Dan Santoro

Background: Born just over two decades ago to father Tavrin and mother Meila, the young Daniel Santoro completed the young family, already having a two-year-old brother- Joran.  The family of four was happy as a starving family could be in the undercity of Coruscant, fighting for scraps and hiding from the all-pervasive tax agents of the Empire.

What little money the Santoros did have was all thanks to their mother- working double shifts at Coruscant General Hospital, patching up the war veterans and unfortunate citizens and often leaving the children on their own.  Their father was a good one, when around, but by the time Daniel turned four it was a rare commodity.  Whenever the children were brave enough to ask just where papa was going, they always received short answers- “He’s going to fight for us.”  “The Alliance.”  “Shell shooting.”  Eventually, they learned not to ask.

In the next two years, a parade of strangers came through Daniel’s door.  Men and women of all kinds, shapes, and sizes came and went, all injured, and all with fantastic tales of battle and glory to fill the young boys’ minds.  Joran and Daniel often ran wild through the undercity, armed with only bent pipes and plastic armor, pretending to vanquish the oppressive yet mysterious “boys in white”.  Soon word of their adventures got around, and mama grounded them inside, though Daniel didn’t quite know why.

At age six, Daniel and Joran were classified a ‘problem children’ at school, continually getting into fistfights and arguments with the teachers.  It was suggested that the two be moved to a military prep school for discipline or be expelled, and his mother reluctantly obliged.  It was there that the two flourished- Joran topping his class and becoming the model student, Daniel astounding his professors with his early logic skills.  The last night of his first year, he was whisked out of his bed, away from Joran, away from mama, and away from everything he’d known.

For a month or two, Daniel was shuffled around to many different people with strange names and titles- they never made an impact on him.  He was quickly reminded not to ask questions when a young officer had flung him across the room, so for the most part he just waited and colored in the tiny, dark rooms they would keep him in, wondering when Joran and dad would come to save him…  But deep down he knew it would never happen.

Soon normality came again to the young boy, and he found himself in a secluded compound, somewhere north of Tyrena, Corellia with twenty-nine other boys of his age.  He was told that he was a very special boy, chosen to be in the top-secret project, the “Heroes of the Future Program”.  He was sat in a classroom with a strange helmet over his face, flashing images and pictures he didn’t understand.  Through forced flash learning, Candidate Santoro quickly learned the basics in personal combat, command, and tactics of all scales.  He learned the geography and history of the galaxy, and he learned dozens of Imperial regulations, most of which he made a conscious effort to forget.  The most vivid memory from Santoro’s childhood was watching as two of the professors sadistically punished one of the Candidates for merely playing with another- they didn’t think the ‘no friends’ rule would actually be enforced.  They were wrong.

For the next three years, the candidates continued their flash learning, combat exercises, and mental endurance exercises, bringing Daniel to the age of nine.  With the destruction of the Death Star, their emphasis suddenly changed from patrol and security to covert operations and insurgencies, finding dozens of ways to root out rebel traitors and destroy their fleets, all with limited resources and reinforcements.  Children who lagged behind began disappearing from their beds, and although many times Santoro would hear the men come into the room, they never came for him.  He had a knife from the kitchen ready for when they did, anyway.

Although the seclusion of the base was beneficial, it would also be its downfall.  A sudden Rebel Alliance assault on the base forced the children to evacuate, watching as all of their superiors and even some of their classmates were slaughtered.  The group was relocated to the Victory- Class Star Destroyer Ghost, where their training continued in the Deep Core.

Four years dragged by, where the student’s training came into full swing.  Visited by some of the most famous Admirals and commanders of the time, the cadets did their best to ensure that the Emperor and Vader noticed them, although the two never made any more contact than a brief holo lecture.  With the destruction of the Death Star II, the Empire could no longer afford to fund the expensive programs they had developed, and instead sent the candidates to the Cardia Military Academy, where they were the youngest trainees there.

For five years, Daniel Santoro excelled in his classes and training, becoming the ‘mission leader’ on countless simulations and a few real-life experiences.  He took classes mainly focusing on Capital Ship Command and Starship Command, reinforcing his already well-established knowledge in the area.  Grand Admiral Thrawn took an individual interest in Santoro for his short reign, but didn’t last until graduation.

Graduating within the top percentile of his class, Santoro was offered an officer’s commission, which he politely declined.  Instead, he went back home to find his mother.

When he arrived, his mother and older brother would have nothing to do with him.  They accused him of being a traitor, a murderer, and everything that papa had fought against.  Suddenly his story became crystal clear, and he understood just what papa had been doing.  Deciding to let his family go, he legally disowned them and headed back to the Empire, earning himself a Captain’s commission under Lord Admiral Viktor Mallagant.  In a short time, he had earned himself a promotion to Line Captain.