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- "You are remembered for the rules you break."
- ―Xander Drax
Xander Drax was a former Imperial Admiral and TIE pilot who served the Empire and Emperor's Hammer. He had been in Imperial service for nearly a quarter century before he was forced to leave the Emperor's Hammer under the threat of death. Drax had discovered his force sense during his days with the Hammer, but did not chose to develop it until several years after leaving its service. He was an Obelisk member of Clan Arcona at the time of his death.
Character History
Early Life
22 BBY to 5 BBY
Drax was born on the factory world of Fondor in 27 BBY. As his parents were both workers at the orbital shipyards, it was only natural that Xander would end up in the family business as well. By the time he first started working the docks at the age of 14, he had already decided to move on to bigger and better things. With the help of several dock pilots, Xander began to train on the yard's shuttle simulators in order to acquire the knowledge needed to apply to the Imperial Academy. For two years he worked in the dockyards, helping construct many of the Empire's early Star Destroyers.
By his 16th birthday, Xander had already submitted his application and was accepted into the Academy. For training as a pilot he was sent to the Prefsbelt IV Naval Academy. While initially trained as a shuttle pilot, Xander showed sufficient aptitude to be transferred to TIE flight school. Xander graduated in the upper half of his class with both starfighter and shuttle certifications, and was assigned to the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Allecto.
Imperial Service
5 BBY to 11 ABY
Drax upon his graduation
Drax was first assigned to shuttle missions upon arriving on the Allecto, but was put on a list for possible transfer to a starfighter unit. In 5 BBY, Xander would see his first major action as a pilot during the Battle of Bryx. His shuttle group was responsible for delivering ground troops to the surface of the planet following the orbital bombardment of the planet. Drax lead his group of shuttles through the disastrous operation, and even scored a kill during the engagements against Governor Carigan's starfighter forces. Following the operation, in response to his proficiency and aptitude, he was reassigned to the 136th Imperial Fighter Group aboard the Allecto.
After several tours of duty, Xander was made a flight leader in the 136's 2nd Squadron. The 2/136th was one of the most proficient squadrons aboard the Allecto, having the best fit-reps and combat statistics. Xander would later take part in the Second Battle of Mon Calamari in 1 BBY. The Allecto had been docked in the shipyards above the planet for repairs, but along with many of the other ships at the yards it was sabotaged before the battle began. However, the fighters of the 136th fought valiantly during the battle, allowing their damaged ship the time to limp from the shipyard and escape.
Once the Allecto had completed repairs at Kuat, she was then assigned to Governor Tarkin's Fleet. As part of her duties during that time, she was tasked to rendezvous with the Grand Moff himself in 0 BBY. During that mission, Tarkin's shuttle and the Allecto came under attack by three squadrons of rebel fighters. It was only by the quick action of the pilots of the 136th that the Grand Moff was saved and the Allecto escaped destruction. Due to his actions during the engagement, Drax was promoted to the rank of Captain and given command of the 2/136th. He would remain in this position for several years, when he would once again garner recognition for his actions.
The 136th was assigned beside the famed 181st Fighter Group in what would become known as the Battle of Derra IV. Though tasked with a tertiary roll backing up the 181st, Drax hoped before the engagement that there would be action enough for all of them. When they arrived, in system, the Imperials and Drax alike were overjoyed to see that they had underestimated the size of the Rebel convoy.
Battle of Derra IV
During the engagement, Drax and pilots of the 136th were responsible for the destruction of several starfighters and two transport vessels. With the death of the 136th's commander during the battle at the hands of X-wing fighters, Drax was promoted to Major and given command of the Group. However, after nearly four years of constant combat assignments, the 136th was assigned to relive the 57th Fighter Group on the new Imperial holding of Bakura, under the overall command of commander Pter Thanas.
They would only be on station there less then a year before the Ssi-Ruuk attacked. Elements of the 136th were on the front lines of the initial combat, and the group was decimated in early engagements. Having fallen back to Bakura itself, the 136th was facing a last stand when Rebel forces arrived in system. This was the first many of the Imperials had seen of the Rebels, Drax included, and he had to admit that their sight was a welcome one. After the Ssi-Ruuk were defeated, Drax and the remainder of the 136th attacked their rebel allies, but were eventually defeated when Thanas defected to the Rebellion. Drax and the surviving members of the 136th were allowed to leave the planet peacefully.
Upon their return to Coruscant, the 136th was decommissioned as a unit and its few remaining pilots assigned to other squadrons. Drax was assigned to command the 2/54th that was stationed planetside. After years of shipboard and backwater assignments, Drax found his time on Coruscant exhilarating. The large city planet reminded him of his home on Fondor, and he began to see the appeal of then Imperial Center. All of this changed, however, less then two years later.
It was at this time that Ysane Isard would, in affect, abandon the planet to the rebels. Drax would participate in the Battle of Coruscant, but quickly saw it for what it was. After the shield collapse, the token resistance possible given the weak defenses the planet had been left with offered no hope of victory. After hours of battle, Drax gave the recall signal to those craft under his command, and they returned to their base. Drax knew that his pilots would have little hope if they did not get off planet soon, so he appropriated one of the base's Lambda-class shuttles, loaded up his pilots, and fled the planet.
The 54th was then reassigned to the Peremptory, an early model Imperial Star Destroyer. The Peremptory, however, mostly stayed in Imperial held space, and normally found itself opposing pirates and mercenaries as opposed to Rebel activity. Finally, with the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn, the Empire would once again go on the offensive. The first real action the 2/54th saw in years was at the Battle of Storinal, where they would assist in the capture of the Rebel star destroyer Rebel Dream. The Peremptory, however, would meet her end less then a year later, however. The ship was dispatched to reinforce the Judicator during the Battle for the Katana fleet, but was destroyed when rammed by one of the Dreadnaughts she had been sent to secure. The 2/54th, and Drax, would both survive their ship, as they had been the first to launch into combat. They were recovered by the Judicator as she withdrew from the combat zone.
Drax would be berthed aboard the Judicator for what remained of his Imperial service. He would see action during the Battle of Bilbringi, and later during the campaign of the reborn Emperor Palpatine. The last action Drax would participate in as a member of the Imperial Remnant would be the Battle of Duro. During the engagement, as Drax saw Pellaeon's flagship Chimera lost, he felt as if a part of the Empire went with it. The feeling would be more prescient then he knew, as shortly thereafter Palpatine would finally fall, and Byss was destroyed.
Emperor's Hammer
11 ABY to 20 ABY
The EH Strike Fleet in orbit of Aurora Prime.
Like many officers after the final defeat of Palpatine, Xander was unsure of any central Imperial Authority. Isard had held the throne world, Thrawn was a Grand Admiral, and the Emperor was the Emperor. But once they were gone, so with them went any easy answers. Having seen how the rival warlords quickly degenerated into squabbling factions, Drax and those under his command were left without purpose.
Several weeks after the fall of Palpatine, Drax and those pilots still with him were approached by an officer of the Emperor's Hammer Strike Fleet. He explained that there was another of the Emperor's Grand Admirals still alive, and in a position to strike at the heart of the rebellion from his holdings on the edge of the Unknown Regions. After several days of negotiations, Xander brought himself and his pilots into the EH's service. Xander would be assigned to Zayin Squadron aboard their flagship, the lead ship of the Soverign-class. He would serve the squadron for four years in various roles, including that of her commander.
While in Zayin, Xander participated in numerous engagements against pilots of the New Republic. However, as the Soverign rarely left EH controlled space, and mainly stood in orbit of Aurora Prime, the EH's homeworld, these actions were few and far between. In the year 15 ABY, Drax transferred to the Imperial-class Vanguard in order to see more combat. It was also at this time that Drax would serve on detached duty for some months with the Brotherhood in command of Sapphire Squadron in Clan Naga Shadow. Having discovered his force abilities, the Brotherhood brought him over to help shape their new squadrons, their houses having recently changed organization. While there, Drax lightly developed his force sense, but his time was more consumed with pilot training then training himself. Shortly thereafter, he returned to the Vanguard.
The Vanguard was primarily assigned to border patrol missions, so she came into contact with raiding forces, be they New Republic, Pirate, or other Imperial Warlords. After a particularly nasty engagement in the next year, the Vanguard was dry docked for significant repairs. As a result, Xander requested a transfer to the ISD Relentless. This would be a significant action in hindsight, as it would eventually lead to Xander leaving the pilot corps.
After ejecting from a crippled TIE.Not even two months after being assigned to the Relentless, Xander was shot down in combat against new Republic squadrons and forced to eject from his fighter. He was forced to stay in space for several hours while the engagement raged around him, and was finally picked up by a rescue shuttle. He was immediately given severe bacta treatments, and barely lived through the ordeal. However, he was stood down from flight status as a result of injuries received during the ejection.
Xander was then assigned as a staff officer under the command of High Admiral Ari, a member of the Command Staff of the Hammer. He would remain under Ari's command for nearly two years, with a short term as a temporary Wing Commander aboard the SSD Avenger in 17 ABY. In the year 18 ABY, Xander would be promoted to the Command Staff himself on the recommendation of Ari. Given the position of Logistics Officer, Xander was also elevated to the rank of Vice Admiral.
The Logistics Office was not what it would appear to outsiders, as it was not concerned with fleet Logistics which were in reality handled by the Flight Office. The Logistics Office was a deceptive name for the office that was in charge of maintaining the Hammer's archives and official records. In this position, Xander had access to an incomplete copy of the Imperial Archives that had been given to Ronin, the EH commander, by the Emperor. This, along with a significant amount of information collected from other sources, constituted the charge of the Logistics Office.
In the year 19 ABY, the Hammer's Executive Officer would launch an attack on the Bounty Hunter's Guild headquartered in the Lyarna System. This operation was aimed at removing the leadership of the Guild, whom Astatine had personal issues with regarding actions and authority. Common wisdom at the time was that Astatine feared the Guild breaking with the Empire, much as the Brotherhood had done previously that year. Xander, as a member of the command staff was privy to this information, and as a ardent supporter of the BHG he passed the information along to their leaders through his contact with the senator then assigned to Ravouin, Dakkon Blackblade. He and Senator Blackblade, along with Blackblade's Senate Guard and several members of the Hammer's Fist Stormtrooper Legion even journeyed to the Lyarna System during the attack, with Drax personally coordinating the defenses of the moon Cuerno and the surrounding space. The attack was repelled, and Drax's compatriots returned to their duties with the Hammer.
The Battle of Lyarna.
Drax, however, retired from his duties as Logistics Officer directly following the operation. He felt that the leadership of the Hammer was deteriorating, and saw retirement as the only option left to him. Before he officially stepped down, however, Drax did copy the entire database under his care for his own personal use. He retired to the world of Kidriff 5, a planet known for it's similarities to Coruscant, however less developed it may be.
A year later, upon the request of the commander of the Tie Corps Battlegroups BubbaX, Drax returned to the Hammer to command the Star Destroyer Colossus. However, Astatine (now Fleet Commander) finally uncovered evidence that linked Drax to the failure of the Lyarna operation, and the theft of a copy of the EH archives. Drax, tipped off by his superior Executive Officer Sarin (himself fleeing Astatine's tyranny), learned that Astatine had issued a death warrant for Drax as a traitor to the Empire. Drax immediately left the Command Center on Aurora Prime, and procured an unmarked craft from the Intel impound yard. Taking a YL-2200 light freighter, the first ship he saw, Drax fled the Hammer Territories mere steps ahead of the Intel agents that had come to arrest him.
Years Without Purpose
20 ABY to 24 ABY
File:Coru-under.jpgCoruscant's undercityIn the year immediately following his escape from Imperial forces on Aurora Prime, Drax was constantly on the move. Using what contacts he had, he was able to stay one step ahead of intelligence agents tasked with his capture, hiding wherever he could. Finally, in order to evade capture, he returned to the former Imperial throne world, Coruscant. As no more then one more former Imperial soldier fallen from power, Drax made entry onto the city planet with ease and spent most of the next 12 standard months habitating some of it's lowest levels. After a year of this, word finally filtered down to him that he was no longer being actively sought by the Hammer. Apparently, as the Hammer Territories fell farther and farther into disrepair (As many Imperial fiefdoms were following the peace treaty with the New Republic), Astatine was devoting more and more resources to maintaining order within his realm. One more "traitor" had fallen beneath his notice.
Xander would spend the better part of the next three years doing mostly nothing. On several occasions he would consult with the Kidriff government in regards to their defense force and other related issues, this was few and far between. The tides of galactic conflict had long ago left Kidriff behind, and the newfound stability of the galaxy as a whole lessened even the threat of pirate raiding. In short, it was a nice, quiet place to retire. However, Drax found hismelf wanting more, feeling somehow useless. He had no desire to return to what remained of the Remnant, nor did he have any overwhelming want to serve the New Republic. The former was only a shadow of its former self, while the latter had little use for Imperial officers defecting two decades too late. Finally, he thought of one other place he had touched in his duties, one that still could offer him a challenge.
Return to the Brotherhood
24 ABY to Present
Drax would find the Brotherhood an entirely different place then what he had known upon his return. Years free of Imperial influences had lessened the militaristic mindset of it's members, it was now more order then army. This change left him initially rudderless, and lead to him not finding his place initially within its ranks. He would first join Clan Taldryan, but knew he did not fit the clan. His first few years with the brotherhood were marked with changes of house and of order. He would try Clan Plagueis after Taldryan, before finally ending up within Arcona.
His initial instinct was to join the Sith, focus on his piloting skills, but he went against that. Knowing that he would probably have to relearn much of what he had learned before within the cockpit, he instead chose to explore the world of more personal conflict and the Obelisk order. It took him years to finally shed the mindset and mannerisms of a military officer, and many of his first superiors were somewhat annoyed by his constant saluting and his perchance to snap to rigid attention whenever they approached. But he would eventually become Jedi, and not merely a simple soldier.
He would finally find his place with the Brotherhood upon the appointment of Mejas Doto as Consul of Arcona. A master who had been a member of the brotherhood before the Exodus, he was more familiar with the problems Drax faced. Enabling him to meld the martial nature of his past with the reality of his present, Doto would show Drax how to have his own direction. Eventually, Master Doto and Drax developed such a working relationship that Drax was elevated to the position of Quaestor of House Qel-Droma.
Following his appointment, Drax was captured by the Vong following the fall of Antei. During his time in captivity, he would be conditioned to act against the Dark Brotherhood. Upon his return, Drax was put in charge of House Galeres. As the Yuuzhan Vong programing and conditioning forced him to work more and more against the interests of his fellows, Drax would end up taking his own life just prior to the Ninth Great Jedi War in 29 ABY.
Character Information
Physical Appearance
Once having the look of a fit military officer of late middle years, his more recent experiences and trials have left him somewhat more weathered. His head is now bald, devoid of the greying black hair that had been his even as recently as the last few years. Gaunt, almost skeletal features highlight his face, his eyes now appearing sunken in dark, shadowed sockets. However, while his appearance has aged, he still maintains the same level of phyisical fitness that he has held in recent times, as the forces that acted upon him of late had more impact upon his mind then on his body.
Demeanor
Xander most always moves with a purposeful stride, moving from place to place and rarely dawdling. He rarely sits, preferring to stand in a rigid, upright posture. He speaks in the tight, clipped forms common to many Imperial officers, though in recent times his volume and cadence have both softened somewhat. Most of the time his voice lacks much inflection or feeling, leading people to consider him distant and unconcerned.
Gear
22T4 holdout blaster
The 22T4 was a small blaster pistol specifically manufactured and produced for the Imperial Security Bureau. Agents were assigned a 22T4 after being accepted into the bureau as a personal sidearm. Selling of this blaster to civilians was strictly prohibited by the Empire, and they strictly monitored the production of the weapon by placing a specially coded serial number on all models. This was also done to discourage tampering.
This particular weapon was given to Drax by High Admiral Ari upon the former's elevation to the position of Logistics Officer. The internal workings of the weapon were rebuilt, reinforced, and insulated against shock. Also, the handles were adorned with Kryat Dragon Pearl inlays, upon which the Imperial Seal was engraved. Upon the metal body of the weapon, just above the trigger housing, Drax's name has also been engraved. The weapon has also been specially balanced and fitted with a custom grip, so that the weapon is as perfect as possible for Drax's use. The weapon, first more of a ceremonial sidearm, has become a functional part of Drax's life in the years since his escape from the Astatine's wrath.
File:Dt-57.jpgDT-57 heavy blaster pistol
BlasTech Industries' custom DT-57, nicknamed the "Annihilator", was a weapon similar in appearance to the E-5 blaster rifle used by the B1 battle droids of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. This pistol was of the "superheavy" designation used for models such as the Caliban Model X and T-6 Thunderer. Highly customizable, the DT-57 featured a high output blaster magazine, a large trigger guard and a top-mounted scope. The DT-57 packed a heavy punch without loss of range. Drax aqucired this weapon shortly after fleeing Imperial "justice" and has used it ever since. It's considerable power in such a compact size has served him will during his time on the run and after joining the Brotherhood.
Trivia
- The name "Xander Drax" comes from the film adaptation of "The Phantom".