Jarek Solios

Jarek Solios was a mostly-Human male Coruscanti. He was the younger brother of the Jedi Knight Mirum Solios and Imperial Knight Axelia Solios, and by extension was the grandson of Andromeda Keane and the great-great grandson of the Dark Lord of the Sith Khrado Ragnos, as well as being a distant relation of the Sakaros family.

Trained in the ways of the Force by his grandmother after his parents' death, he remained close to home instead of joining a Force-using Order like his siblings, waiting out the Sith-Imperial War and the subsequent rise of Darth Krayt. When his grandmother contracted the Taren Plague, Jarek took to traveling the galaxy and working wherever he could find pay to buy drugs that would slow the progress of his grandmother's disease. He eventually found his way to Nar Shaddaa, where he became an agent of the Merquise Syndicate and a trusted confidante of its leaders.

Grandma's boy
Jarek Solios was born on in 116 ABY. He lived the first year of his life with his parents and sister, Axelia, but Dhorvan and Alexandra Solios died in a speeder crash in 117 ABY. Jarek and Axelia went to live with Alexandra's mother, Andromeda. They were occasionally visited by their older brother Mirum, who was already a Jedi apprentice at the. In 120 ABY, Roan Fel and a delegation of his Imperial Knights visited Coruscant, and Axelia became enamored of their shiny red armor and obvious cool competency. With her grandmother's permission, the young girl became an apprentice Knight.

Though as strong in the Force as either of his siblings, Jarek remained with his grandmother. With her husband long dead and two of her grandchildren in Forceful Orders, Andromeda treasured Jarek's presence. He had a strong commitment to the concept of family, and Andromeda shared with him some details of their family history she had not had time to impart to Mirum or Axelia. Andromeda remembered her uncle Tak Sakaros fondly, but the tales of the Dark Lord Khrado Ragnos, Andromeda's own grandfather, frightened young Jarek. His grandmother advised him never to share that he was descended from a, and though he was educated to distinguish between the species and the , Jarek nonetheless worried that being part-Sith made part of him bad.

As he grew, Jarek did well in school and had many friends, but he always enjoyed the rare times when Mirum and Axelia were allowed to visit home. Both of his siblings were fond of their baby brother in turn, though neither understood how he could be content to remain at home instead of joining an Order. Both tried to recruit Jarek, but he insisted on staying with his grandmother. Not wanting him to be at too much of a disadvantage, Andromeda began training Jarek to use the Force. She tried to focus on the basics, avoiding the Sith-influenced training her uncle had given her, and Jarek's progress was somewhat slow as a result. She also taught Jarek the basics of Var Shek.

Invasion and infection
In 127 ABY, the broke out. Jarek watched uneasily, worried about how his siblings were now on opposite sides, though he was relieved when Roan Fel kept his Knights out of the conflict. When Coruscant was in 130 ABY, Jarek and Andromeda both hoped the conflict might be ended. However, shortly after, led the  and Mirum was slain along with many other Jedi. Sensing his brother's death from across the galaxy, Jarek was stricken with both grief and intense hate for the Sith.

Axelia visited shortly thereafter, breathless and obviously unnerved. The who had allied with Fel's Empire had turned on their allies and attempted to  Fel himself. Axelia was unable to stay, but Jarek was deeply uneasy about her departure. It would be seventeen years before the Solios siblings would see one another again.

Under the rule of the One Sith, much of Coruscant was changed. Jarek continued to go to school, but his grandmother insisted he practice the meditation technique until he could completely camouflage his Force signature. They continued to train circumspectly, but most of Jarek's training was practice in. Despite her advanced age, her part-Sith physiology had made Andromeda healthier and heartier than a Human the same age would have been, and she was able to keep up with her grandson. Gradually, however, Jarek began to notice a change.

Andromeda seemed to be losing her strength, tired often and sick more than usual. Jarek finally persuaded her to see a doctor, and was aghast at the report that she had contracted the. Jarek himself was not at risk, but the costly drugs needed to treat the disease soon saw Jarek and Andromeda move from their fairly spacious dwelling to a smaller, cheaper apartment. Despite her protestations of sending him to a university somewhere not controlled by the Sith, Jarek insisted that Andromeda use what savings she had to buy drugs for her treatments.

In his free time, Jarek did repair work at a starship mechanic's garage, improving his skills. He would often scavenge parts from the lower levels of Coruscant, where he could use his nascent Force powers more freely to divert attackers or, more often, to avoid them all together. Jarek usually sold the parts for extra money, and learned everything he could about mechanics and maintenance, hoping to eventually earn sufficient profits with his skills to help his grandmother.

The price of honor
Eventually, however, it became apparent that even Andromeda's savings were not going to carry her through. In 134 ABY, Jarek resolved to leave Coruscant and seek work elsewhere in the galaxy to earn the credits necessary to continue funding Andromeda's treatments. She was unable to dissuade him, but spent some of her savings to buy him a used. Jarek was horrified that she had spent two treatments' worth of money on him, but he took quickly to his new droid, which he named R9-D8 and usually called "Ninety-Eight". Before she allowed him to leave, Andromeda helped Jarek construct his own, though she warned him to use it only in the most desparate of circumstances. 98 proved essential in Jarek's departure from Coruscant. The droid managed to hack into the registry of a freighter bound offworld and add them both to the passenger list.

Over the next five years, Jarek worked odd jobs across the galaxy, taking only the money he needed for himself and 98 and spending the rest on funding Andromeda's treatments. Jarek usually kept his lightsaber stored in one of 98's dome compartments, carrying it on his person only when absolutely necessary. With the still warring with the Sith, and Roan Fel's Empire resisting as well, legitimate work was sometimes difficult to find. Jarek's personal moral compass often pointed him away from shadier sources of income, but when his funds for his grandmother dwindled, he took on work as a bodyguard and, though he refused to sink to becoming an assassin. The first time he was forced to kill as part of a job, he became violently sick.

Less than a year after his departure from Coruscant, Jarek was sent to collect the bounty on another bounty hunter. He had intended to bring the man in alive, but the hunter knew he was being stalked and set a trap for Jarek. Sensing the danger, Jarek managed to mostly being stunned, but his pistol hand was temporarily paralyzed. Desperate, he had 98 eject his lightsaber, and used it to his attacker's legs. Screaming, the bounty hunter leveled his pistols, and a desperate Jarek him through the head. After collecting the bounty, Jarek returned to the docking bay which had been the scene of the fight, where the dead hunter's was still in holding. Plugged into the astromech socket, 98 was able to override previous systems and reassign the fighter to Jarek, who took it as his own personal ship. He disliked the reminder of having maimed and ultimately killed the bounty hunter, but the potential for saving credits by having his own ship—and thus having more to send to Andromeda—quieted his conscience.

In 135 ABY, Jarek crossed paths with an Imperial Knight while working in the Fel Empire's territory. He was hollowed when the Knight told him Axelia had been missing in action for over a year, and refused to discuss what, if any, plans the Empire had to rescue her. Jarek could not often risk visiting home, though he sent his grandmother messages as often as possible, and 98 became his closest companion.

Revelations
In 139 ABY, while working for a low-level crime boss on, Jarek overheard a discussion of the Merquise Syndicate on. The Syndicate itself was not news to him; the gun-runners of Ara Merquise had become famous in the past few years. But now the Syndicate was rumored to be under the control of Tak Sakaros.

Though still leery of the Sith, Jarek remembered his grandmother's adoring stories about her Uncle Tak, and he knew the Sith Lord would do anything to help Andromeda. As soon as he was able, he journeyed to Nar Shaddaa and sought out Ara Merquise's Fortress. He announced that he was there to see Tak and was met by the Vigo Alluria Quinn, but was crushed to learn that Tak had died a month before. Alluria wondered at Jarek's obviously heartsick response—she had never heard of Jarek, and he told her honestly that he had never met Tak—but opted not to press Jarek. She did offer him a position as an operative for the Syndicate. With his best hope dashed and needing money, Jarek agreed.

Though he initially kept his Force abilities secret and had 98 carry his lightsaber, Jarek had difficulty maintaining Quey'tek control around Alluria, who was a trained Sith Lord and Tak's last apprentice. Eventually she deduced his Force abilities, and Jarek admitted that he was trained to use the Force, though both his control and his swordfighting paled in comparison to Alluria's. Nevertheless, she resolved to make better use of his gifts and promoted him to the Merquise Syndicate Elite Guard.

A new family
Aware of Jarek's discomfort with collections work and assassination, Alluria and Ventresca Tan used him mostly to protect the Syndicate's clients and the citizens of the Entertainment District which the Syndicate had more or less taken under its wing. Jarek could do this with less guilt, and the money from his Elite Guard pay allowed him to fund his grandmother's treatments while even saving some for emergencies, a rarity in the five years since he had left Coruscant.

Jarek found himself becoming close with many people in the Syndicate. The twins Broll and Veli Kass`l, both sarcastic fighters and Elite Guards, were his regular companions, and Veli eventually became his best friend. Reiko Tanake was another new friend; while 98 was terrified of her and her penchant for modifying droids, Jarek liked the. Just as importantly, she was carrying Tak Sakaros's sixth and final child, and thus Jarek's own cousin, thrice removed. Jarek was actually present at the birth of the boy, Nagarian Sakaros, and was very protective of him, to the confusion of others.

Foremost among his new friends, however, was Alluria Solios herself. Wicked, cool, and apparently devoid of a conscience, the Sith found Jarek's moral center and apparent naivete strange and slightly amusing. She flirted with Jarek and was surprised when he did not become one of her quick conquests, which only increased her interest. Eventually the two started dating, to the amusement of the rest of the Elite Guard, although Jarek kept the progress of their relationship slow.

Friends in high places
Not long after Nagarian's birth, his odd collection of friends and family received five visitors who would change Jarek's life in a major way—Sith Lord Tariun Sakaros and his Royal Guards Jira Seezhli, Breek Zagrev, Tamlok, and Khoro`ly`ooho`sh`lyhoo. Tariun was Tak's son and Jarek's cousin, and he quickly put together the pieces. The two met, and Jarek explained his entire situation; he had grown up hearing Tariun's name along with Tak's, and he had renewed hopes that something could be done for his grandmother.

It was not long before Tariun made good on his promise to help; Rin Sakaros herself came to meet Jarek, while Tariun, Breek, and Chindal journeyed to Coruscant to smuggle Andromeda off the planet and to the Golden Empire. In return for her help, Rin asked Jarek to remain with the Merquise Syndicate to protect Nagarian, and he agreed.

New challenges
Now able to focus completely on his life on Nar Shaddaa, Jarek continued to train with Alluria and the Elite Guard. After Rin made an ally of the Souv Tanake, a longstanding if uncomfortable ally of the Merquise Syndicate, Jarek was introduced to her as well. Her master, Hayden Ragnos-Sakaros, had been Rin and Tariun's half-brother and another cousin of Jarek's. This, combined with Jarek's own innate inclination toward the light side, led to the two of them developing a friendship. Souv also helped Jarek hone his reflexes and explore meditative abilities, as well as providing another sparring partner.

Souv's former Padawan, Odala Van Meer, had failed her, but had become acquainted with Alluria at Rin's parley with Souv. She became Alluria's apprentice and a member of the Syndicate, and Alluria added her to the Elite Guard. Jarek became friends with her as he and Alluria grew every closer. The three fought side-by-side with Souv and some of her Jedi against a group of who had made their way to Nar Shaddaa; the Jedi felt themselves duty-bound to oppose the One Sith, and the Syndicate personnel refused to let them near Nagarian.

Around the same time, Alluria's sister Selina first arrived on Nar Shaddaa. A professional thief, she fit in well with the Syndicate, but Jarek was intrigued by her lack of Force training. He tried to help her harness her powers, and over the following years she became his informal student.

In 141 ABY, Jarek proposed to Alluria, and she accepted. The two were planning their marriage in when Jira Seezhli arrived from the Golden Empire. She bore the sad news that Andromeda, though healed of the Taren Plague, was reaching the end of her life simply because of her age. Distraught, Jarek accepted Jira's offer to stay and guard Nagarian in his place while he went to Queen's Garden to be with his grandmother. The two spent about a month together, catching up and enjoying each other's company, and Jarek was relieved to see his grandmother looking well and so obviously happy with the way her life had turned out in the Empire. Andromeda gave Jarek Khrado Ragnos's lightsaber, an heirloom of the family. After several weeks on the idyllic world, Andromeda died peacefully in her sleep. Jarek and her two Royal Guards, Kelto Nembask and Moira Nascall, buried her on Queen's Garden, and Jarek returned to Nar Shaddaa.

Shortly before Jarek and Alluria were married, the Merquise Syndicates began to receive threats from a Dark Jedi named Naiya. She snuck into Jarek's bachelor party to threaten him, and after the wedding, Jarek took Alluria on a honeymoon through the to put some distance between them. When they returned Naiya resumed her campaign of intimidation, killing Reiko's on-and-off girlfriend Ryssa Kalamir and Alluria's ally Tyri Ne Dago and burning Odala with her lightsaber blade. Alluria refused to be paranoid and hoped to confront Alluria herself.

Jarek continued to train with Souv, improving his own combat abilities. When Naiya attacked the Nar Shaddaa Jedi Temple, Jarek responded to the scene, and his presence baited Naiya into a fight. She revealed that she had once been a Jedi Master named Lilea Frey, and had been Alluria's Jedi mentor. When Alluria was cast out of the Order in disgrace, Lilea became distrusted by the Council, eventually falling to the dark side. Jarek and Naiya dueled over the catwalks before Jarek finally used one of Alluria's lunges, slipping past Naiya's guard and cutting her throat. She died in seconds and her threat was ended.

Not long after Naiya's death, the Merquise Syndicate became embroiled in a turf war with the, and Jarek helped the Syndicate fight agents of the Hutts. He had not abandoned his conscience, and he preferred to protect the Entertainment District along with the private police force hired by the neighboring Bilinsky Sector rather than hunt down the Desilijic bounty hunters and enforcers. However, he did agree to accompany Alluria, Odala, and several of the Elite Guard to assassinate a group of Hutt leaders, feeling a decisive end to their enemies was ultimately better than putting more lives in danger through a long war.

Jarek and Alluria's first daughter, Octavia Solios, was born in 143 ABY. Jarek adored his daughter, but he was unsettled when Rin visited and reacted strongly to contact between Octavia and Nagarian. Jarek thought she had received a vision, but Rin refused to discuss whatever she had seen, saying only that attempting to prevent visions of the future could bring them about, and that the future was not yet certain. Tariun later unsettled Alluria and Jarek all the more when he referred to Octavia as "the little ticking time bomb". Jarek's misgivings were only increased by the danger of living on Nar Shaddaa. Octavia, like Nagarian, had to be kept inside at nearly all times to keep her safe from the enemies of the Syndicate.

Homestead
In 144 ABY, more One Sith showed up on Nar Shaddaa, this time deliberately hunting the Syndicate. Though Jarek, Alluria, and Reiko managed to slay them all, with the aid of Centurions Aria Nikina, Vem, and Rajj-Yo, Jarek started to grow tired of the constant paranoia and danger of life on Nar Shaddaa. He did not want to raise Octavia in that environment, and discussed the idea of leaving with Alluria. She initially balked at the idea, as they would never find a place as fortified and defensible as the Syndicate's ziggurat fortress. Reiko, however, was more amenable, and the two worked Alluria down.

After considering several locations, the small family decided on. Bidding farewell to their friends in the Syndicate, Jarek, Alluria, Reiko, Odala, Reiko's wife Six Tanake, the Kass`l twins, Nagarian, Octavia, and Odala and Veli's daughter Azalyn Kass`l moved to a small, abandoned complex in one of Belsavis's rift valleys in 145 ABY. They successfully refurbished the compound and turned the entire valley into a farm, growing.

Farming and the peaceful life that accompanied it were major changes for the battle-hardened former criminals, but it was a life that was perfect for Jarek. He was able to work hard at honest, honorable work, and spend his free time with his family and closest friends. His palpable contentment helped ease Alluria's transition out of a life of violence, and even she admitted that it was nice to raise Octavia without fear. Jarek took to leaving his lightsaber in the house rather than carrying it on his person, though he, Alluria, Reiko, and Odala still sparred regularly, and they all combined their efforts to teach Nagarian and Octavia the ways of the Force.

Tragedy
For several years the combined family existed in peace on Belsavis. In 147 ABY, Jarek received good news from the Empire: Rin and her Centurions had at last located Axelia. Though saddened to hear that her rescue had come at the price of Khoro's life, Jarek was still happy that his sister had been saved, and unsurprised to hear that she had become a Centurion.

Not long after Axelia's rescue, Alluria and Odala were vacationing offworld with Veli and the Kass`ls' new son Tay when they were attacked by and. Using a mind trick, Odala convinced Veli to flee just before she and Alluria were confronted and captured by the two Sith. Beside himself with grief, Jarek worked on coming up with a plan to save them, but before he could deduce anything in the Force, Rin arrived, having sensed the same event.

Rin brought with her a corps of Centurions, including Axelia, who tried to keep Jarek's spirits up while Rin searched the Force for answers. When she finally discovered that the One Sith had holed up on, Jarek and Reiko went to rescue Alluria and Odala. Warped by Sith poisons, Alluria attacked Jarek, who managed to hold her off while Axelia and Aria Nikina confronted and killed. Reiko managed to purge Alluria of the disease, but Odala had died before they had arrived.

Quiet life
Jarek, Alluria, Reiko, and the Empire's party bore Odala's body back home to Belsavis, burying her in a small grotto across the valley from the house. Veli became depressed after his wife's death, especially since Azalyn was now in the Empire with Rin, studying to become a Centurion. He made an effort to be active in his son Tay's life, and Jarek and Broll both tried to keep up Veli's spirits with mixed success.

Not long after Odala's death, Selina Quinn arrived on Belsavis. She had been captured and maimed by people from whom she had tried to steal, and her hands were barely functional. Jarek helped her through her depression and began to teach her the Force more profoundly than he had in the past. He helped Selina to understand the world around her through the Force, expanding her senses and developing telepathy and telekinesis to compensate for her physical handicaps. Selina began a casual relationship with Broll Kass`l, and little Tay began to view her as another aunt.

In 149 ABY, Rin brought Tillandra Moraes and Rayne Turgachia to Belsavis, and the two of them healed Selina's hands almost perfectly, enabling her to study lightsaber combat in greater depth. Within a month of Rin's visit, Alluria gave birth to Force-sensitive twins, Orion and Reia Solios. Jarek and Alluria briefly discussed sending one of the twins to the Empire to become a Novice as an expression of gratitude for everything Rin had done for them over the years, but ultimately decided to keep both children with them and let the twins make the decision when they were older.

Powers and abilities
Jarek possessed a deep connection to the Force, although it took years before he could overcome his hesitation to use his powers to their fullest extent. He liked to meditate, and could tap into the, occasionally receiving of the future or present. An accomplished telepath, Jarek could generally understand the emotions and at least surface thoughts of those around him, and could read minds more clearly with effort. He and Alluria were deeply linked with one another and could almost unfailingly sense one another's emotions.

Jarek's strength in the Force enabled him to perform a number of feats others could not. Faced with death from a Sith Lord, he had the telekinetic focus to pull several individual s from Veli Kass`l's bandoleer and impale the Sith with them. Years later, Jarek lifted half a catwalk and smashed another of the One Sith with it. As early as his fight with Naiya in 142, he could Force lightning by hand.

Due to his nonviolent personality, Jarek pursued the study of. For all of his early life through his mid-twenties, he was at best a competent swordsman, and though he was generally able to protect himself even from high volumes of blaster fire, his dueling skills left much to be desired. At the Merquise Syndicate, he practiced regularly with Alluria, Reiko, Souv Tanake, and Odala, as well as his cousin Rin's Centurions when they visited, and his skills slowly improved. By the time the family moved to Belsavis, Jarek was equal to Alluria, and though he could not always beat her, nor could she land a blow on him. His sparring with Odala taught him defenses against a.

Jarek was accurate with a blaster pistol and even more so with a rifle. His mechanical abilities did not equal his friend Reiko's, though he possessed sufficient skill to modify and maintain his Ionizer and take care of R9-D8. He could speak Basic,, and. He knew the basics of Var Shek before arriving on Nar Shaddaa, and improved quickly by training with the Elite Guard.

Appearance and personality
Jarek had pale skin due to his part- heritage, short brown hair, and deep blue eyes. He stood 1.78 meters (5'10") tall and had a fit, trim build. He tended to dress in loose, comfortable clothing, and owned an  jacket which he wore when visiting dangerous areas.  His straight-hilt lightsaber had a teal blade.  After a few years on Belsavis, he began to grow a beard, which he kept neatly trimmed.

As a young man, Jarek was often leery about his Sith heritage. He was uncomfortable having a Dark Lord of the Sith for an ancestor, even though he understood the difference between the Sith species and Order. For many years Jarek wondered if the inclination toward the dark side was born in him, and avoided truly tapping the extent of his power for fear of awakening that desire. When he slipped into anger and felt the surge of dark side power, the experience always made him all the more leery. Eventually, Souv's guidance and long sessions of meditation and Soresu practice helped him overcome his fears and transcend his anger, and in the process awaken his full potential.

Raised by Andromeda, Jarek disliked violence and tended to avoid killing whenever possible. Among the hardened fighters and killers in the Merquise Syndicate, he often came across as naïve. Also like Andromeda, Jarek had great loyalty to his family. His early adulthood was motivated by caring for his grandmother, and afterwards by protecting his cousin Nagarian, his wife, and eventually his children. Jarek was a doting and caring father, and loved reading to his children as well as teaching them about the Force.

Jarek and Alluria's relationship was complex. On the surface, his distaste for violence and her combat bloodlust clashed horribly, and indeed she made him uncomfortable early on. Over time, however, Jarek's influence brought out Alluria's caring, nurturing side. She remarked often that Jarek and their children saw a side of her no one else ever did, and it was that side that Jarek loved.