abstract
| - Ytan was born in the Underlevels of Coruscant. Her mother was a human prostitute; her father was a half-human, half-Cathar. She never knew her father, only what he was. When she was six, her mother abandoned her, ostensibly because potential customers didn’t like Ytan’s yellow eyes and sharp temper.* Ytan quickly learned to fend for herself. She was beaten many times because of the Imperial influence—racism was rampant, and the prejudice against part-humans seemed to be even stronger than the prejudice against full “aliens”. After the New Republic took over Coruscant, the hatred subsided a little, but not much. She had no friends or allies but herself, and therefore no one to protect her. Finally, nine long years after she was abandoned, she met someone in a cantina who told her how to leave the Underlevels without paying the large fee required at the main gates. The only problem with the route was a large gang. She tried to slip past them, but one of their members caught her and made a rather forceful pass at her. She literally ripped his throat out with her bare hands, then stole his knife. From there, she went on as quickly as she could, with several other men from the gang chasing her. She made it to the surface just as the Imperial attack (led by Damascus) began; in fact, it was what saved her from her vengeful pursuers. They were unwilling to go out into a war zone just to kill one girl. The next few days she spent dodging bombs, falling buildings, and soldiers from both sides. Once the hellish battle was over, she found herself practically alone in the middle of the ruins. No one cared about a lone girl—not when the balance of power in the galaxy was shifting. So, she continued to fend for herself while everyone else was busy rebuilding the planet. Ytan continued her dreary existence as another person stuck in the mid-level and ground-level of Coruscant. Occasionally, she picked someone’s pocket for credits, or just out-right stole from some two-bit shop or an apartment. The authorities chased her once or twice, but her high running speed (a gift from her Cathar genes) helped her evade them easily. After almost four years of that miserable existence, Ytan caught the eye of a smuggler passing through her area. He managed to corner her and convinced her to come back to his ship. She wasn't naive enough to think that the smuggler actually cared about her well-being--all he wanted was someone to keep him company while he went about his illegal business. Ytan managed to avoid landing in his bunk, despite his repeated attempts to put her there. She watched his every movement carefully, secretly learning how to pilot the ship and fire a blaster, among other things. Finally, three months later, the smuggler came back drunk and tried to force himself on her. She killed him, took his credits and his blaster, and left the ship, only to find herself back on Coruscant. Ytan is currently living off the credits she took from the smuggler, carefully rationing them. She’s found that she has to be more careful now that she’s killed someone—apparently, one of the smuggler’s associates told the authorities about the Cathar-human girl who’d been with him at the time of his death. The authorities have tried harder to catch her since then, and they’ve almost caught her twice. She’s not sure she’ll be able to get away the next time. *The entire first paragraph is what Ytan knows about her origin and is not necessarily true.
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