Sera

> "*Dad always told me to stand my ground. Backing down isn't in our blood.*"
> ― Sera
>
>

Sera, sometimes referred to by the surnames of her parents, is a Human-Chiss hybrid hailing from the planet Dantooine. The force sensitive daughter of former Clone Commander CC-6410 "Shepard" and former Chiss CorSec agent Ceqi'zer'ari, Sera was born alongside a twin brother named Ares. Ares died months after birth due to complications with his heart function, leaving the girl as the only blood descendant of two stalwart figures of the old Galactic Republic.

She grew up on their family's farm, where she learned to work hard, learned about the galaxy and its ways, and was taught to defend herself by her parents. Her father recognized her affinity for the force, an all to familiar sight from young Jedi he had come across in his travels, and began grooming her for a life she was destined for.

She was sent to train with the Jedi after her father died, Sera's joining being at a relatively older age than most Padawans, but with decent knowledge of combat and tactics, though her skills with the force were yet to be developed to their potential. She was also burdened

## The Story of a Girl

### The Lone Twin

Born near the beginning of the first year post the Battle of Yavin IV, Sera was housed on a farm by her surpisingly-old-to-be-having-children parents, two relics of a time passed. Through the grief of her aforementioned and dearly departed twin brother Ares, Sera was given as much support and attention as could be given to a baby girl by her parents. Mostly her mother though, as her father helped run a business on the side for his adopted son, her stepbrother, Khada Aran, who she would only cross a few times.

Izera schooled her at home, teaching her about the many languages and cultures of the galaxy, the history of the Republic, the rise of the empire, and some chunks about the Chiss Ascendancy, though she couldn't give much after her traversal to the Republic. All basic to moderate functions of life, her mother taught her well.

As she grew older, she learned how to farm, tame, hunt, and the like. Her father taught her how to use weapons from age ten, though only gave her access to more crude tools such as a pike and bow, and small knives. She learned how to set up camp, boosting her love for the activity, and received stories from her parents about their lives and events, which further stretched her youthful wanderlust.

From the age of thirteen, her father began teaching her how to use a blaster, a small sidearm, Shepard's old DC-17 blaster. To the old Clone's surprise, she displayed a natural affinity to the weapon, and her accuracy with it was anything but natural. This was also around the time that she began displaying some rather odd traits, like the knowledge of others' presence beyond her sight, being able to read the emotions of others without former conversation with them, and Shepard began investigating into it, though that's a piece for later in the story.

Aside from the blaster training, Shepard began teaching her how to use larger weapons. He crafted a training sword, a lightwood version of his own claymore-style vibrosword, and taught her the basics of sword to sword combat. She preferred to take a defensive stance for most of the training, but when she struck forward, she hit *hard,* Much harder than Shepard actually expected her to.

In training with the sword, Sera began developing signficant muscle tone and mass, reflecting loosely that of her father during the Clone Wars. He took notice, and began running her through his old, grueling exercise regiment, and she thoroughly enjoyed it. Exercise became a regular practice for her, and she only wished to become stronger and gain more endurance. Unfortunately for her, while she put on solid muscle mass, genetics from her mother left her plateaued at a point, so she had to settle for maintenance.

### "Natural Causes"

One night in 16 ABY, Sera's family had just finished dinner in the camp they set up about two hours hike from their home. As they settled in by the fire, stories being shared like usual, both Sera and Shepard began feeling an uneasy tension, as if they were being watched by someone. Shepard had already been acting differently, and as Izera was sharing her experiences in the Jedi smuggling game, Shepard's aging eyes would spot an odd anomaly on top of the hill adjacent to their camp, to which Sera had already drawn the blade that her father had finally let her borrow, confirming that there was a presence near them. Within the instant that both parents drew their blasters, the fight broke out.

The assailants wore dark clothing, but that really didn't matter considering there was a Clone that had much experience noting things that were out of place, a Chiss who literally has a visual advantage leaning close to the infared spectrum, and a force-sensitive hybrid that could not only see well in the dark, but could feel the presence of the non force users in the attacking party. Long story short, the objective of the ambush failed miserably, though not without complications on the family's side.

The fight was a slaughter. Shepard and Izera dealt with their group with relative ease, and Sera's training kicked in when she buckled her attacker's knee and decapitated him. Old CorSec Izera kicked in in an attempt to interrogate one of the gravely wounded attackers, but he succumbed to his wounds before they could get anything out of them. After the dust settled, they decided to pack up camp and head home.

On the hike back, Sera noticed her father slowing his pace a bit. Just down the road from their homestead, he dropped to one knee. Upon further inspection, he had been hit by a high impact bolt to the abdomen, and though his self-treatment was as good as it could get, it seemed that the wound was taking a heavy toll on him. They brought him inside and did their best to bring him back to health, though it was only getting worse. Finally, Shepard decided to have them bring him to Khada and Kami on Nar Shadda, marking the first time that Sera was to meet her stepbrother, and the last time she would see her father alive.

Upon arrival to the planet's upper levels, they were greeted by multiple armed guards and medical staff, all bringing them to a large home. When the doors opened, Sera got her first glimpse of the other side of her family. Khada and Kami, standing tall in nice clothing, brought the family in and moved them to Shepard's room. There, after assessing the damages to the Clone's internals, the medical staff worked their hardest to make his last moments as comfortable as possible.

Sera was the last of the family to receive Shepard's words, and they carried a heavy weight. He told her that he knew that the assailants were coming, and that it was because of a trait that she had. He confirmed her suspicion, that she was a force-sensitive being, and told her that her duty lies within the blades of the New Jedi Order. He stated that she had already honed her skills with a blade, but that she must practice in the ways of the force to defend the galaxy as he and her mother had done once upon a time. With words of love being his last, he passed away.

### To Become a Jedi

The duo took their leave from the Aran residence after a short time, returning to the homestead with a new objective. Izera returned to her own devices, taking on a couple pets as extra company, while Sera trained her body and mind to prepare for her future.

After four years, she said her goodbyes to her mother, and made her way out. She now resides with the New Order Exploratory Force as a Padawan, joining their quest in reinstating the temple and learning the ways of the Force.

After the Jedi were attacked and murdered by traitorous elements of the New Republic High Command, newly dubbed the First Order, Sera would shift her mindset to that of her parents, preparing for War. Donning some pieces of her father's armor, her crystal at her side, she'd be ready to face the trials and tribulations ahead of her with full force, confident that she'd either smash through the guard of their betrayers or die trying.

With her time on the *Illuminator,* she developed her tactics and leadership skills by accompanying Captain Adakellia Mao and the now Operative Kaine Aran on the bridge, as well as a few other progressing Padawans, and her path to Knighthood furthered. On the side, her relationship with Aurin Ysat grew, but nobody really wants to hear about that.

After a short while, Sera herself, Valerian Cassel, Dax, Thairne Raan, and Akrissa were all promoted to the Rank of Jedi Knight, and now make up the council aboard the *Illuminator,* deliberating and planning each of their moves while remaining in charge of other Padawans' training and overall development.