I've fought on every planet from Hoth to Borleias. I've nearly died three times in the line of duty. I've had to pull comrades out of the way of blaster fire, AT-AT feet, rockets, grenades, and crashing shuttles. Next to me, kid, you're a bumbling rookie.
—Aeris Cormin (RW-131)
Aeris Cormin (RW-131) was a human male stormtrooper captain that fought in the Imperial Stormtrooper Corps for nearly four years before defecting to the Rebel Alliance soon after the destruction of Alderaan. After fighting in the Alliance, and later the New Republic during the Galactic Civil and Yuzhan-Vong Wars, Aeris later returned to his Imperial roots, becoming a top commander in the Fel Empire.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Aeris was born into a middle class family on Coruscant in 22 BBY, a week before the Battle of Geonosis. His family was military, his father a Republic naval officer and his mother an army nurse. Aeris grew up on stories his father told of great naval battles in the Outer Rim, and of the Jedi Rebellion, and grew to be an exceptional supporter of the Empire.
Career in the Galactic Empire[]
Aeris enlisted in the Imperial Army at the age of eighteen. He had no trouble getting into the Stormtrooper Corps, and graduated at the top of his class. He made sergeant quickly, and saw his first deployment patrolling on Coruscant, now dubbed Imperial Center. When the Rebellion became a major threat, he saw deployment to numerous hotspots, soon receiving a commission to lieutenant after graduating from officers training, once again at the top of his class. However, the promotion was tainted when he was instructed to kill a group of fifteen men, women, and children on circumstantial evidence of treason. He began having second thoughts about the Empire's methods, but continued to engage the Rebellion on numerous battlefields, eventually receiving a promotion to captain and a coveted post on the first Death Star. He was at first thrilled to have the assignment, but then witnessed the destruction of the prison planet over which the Death Star was built. A few days later, he watched with horror as the planet Alderaan, peaceful and no threat to the Empire's security, was destroyed on a whim. After this he could stand the Empire's tactics no longer, covertly hijacking a shuttle just as the Death Star entered the Yavin system and fleeing to the nearest Alliance outpost.
Career in the Alliance and New Republic[]
Upon reaching the outpost, Aeris surrendered to the Rebel troops and declared his intention to defect. The Rebels were hesitant at first, since Aeris had commanded a well-known and feared unit, but his wealth of information and skill as a tactician and commander eventually won them over. He was soon put in command of his own Alliance commando squad. Soon after, he discovered through an old stormtrooper contact that had followed his commander's example and become a mole in the Empire that his brother and sister had followed his footsteps and become stormtroopers. His sister, Alecis, was a squad leader and his brother, Cares, was serving under her command. Desperate to save his siblings, Aeris requested and was given permission to attack their remote outpost. The entire Imperial unit was captured and Aeris successfully turned his brother and sister to the side of the Rebellion.