The golden beaches glow like celestial halos as the sun sets each night on
Corellia, bathing the city of Coronet in warm and radiant light, aiding in the healing and hiding the deep wounds that the citizens are all too aware of. The scars suffered from wars of the past aren't visible to the naked eye when viewing the heavenly body from the likes of telescope or in passing while traveling through the system aboard any ship. But they are there.
Corellia is no stranger to the horrors of war. The planet's long-standing history is proof of that. And though millions of lives were affected by each attack the planet has suffered, the civil actions that occurred three centuries ago brought about a drastic change that is still very present today.
Several centuries ago, Corellia became the home to several multi-stellar corporate conglomerates, including the Corellian Mining Corporation and Gowix Computers. Over time, these companies became very powerful and were competing directly with the InterGalactic Banking Clan for galactic influence.
One hundred and fifty years passed, power was gained, and then history was made when the historic parliamentary constitutional monarchy, founded by the Royal House of Corr, was overthrown. A new democratic government was established; one that was more amenable to unrestricted commerce. This new business-supported regime was called the Diktat.
Though the Royal House of Corr was no more, the family's royal blood lines continued. Today, the Corellian Press Associated still reports that there is a living heir to the Corellian Throne amongst the population. However, the only existence of proof is a family tree, detailing the specifics of the Corr heritage. Because the remains of the deceased are unattainable for DNA analysis, the reports of a living heir are always considered to be nothing more than speculation.
Twenty years ago, fate stepped in again to deal a cruel hand to six individuals who were connected to each other by friendship with roots that ran deep. The day stood out in infamy and had become known as the day
Corellia stood still. It was the day
Corellia came under a ruthless attack by one of the most vicious bands of Space Pirates ever to roam the galaxy. The Afarathu pirates, a sect of
Selonian terrorists, and they wanted all humans on
Corellia to simply ... Die.
Before that day, though, Syren and her friends - a ragtag group comprised of she, Cyrel Annat, Ati Quai, Byorn Rogell, Dalin Qel Brella, and Falk Bouro - had big plans for the future. Syren would marry Byorn and the two would raise a family; buy that quaint dream house they so often spoke of, and lead normal lives. Dalin and Falk would forever remain as "The Lost Boys". You know the type, the ones who refuse to mentally grow up no matter what their biological age is? Ati would travel the stars, flitting from place to place and never truly settle down. Cyrel planned to lead a quiet life, working in some high tech mechanics shop. He might even have owned his own shop one day if he played his cards just right.
The day Corellia stood still altered their futures drastically, in ways none of them imagined possible. Ati Quai eventually became a smuggler. Rumors about Ati still reach Syren's ears, but she refuses to believe them. The rumors surrounding Ati's ship, The Junkpile, say that no one ever survived a trip in the flying hunk of junk, for no one had ever been seen after boarding it. Syren looked further into this and discovered this rumor was, in fact, all a clever ruse put on by the savvy smuggler. An abhorrer of slavery, Ati used the mystique and fear surrounding the ship to swoop down on slave camps and collect slaves. He then transported them to safe worlds, where they could live in peace. Of course, Syren kept Ati's secret to herself. After all, he was doing a very noble thing and she didn't want to ruin what the scruffy smuggler had going for him.
Byorn Rogell eventually joined the Jedi Order. In fact, he entered a short while after Cyrel had left Corellia. Byorn also shattered Syren's heart. He never did say good-bye nor did he tell her what his plans were. He never told her that their dream life would never come to fruition. Byorn just packed his bags and left three nights after the pirates' raided. Syren eventually learned that Byorn's fate was sealed. He'd been killed during the Purge, his body never found.
As for Dalin and Falk? No one knows what became of them. But as for Syren, she left when Cyrel did and ended up on Coruscant. There was nothing left for her on Corellia. Her parents had been slain during the attack, as had those of her friends. Her best friends had left, to seek distance from a memory too painful to bear.
Without the physical remembrances of where she came from in the form of diamonds created from the remains of her parents, Syren put all of her energies into focusing on the future. Specifically,
her future. With the meager funds remaining in a savings account that had been established by her father on the day of her birth, Syren paid the first few months rent on a small, cramped single occupant apartment in Kishi, an area of
Coruscant located near Westport that contained the Pillar Zone. Kishi wasn't the best of locations to live. The buildings were dilapidated, the streets littered with filth, and really not a safe location to be out alone at night. The area seemed to have been all but forgotten by the rest of the bustling city after the stone mite infestation had been cured.
Syren found employment in the large industrial area of Coruscant known as The Works, an immense manufacturing center. She was hired on as the shipping clerk at Nebula Manufacturing. After working full time for a year, eating cheaply, and being a miser with her wages earned, Syren applied for enrollment and financial aid at the University of Coruscant. After completing all of the necessary pre-requisites at the Southern Campus, she applied for acceptance into the University of Coruscant's School of Law and was accepted.
Consciously, Syren couldn't put into words why she wanted to become a lawyer when asked. Subconsciously, it probably had to do with surviving the pirate raid. Practically broke, homeless and alone, an inner drive carried her through. A drive to ensure that she would never be strapped for money or a home again. She could handle being alone, but she couldn't handle being broke or homeless. But deeper down, it had to do with the fact that no justice was ever found for those who died senselessly on the day pirates invaded her home.
For reasons she thought were practical, she would end up going through the Glitannai Esplanade every night to attend her classes. One of the planet's most storied avenues that ran along the broad-topped buildings of Judicial Plaza, it's eastern front ended at what is now the Imperial Palace. The ritziest shops and tastiest restaurants were found here and she dreamed of the day when she would be sitting inside one of those expensive restaurants instead of envying it from the outside.
Three years longer than required for a six year degree, (due to working full time and attending classes part time), Syren graduated from the University of Coruscant with a degree in law and two minor degrees: one in psychology and one in journalism. A few months later, she took the bar exam and passed.
Hired on at the law firm of Solan, Ocin, and Makon, Syren was an up and coming lawyer with a successful track record, having never lost a case in the past four years, in the Republic Regional Courts (a lesser set of galactic courts below the Supreme Court).
Approximately six years prior to the Purge, Syren was handed the case of her career thus far. Danry Ledwellow, the former Senator of Er'kit - along with fellow former Senators Tikkes, Bufus Ritsomas, and Wuja Wojaine - was arrested on charges of using their positions to lead a slavery ring. The case made headlines around the galaxy and eventually reached the Supreme Court. After two years of arguing the facts of the case before the Chief Justice and some of the most notable twelve Justices to ever serve, the verdict was handed down. All four former Senators were found guilty. Because of the heinous nature of crimes committed against the slaves at the hands of Senator Ledwellow, his sentence was the most severe. Execution.
The successful prosecution of the case only furthered Syren's career within the firm. Promoted to partner, her career had reached an all-time high. However, though that case bolstered her to stardom in the judicial sector, it was not the pinnacle of her growing impressive portfolio. The biggest case she ever received centered around the one of the largest slave murder sprees in history at the hands of the Butcher of Byss. What she didn't know about the case were the results of the actions carried out by the accused. The heinous crime further aided a former lover, Bishop Xinge, to forge his family into control of some major holdings that secured his place in the galactic hierarchy.
Proof of Xinge's connections and profits in the matter never came to public light. And though Syren had the damaging evidence necessary to formally file charges and indict Mr. Xinge, it mysteriously went missing; along with other key pieces of evidence that were crucial to her case. When an extension was filed to the Supreme Court so that she could scramble to rebuild her case, it was denied by the Chief Justice. She proceeded, and prosecuted the accused with explosive passion. In the end, her hard work and dedication paid off. The Butcher of
Byss was found guilty of the crimes of murder in the first and second degree, slavery, embezzlement - along with an additional handful of charges - the Butcher received the death penalty.
About two years after the execution was carried out, Syren received a large, thick envelope with no return address. The contents within held the evidence that had been missing from the Butcher of Byss case, along with new evidence. After spending numerous personal hours reviewing the entirety of the case - from court room transcripts, recorded testimonies, and all evidence collected by both the Republic and the defense - she came to realize that she had successfully prosecuted - and had executed - an innocent man. She tendered her resignation to the firm that same night.
After taking some time off, Syren fell back on one of her minor degrees and found herself employed by the Coruscanti Times as an advice columnist. Giving advice to the lovelorn, the desperate, the uncertain, had done nothing in helping the woman atone for the sin committed in sending an innocent man to his death; nor had it done anything to allow her to forgive herself. The only good that came from the occupation was in allowing the woman to continue living a lifestyle she had been accustomed to.
For the past few months, unbeknownst to her loyal readers, Syren had been in the chambers of the Chief Justice, undergoing the process of interviewing for the position of Procurator of Justice. Her name had been mentioned in the past by her former lover, Bishop Xinge, and her track record of successful prosecutions placed her in the top five recommended for the position. The romance betwixt Syren and Bishop was nothing overly serious. They were friends with needs, and each fulfilled the needs of the other. In essence, they used each other to fill the holes of what was missing from their lives at the time.
Upon learning of Bishop's untimely demise, Syren fought even harder for the job, wanting to bring justice to his killer. And though his death pained her, the bigger reason for wanting the position was to help "fix" a legal system that had been terribly broken by a crumbling Republic; a Republic that was experienced in bogging things down in drawn out talks instead of putting the energy into strictly enforcing the laws currently on the books. In her heart, she believes the Empire will bring about a galaxy-wide justice system that is both uniform and enforced for the good of the people as a whole.
Neither side - Syren or the Empire - was a stranger to the games people (and organizations) played in order to achieve their goals. The Empire, fully aware of the fact that her syndicated advice column captured the hearts and attention of millions of readers galaxy-wide, decided that they could use the woman - in more ways than one.
First, they could use her legal expertise and notoriety within certain circles to gain important allies and make long strides in bringing about the Emperor's visions of the "perfect" justice system. They could also gain additional supporters through her loyal reader-base. Since the identity of the Procurator of Justice is kept confidential, none would be the wiser that the very public face of "Dear Syren" was working for the Imperial regime. This too, could work to the Empire's advantage, especially when it came time to finding much needed information on just about anyone or anything, making Syren Wyssholt a valuable asset.
