Admiral Daala
Species:
Human
Sex:
Female
Hair Color:
Copper
Eye Color:
Green
Height:
Unknown
Homeworld:
Unknown
Political Affiliation:
Empire
A beautiful woman with striking features, Admiral Daala was the ruthless commander of a fleet of Star Destroyers, and the one-time lover of one of the most evil men in the Empire. Forgotten in a remote sector of space for over a decade since the Battle of Yavin, Daala emerged to wreak destruction.
As a young woman, Daala had attended the Imperial Academy on Caridia, one of the most grueling of training grounds for military service. She was an excellent strategist, a fierce combatant, and excelled in every curriculum. Still, despite her outstanding talents, sexism gripped the Empire, supported wholly by Emperor Palpatine.
Upon Daala's graduation, the Academy assigned her to difficult and thankless assignments, promoting less-qualified men above her time and again. She created a false persona in the computer networks, and set out to create a name for herself. Several of the radical ideas caught the eye of Moff Tarkin, who traveled to Caridia to find this brilliant tactician.
Daala was quickly assigned to Tarkin's personal staff, and was brought to the Oversector Outer, which included almost all of the Outer Rim Territories. They became lovers, despite the fact that he had a wife on Phelarion, and their intelligence and ruthless drive complemented each other fiercely. Eventually Tarkin became the first Grand Moff, with unlimited decision-making power in priority sectors, reporting only to the Emperor.
The ambitious Tarkin wanted to keep Daala hidden from the Emperor, and assigned her to command a secret project, deep in the black-hole cluster outside Kessel, in an area known as the Maw. As the Navy's first female admiral, Daala would command both the project and four Star Destroyers. Tarkin took her to watch the construction of the Destroyers in the orbiting Kuat Drive Yards, impressing upon her the power he was granting.
The Maw Installation was intended as a super-think tank where the most brilliant scientists and theoreticians could convene and create new weapons. Daala knew that Tarkin kept both her and the installation a secret from Emperor Palpatine, protecting and using her. Only he and those stationed at the Maw knew about the installation's existence. Tarkin could take credit for any destructive devices created.
When the installation's construction was completed, the workers and architects left the sector, but Daala personally reconfigured their navicomputer. All the builders were sucked into a nearby black hole, leaving no loose ends.
It was at the Maw that administrator Tol Sivron, top Imperial designer Chief Bevel Lemelisk, and Omwat designer/engineer Qwi Xux created the plans for the first Death Star. They built a prototype, winning Tarkin's accolades. When the Emperor approved the Death Star plans, Tarkin took Lemelisk from the Maw to supervise construction.
Tarkin often returned to the Maw Installation to see his lover. The final time, he challenged the scientists to create a weapon that surpassed the Death Star. He gave them nine years to complete the task, then said good-bye to Daala. She was given strict orders not to leave the Maw, nor allow anyone else to do so.
Over the intervening years, Daala enforced a strict military code. The only break from protocol was the length of her copper hair; she had arrived with stubble --part of the Academy's humiliation efforts-- but it grew out, until it reached her hips.
Her own Star Destroyer was the Gorgon, captained by Captain Kratas. The other ships under her command were the Manticore, the Basilisk, and the Hydra. Daala's total command was over 180,000 people.
Daala did not take another lover, saving herself for Tarkin, who had given her the opportunity no one else would have dared to. The installation received no news of the galaxy beyond the Maw, as the swirling space field blacked out all external HoloNet transmissions.
Eleven years passed. Daala knew the men were restless, and she had news and weaponry to report. Then, an Imperial shuttle burst into the Maw, and delivery seemed imminent. Daala was surprised to find that it contained not Imperials, but Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Kyp Durron, newly escaped from the Kessel spice mines.
Daala and Captain Kratas interrogated Solo, finding out about Tarkin's death, the destruction of both Death Stars, and the fall of the Empire. Consulting with chief administrator Tol Sivron and top designer Qwi Xux, Daala planned to unleash upon a unsuspecting galaxy her --and Tarkin's-- ultimate weapon: the Sun Crusher!
Unfortunately for Daala, Han Solo appealed to Qwi Xux's conscience, and the scientist freed Han, Kyp, and Chewbacca. The quartet stole the only working model of the Sun Crusher. The resulting space battle left the Hydra sucked into a black hole, while the remaining three Destroyers chased the Sun Crusher outside the Maw. Daala's ships engaged much of the Kessel fleet, wreaking havoc before vanishing into hyperspace.
Daala retreated to the Cauldron Nebula to plan tactics against the Alliance. She moved her ships to wait at the end of the Corellian Trade Spine, a heavily traveled shipping lane. They captured a Corellian corvette on its way to Dantooine, released it, and traced the Alliance frequencies when the ship reported the attack. Daala had the ship destroyed shortly after the transmission ended.