Star Wars: The Old Republic Short Story and NPC Biographies
-
Category: News ArchiveHits: 1588
THE BUTCHER OF CORUSCANT
Cultured, cunning and utterly ruthless, Rycus Kilran may be the greatest naval strategist the Empire has ever seen. Born to a wealthy family with a proud military tradition, Kilran proved himself (to no one's surprise) a capable right-hand man to the Sith during the Empire's early assaults on the Brema Sector. When his Sith superior died during the Battle of Ord Ibanna, however, Kilran showed that he was more than an able tactical advisor he assumed command of the ragged Imperial fleet and led them to a swift and decisive victory.
In the years that followed, Kilran's authority grew with his list of triumphs, and both the Sith and the Minister of War learned respect for his unorthodox strategies. His brutally effective strikes during the final days of the war earned him the nickname (the Butcher of Coruscant) among Republic civilians (a name he adopted with characteristic irony), and his heroic stand against a Jedi boarding party earned him his scars. After the war ended, he was granted the honorary title (Grand Moff) in recognition of his contributions.
And here's a snip from the aforementioned short story:
Hylo closed her eyes and tried to drown out Musk's guttural droning. She focused on the sound of the Fleece's engines -- a sound she knew better than the sound of her own voice. Hylo had often claimed that she could pinpoint any of the ship's technical problems just by spending a few minutes listening to the engine. Her claim usually drew a skeptical laugh, but it was the truth. She knew the sound of the ship's engines well enough to notice the slightest skip or stutter. She had repaired the Fleece enough times to know what most of these aberrational sounds meant as well.
The Crimson Fleece was nothing like the ship she originally purchased. In the decade since she scraped together enough credits to buy the old wreck, she had replaced nearly every part, some of them more than once. Because of its age, most of the original parts were no longer available, but Hylo had improvised -- buying scraps from other ships and rigging them together. After her latest round of upgrades, the Fleece was probably worth triple its original value, but it would take an expert mechanic to recognize that fact. She'd never be able to get even half of what the ship was worth if she tried to sell it, so she didn't bother. It suited her needs well enough for now, but she knew someday she'd have to replace it, just to give herself another renovation project, if nothing else.
