Halliot Sern

> "Even you must see it, Sern. No amount of scrap vessels could stand up to two Imperial fleets. What you're asking us to do is suicide."
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> "The command is not yours, Captain Vergillio. It is mine. Second guess me again, sir, and I shall have you shot from an airlock."
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> ― Sarin Vergillio and Halliot Sern sparring during the council of captains shortly before the Battle of Ringo Vinda, 8 BBY

**Halliot "Hal" Sern** was a Human starfighter ace, fleet officer, and rebel leader during the time of the Clone Wars and Galactic Civil War. Born on the planet Batonn, Hal moved to Alderaan at an early age and spent much of his childhood in the Juran Mountains. He took care of his mother after his father abandoned the family, and joined the Royal Alderaan Civil Fleet shortly before the Clone Wars. During his time at a flight academy, Hal became involved with a group of students opposed to Alderaan's participation in the Separatist Crisis. When the Organas publicly declared for the Republic at the onset of the Clone Wars, Hal and several other pilots abandoned their posts and defected to the Confederacy.

As defectors, Hal and his small band of Alderaanians formed the Free Alderaan Squadron, pledging to free the planet from the clutches of the Republic. The unit flew in a number of engagements, including a battle over Ord Pardron in which Hal shot down and killed a Jedi pilot. By the end of the Clone Wars, the squadron held extreme animosity towards their Neimodian overseer, as Sern believed the Seperatists were attempting to dispose of the pilots. Over Alderaan, Hal turned on the Separatist officers, executing the commander and commandeering their home carrier. At his orders, the Free Alderaan Squadron scattered across the planet.

During his brief time as a fugitive, Hal's attempt to escape Alderaan failed and he was apprehended by security forces. He was condemned to execution, however he was secretly saved by Bail Organa, who recruited him into the earliest rebellion against the Empire. Hal flew with a shadow squadron that carried no designation, posing as pirates raiding Imperial shipping lanes. His efficiency ultimately earned him command of the unit, and his disdain for Organa softened over time.

As the nascent rebellion grew more sophisticated, Sern was elevated to proper fleetwork, serving as the first officer aboard an Alderaanian raider. He found himself at odds with the ship's captain and security chief, who both suspected his past as a Separatist. These suspicions were confirmed to them by Hal on a mission to Bilzen, and the resulting confrontation left his two opponents presumably dead in the caverns. He was briefly shuffled away from his duties, though his developed friendship with Organa secured him command of the corvette *Recovery*.

Captaining *Recovery*, Hal continued to fight a guerilla war against the Empire. His efforts were so damaging that the Imperial Security Bureau had a special detachment created just for acts linked to him. After a scuffle on Darkknell, *Recovery* was pursued intently by an Imperial task force, before finally being cornered on Behpour. Executing what would ultimately be called the *Sern Maneuver*, Hal manipulated Imperial tractor beams into a forced lockon, before propelling *Recovery* straight into the planet surface and dragging down a star destroyer. His crew was rescued by the Rishi Battlegroup, and Hal received new orders to assemble a resistance force in the Outer Rim.

Having secured several captured starships and purchasing a number more, Sern was given several temporary assignments as he awaited the completion of his fleet's refits. Sent to aid Sentinel Base on Rugosa, he found it difficult working with his former spouse, the base commander. Against orders, he spent much of his time scouring nearby systems for supplies. When the Empire discovered the rebel presence on the world, a large ground force arrived to capture Sentinel Base. The ensuing battle proved a brutal, exhausting affair, and Hal helped coordinate a difficult nighttime defense of the facility. The arrival of the completed Dornea Battlegroup relieved the beleaguered garrison, routing the Imperial fleet and allowing for an evacuation. Sern took *Sidewinder* as his flagship, and began planning his next campaign.

With his now battle-proven fleet, Hal moved alongside other rebel cells to wreak havoc on Imperial holdings in the Outer Rim. The Empire's resulting counterattack proved to be overwhelming, and the Imperial presence began to quickly dwarf the Rebel force. Knowing the campaign was over, Hal's priority moved to securing a safe escape for the rebels, hoping to preserve the cells for a future uprising.

As he searched for the ideal location to make his fleet's stand, Hal led a raid on an Imperial data receiving station in the Abrion Sector. His team captured secure communications logs, however Hal himself was gravely wounded, losing an eye. While recovering from his wounds, his officers assembled the Council of Captains. Amidst indecisiveness regarding the fleet's next move, Hal recovered enough from his wounds to intervene. Using the analysis gathered, he brought the fleet to Ringo Vinda, winning a decisive victory over the Empire. Afterwards, he dissolved his fleet and battlegroups, allowing the Rebel cells to return to hiding out of the Empire's reach.

Sern's hopes of ending his military service were dashed during his attempted escape from the Mid Rim. Over the planet Manress, his forces met an unexpected fleet of Hapans. Outnumbering his forces significantly, Hal was forced to steer his forces into the Hapes Consortium, arriving over Andalia. They were detained by the royal navy, who briefed Sern and his officers regarding the Andal Emergency. Identifying the Manress fleet as part of Andal secessionist forces, the Hapans refused to leave the boundaries of their cluster, forcing Sern to support them in ending the insurgency.

After a difficult campaign, Sern's distrust of the royalists and disdain for the secessionists grew intolerable. When the approaching Andal Torrents left both sides with limited time to secure victory, he chose to deceive the Hapan royal forces in order to decisively end the Emergency. At the Battle of the Eye, Hal turned the flanks of both armies and broke their formational cohesion. With the violent storms approaching, and all transports under Sern's control, he forced both armies to capitulate.

Having been trapped within the Hapes Consortium for some time, Sern found the Empire tailing him once more. Without a strong force at his back, and with many of his allies dead or disillusioned, his desperation grew. Over Sernpidal, Hal's near-suicidal attempt to board an Imperial carrier failed, and his courier ship was shot down. Alongside his few remaining friends, Sern fought desperately, but it seemed no amount of sacrifice would cull the Imperials. Halliot Sern surrendered to the Empire, being brought to a clandestine facility on Gansevor. He was rescued shortly thereafter, though Sern spoke to few regarding how he came to escape the world.

After several years of inaction, Hal answered the call for a general rebellion in 2 BBY. With his rank of commodore maintained, he returned to *Sidewinder* and commanded rebel raiding groups in the Outer Rim. When Alderaan was destroyed, he mourned for his old friend Senator Organa and vowed revenge for his homeworld, briefly being politically sidelined for his aggressive comments. As General Syndulla's army on Ryloth faced disintegration, Sern led the relief force to evacuate the planet, though few Twi'leks were willing to abandon their world. Sern's fleet then moved deep into the Outer Rim, raiding Imperial forces and later gathering scattered rebels after Hoth. He was ordered to assemble the new Alliance Third Fleet, and was the first to be called upon when crisis swept the Alliance army on Umbara. With an Imperial blockade threatening to starve a large portion of the rebel offensive forces into submission, it was a now-Rear Admiral Halliot Sern who would relieve them. The ten-day affair that would become the Battle of Umbara was a grueling affair, where Hal fought his subordinates as much as the Empire. The harsh realities of a diversified command weighed heavily on the veteran admiral, and his usual energy was noted to be somewhat lost. His feud with one of his subordinates, Commodore Mersil Mai, came to blows when the Ishi Tib made a snide remark about Sern's daughter. This brief flaring of temper instilled some discipline in Mai, but guaranteed that Sern would face serious consequences from the Tibrini government after the battle. When the blockade was broken several days later, Sern resigned his command in favor of Shack, as to not inspire defection from the Ishi Tib.

After nearly two years of quasi-retirement on Chandrila, Sern was recalled by Fleet Admiral Gial Ackbar to help plan the climatic Battle of Jakku. Raised to Vice Admiral and given command of the Starhawk *Unity*, Hal commanded the fleet's reserve over the desert world. Sern was then tapped to lead the fleet's vanguard at Coruscant, where he negotiated an armistice with the beleaguered Imperial garrison, and later accepted their surrender alongside Ackbar.

Having seen the transition from the early rebellion to the New Republic, Sern was satisfied with his contribution to the cause. After serving several non-combat roles in Naval Intelligence and academies, he retired from the fleet for the final time in 12 ABY. Sern, now a Fleet Admiral, left as one of the most distinguished naval commanders of the Galactic Civil War. He lived out the rest of his life on New Alderaan.

## Biography

### Early Life

#### Childhood and Adolesence

Born to an Alderaanian mother and Batonnese father, a young Hal grew up on his latter parent's homeworld. He spent little time on Batonn, as his father abandoned the family, leaving Hal and his mother to move to Alderaan, which he would come to consider his true homeworld. Living in the Juran Mountains, he spent much of his youth learning to ride and hunt, and made frequent flights in his T-24 airspeeder. In his schooling, he continued to show a love for flying. He attended the Juranno Academy for the Promised Youth, where he found another passion in fencing, winning a number of competitions. After leaving the youth academy, he joined the Alderaanian Royal Naval College in Aldera.

At the college, Hal was assigned to the Prince Gaul School of Flight, finally able to pursue his passion for flight. During his time at the school, he became deeply involved in Alderaanian politics. Hal surrounded himself with those who were outspoken neutralists, and heavily criticized Senator Bail Organa and his pro-Republic sentiments at the height of the Separatist Crisis. The school's commandant, an old general, frequently spoke with Hal on a wide range of topics, and the man became somewhat of a father figure to him. At some point, the general gifted Sern with an S-5 blaster pistol, though on the condition it be returned eventually.

### The Clone Wars

#### Cadet Revolt

> "I am doing what any good Alderaanian should be. The Organas are peddling us to war for the Republic, and the masses are just expected to sit and listen? I won't have it, general. You know I won't."
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> "I know, Hal. Do what you must.",
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>  ― Halliot Sern and the General, 22 BBY

As the possibility of a war between the Republic and Confederacy grew ever larger, Sern and a number of other cadets began planning their treachery. The conspirators secured access to armories and flight controls, and began to volunteer for sentry duty on a regular basis. When the war began and Bail Organa declared Alderaan for the Republic, the cadets put their plans into motion. The night before their duty assignments were enforced, Sern and several others stormed the school armory. Seizing weapons, their took over the flight station and several hangars. While the conspirators began to prepare a number of S-91x Tri-Wing starfighters for launch, Hal broke into the main office, hoping to seize the commandant's code cylinders. He found the general in his chair, watching the uprising unfold on a monitor. The two conversed briefly, with Hal justifying his actions whilst the general solemnly accepted the situation. The man refused to surrender the codes willingly, leading to Sern stunning him with his blaster.

With the codes acquired, the mutineers seized their starships and escaped the airbase. Thirty-one former cadets left the Alderaan system, commanding twelve Tri-Wings and a single GX1 short hauler. They arrived at Raxus sometime after, presenting themselves to the Separatist blockade.

#### Separatist Service

> "And so it begins."
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> ― Halliot Sern during the Battle of Ord Pardron

Enthused by the presence of pro-secession Alderaanians, the Separatist Senate took in Sern and his wingmen for several weeks. They were brought forward during a senatorial session, speaking about their reasons for defection. It was at this point that Sern was elected to command the squadron, dubbed the Free Alderaan Squadron. He joined with the Confederate Admiralty, working to incorporate his pilots into the fleet. The squadron was sent to the Muun Admiral Pors Tonith's fleet, preparing a two-pronged offensive against the Republic. While Tonith concentrated his main effort on Praesitlyn, Sern and the Free Alderaanians accompanied the second force to blockade Sluis Van.

Arriving at the shipyard world, the Separatist fleet found no opposition over Sluis Van itself. Instead, Sern was ordered to lead a number of sorties into nearby systems. He commanded an attack on Seswenna, scattering a Republic starfighter squadron and destroying a supply depot. A larger scale raid on Eriadu came next, with the Separatists being pushed back despite the squadron's high performance. Praised for their conduct, Sern and his unit survived a series of leadership purges following Admiral Tonith's failure to capture Praesitlyn. When news came that nearby Agora had prevented a Separatist garrison from landing, the Free Alderaan Squadron was sent as part of a task force to retake the planet. Hal and two wingmen destroyed a corvette over the world, before making several flyovers of the planetary capital, convincing the world to surrender.

As the war's scope expanded, Sern's squadron faced a number of transfers to different fronts. A more permanent posting aboard the heavy carrier *Purse Worlder*, commanded by a Neimodian captain, gave Hal's unit some much needed stability. Unbeknownst to them, their first mission under this new posting would be the most difficult.

As Republic forces massed over Ord Pardron, the Separatist Navy plotted a preemptive assault. When they attacked, the first day of the battle saw both fleets suffer heavily. The Alderaanians fought well, suffered few casualties, and achieved all objectives; they were thus assigned to a special objective for the second day's fighting. Hoping to pressure the enemy into retreat, Separatist command sent the Free Alderaan Squadron to attack an independent Republic fighting force on the far-side of the planet.

Arriving at the rendezvous with only the carrier and their fighters, Hal led two other Tri-Wings forward. The Republic fighters sprung forward suddenly, and the scouting party attempted to fight their way out. Nearly succeeding, the arrival of a Jedi pilot complicated the situation. Hal's fighter was hit several times, knocking his weapons system officer unconscious. As he led the group out of the trap, the Jedi shot down one of the wingmen. The pilot of the shot-down craft was one of Hal's closest friends, and the death stung the young pilot deeply.

Having returned to the carrier, Hal devised a foolhardy and reckless plan. He planned to fly alone in an undamaged fighter to goad the Jedi into a duel, an idea which his squadmates considered overly reckless and emotionally driven. The carrier's captain refused to authorize the mission, but Hal launched anyways. The captain locked the hangars to prevent any of Sern's wingmen from flying to his aid.

#### Duel over Ord Pardron

> "Come out, Jedi! Come out and die!"
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> ― Halliot Sern's broadcast to the Jedi pilot, 21 BBY

Flying out alone, Sern broadcasted on an open channel, challenging the Jedi pilot to face him alone. Accepting the challenge, the Jedi flew out in their starfighter. In a brutal, several-hour battle, the two circled and fired at one-another, neither scoring a decisive hit. The Jedi used their interceptor's speed and maneuverability, while Sern leveraged the strength of his armor and robust shielding. After his weapons system received critical damage, and without a co-pilot to manage the repairs, Hal's time was quickly running out. Feigning a retreat, he spun around and clipped the Jedi starfighter's wing. Clever use of shields saved Hal from serious damage, but the thinly-armored interceptor lost maneuvering and began to plummet towards the surface. Intent on vengeance, Sern followed.

Arriving at the crash site, Hal emerged from his fighting with a vacuum mask, knowing Ord Pardron's atmosphere was unbreathable. When he inspected the Jedi starfighter, he found the warrior inside to have already died from oxygen loss. Hal sat with his head in his hands for several minutes, before the approach of Republic recovery teams forced him to leave and return to base.

Sern was chastised by his commander, and the two would retain a rocky relationship for the rest of the war. Despite this, Hal was kept in command of the squadron.

#### Outer Rim Raiders

With the war turning increasingly against the Confederacy, the *Purse Worlder* was assigned as a mothership for convoy raiding operations in the Outer Rim. Leading the Free Alderaanians, Sern led a successful series of operations against Republic shipping lanes. During one such mission, the squadron received a distress signal reporting an attack by Republic forces. Responding, Sern and his squadron rescued the freighter, a pro-Separatist smuggling ship. He met the smuggler apprentice Ashana Levast, and the two rendered aid to the ship's captain. Upon returning to a friendly station, Sern and Levast shared contact information with one another, cementing a friendship that would last much of Hal's life.

As the final year of the war began, the Republic launched a series of operations that would become the Outer Rim Sieges. The Alderaanian raiders faced ever greater enemy resistance, and soon the Separatists were in full retreat. He met Levast before his withdrawal, where she gifted him a Snubble special pistol, one he would carry with him from then on. Hal led a series of rearguard actions to protect the carrier fleet, though the tide of the war could not be turned.

#### Return to Alderaan

> "This war is all you know, Hal. The true darkness is slipping past you, I fear."
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> "The war... was it all for nothing?"
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> "No. It wasn't."
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> ― The General and Halliot Sern during their last meeting over Alderaan, 19 BBY

In the twilight hour of the Clone Wars, Sern and his squadron were summoned for a final, daring mission.