned himself as a foe of superweapons. Darklighter was among many other Rogues who watched the broadcast and angrily criticized Krennel's arguments, but others pointed out to him that the public could be more easily fooled. Foreseeing future scouting trips to look for the station, he decided to spend more time in the Recon-X simulators.^[17]

The squadron was assigned to make a scouting run through the Corvis Minor system and check to see if a moon, Distna, was being used as a construction site for Pulsar Station. Former Rogue Nrin Vakil would pilot the recon fighter. The squadron spent much time in simulators, and in one simulation, Darklighter, not seeing much point in trying to survive a scenario in which the squadron had already been heavily hit, stayed behind when he could have departed in order to protect Sei'lar. Sei'lar angrily told him that if she were ever to be disabled and facing impossible odds, Darklighter should not throw his own life away in an emotional attempt to rescue her. She attempted to make him promise, but Vakil broke in and insisted she not do so, saying no promise would hold up in a combat situation and would only leave the survivor feeling guilty for breaking it.^[17]

On the mission, the Rogues were ambushed by six squadrons of fighters, a full wing. They battled furiously, but the odds were overwhelming. Two of the newer pilots were killed, and Darklighter's wingmate Janson was presumed dead. Sei'lar flew with reckless abandon and skill, as she had since her argument with Fey'lya, but slammed into a TIE Bomber. The Rogues were rescued only by the arrival of two squadrons of TIE Defenders under the command of Imperial Colonel Broak Vessery, who destroyed Krennel's TIEs and compelled the surviving Rogues to come with them. They were brought to a secret base, where they found that Isard had indeed survived—and that the Isard who had sent Sette to his death and was now working with Krennel was in fact a clone.^[17]

Darklighter, along with the other Rogues, believed Sei'lar dead. He was deeply stricken by sorrow and wanted nothing more than to be alone and grieve. The life he and Sei'lar had just begun planning had been abruptly cut out from under him and he was worried that, in the rush to memorialize her, her true self would be lost, turned into a Bothan propaganda tool. Horn came alongside him in the Imperial base and assured him that, while the pain would never leave him, it would recede in time. Horn also encouraged Darklighter to continue his plans to adopt children, assuring him he would be an excellent father; Darklighter considered it a possibility, but hurt too badly to plan for a future he did not currently care about. What Darklighter did not know was that Sei'lar had survived the crash and had been picked up, along with Janson, by Booster Terrik, Mirax Terrik Horn, and Iella Wessiri aboard the Errant Venture, who arrived just after the battle, having concluded an ambush was likely. Sei'lar, however, insisted that Terrik not reveal her survival. Knowing Fey'lya would always attempt to make her life miserable, she decided to take the chance to be presumed dead, take on a new identity, and attempt to reform Bothan society from the inside. It broke her heart to leave Darklighter, but she felt that their relationship would constantly be under attack by Bothan politics and did not wish to have him devote his life to the painful, lonely crusade she felt she had to take on.^[17]

Isard intended to infiltrate the Rogues into Krennel's forces; the warlord had been picking up mercenary and ex-Imperial units to supplement his forces. To that end, the Rogues were put to work in TIE Defender simulators, familiarizing themselves with the advanced Imperial starfighters. Darklighter was shifted into One Flight with Antilles, Klivian, and Myn Donos. They simmed frequently against the TIE pilots until the time came for their insertion onto Ciutric IV. Masquerading as Requiem Squadron, they arrived on-planet and were personally greeted by Krennel. They spent a week there, becoming part of Krennel's defense apparatus.^[17]

When the New Republic fleet arrived, following instructions sent by Antilles, the Rogues were among the fighters Krennel scrambled. Instead of flying to his defense, though, Two Flight moved to liberate the Lusankya prisoners housed on Ciutric and One Flight attacked Ciutric's shield generator. Darklighter, paired with Donos, was assigned to knock out the eastern set of towers, bristling with ion cannons, which defended the generator. Darklighter destroyed the tower he was assigned to eliminate, then made a strafing run against the last remaining one as Antilles destroyed the shield generator. The flight then headed to the prison, where they joined Celchu and Forge in holding off reinforcements. When Isard's clone attempted the same trick Isard had at Thyferra, sending up a shuttle in which she was supposedly fleeing, Darklighter cut between it and the prison to prevent it from striking at the prisoners and Rogues inside, then moved above it to herd it into Antilles's sights. When Donos fired on it from its port, it sideslipped starboard, directly into Darklighter's sights; he destroyed the shuttle and killed its pilot, Colonel Lorrir. Meanwhile, Antilles triangulated the transmissions Isard's clone was using to appear as if she was aboard the shuttle and destroyed her building, killing her. In the fleet battle above, Krennel was killed, and the Hegemony's forces surrendered to the New Republic.^[17]

The release of the prisoners and the triumph over Krennel and Isard—the woman herself had been killed while attempting to steal the captured Lusankya from the shipyards of Bilbringi—was celebrated with a party held on the newly refitted Lusankya. Darklighter attended and celebrated with the rest, though he was still suffering from his grief.^[17] During the party, Sei'lar took her leave from the Terriks and Wessiri to begin her efforts; Wessiri tried to talk her into staying and revealing herself to Darklighter, but the Bothan had made up her mind. She left, and Darklighter never learned of her survival.^[17][2]

[edit] Settling down

Darklighter spent more time in mourning, but eventually moved beyond it. To root his life, he continued the process of adoption that he and Sei'lar had started. Though Fey'lya would never have allowed him to adopt a Bothan, Darklighter sought to adopt the two young homeless brothers who lived near the squadron hangar.^[17][2] The social worker who handled the case was