Byron Devo III

Byron Devo III was a corpulent Human male smuggler who served as the mayor of Fort Nowhere during the Galactic Civil War.
When the planet Ruusan was invaded by the Vengeance Battle Group in 5 ABY, he was decapitated by Sariss.
==Biography==
Byron Devo III was a colonist from Sulon but on Ruusan he acted as a politician. He had some charisma, and his eloquence had often saved him from difficult situations. He usually spent his nights in Smuggler's Rest. However in 5 ABY a task force under the Dark Jedi Lord Jerec rediscovered the planet.Dark Forces: Rebel Agent
One night Grif Grawley, whom Devo considered a troublemaker, entered the cantina wanting their attention, and silenced the crowd by destroying the cantina's sound system with his blast rifle. Devo confronted him angrily, saying they had enough of him, and Grawley produced an ID plate asking Devo to read it; it belonged to an Imperial Viper probe droid. Grawley told them about his encounter with it, and advised them to evacuate Fort Nowhere immediately, but most of the colonists did not really believe his words.Dark Forces: Jedi Knight Devo was certain that the Empire had not found them yet, and even if it had, he was certain that any attack against Fort Nowhere would be futile, due to the Fort having been turned into a fortress.Dark Forces: Jedi Knight audio drama
The next day an Imperial assault shuttle arrived, from which three Dark Jedi emerged; as some of the gathered throng were hostile, Sariss Force-choked a settler named Lasko to death to "soften" them up. The woman asked for the one in charge, and Devo was nudged and pushed out to the front of the terrified citizens. Devo attempted to hold his composure, but when the woman accused him for smuggling and tax evading, as well as harboring traitors, he instinctively touched his throat, anticipating a fate similar to Lasko; he forced himself to keep his arms down. However Sariss, who refused to share her name, said she was willing to listen to his explanations, as it was "the Imperial way", and Devo led her to his office. 
Jerec was actually after the Valley of the Jedi, a legendary location on Ruusan about which the shettlers, including Devo, had no idea; the woman interviewed him for relevant information, ruins, artifacts and relics, and gave false promises to leave Fort Nowhere alone despite the fact that, according to Imperial law, virtually everything was illegal. An hour later, the shuttle lifted off, and Devo made an obscene gesture towards the Empire, in an attempt to regain his authority in the eyes of the bystanders. He was approached by Lieutenant Marie Peeno, who was as puzzled as he, about the Empire's interests in archaeological finds, and what treasure would be so important so as to send a task force there. The two made some plans about keeping the rumors a secret until they could find and keep it for themselves.
It turned out the Imperials's promises were false. A force from their battle group attacked the settlement, and shuttles landed, massacring the citizens who tried to flee. A panicked Devo approached Sariss as she emerged from one of them, asking the meaning of all this. Sariss ironically greeted him and promptly said that she just lied; Devo made a few steps back before being decapitated by the Dark Jedi's lightsaber.
==Personality and traits==
Byron Devo III was described fat by Grawley. He had small beady eyes which however became large like saucers when panicked.
Devo had some charisma and politician skills. Despite not being a smugglers who owned the settlement he managed to be in charge of it. Even in difficult situations he tried to make the best of them by talking his way out of trouble. Outside this skill however, Grif Grawley considered him an incompetent leader.
Hearing the rumors about archaeological treasure, his greed awoke, and agreed with Peeno to not tell to his fellow colonists, hoping to get hold of them eventually.
==Behind the scenes==
In the audio adaptation of Dark Forces: Jedi Knight, he was voiced by Jack Walsh.
==Appearances==
*Dark Forces: Jedi Knight 
==Notes and references==
Category:Humans
Category:Males
Category:Mayors
Category:Ruusanians
Category:Smugglers