Corellian Security Forces Academy
Coronet City, Corellia
THREE YEARS AGO
Inyri Ginovef stood near the main hall steps to the Academy, in civilian clothes and a rucksack over her back. Behind her, she could hear her classmates being marched off to their first courses of the semester. But, they weren’t her classmates any longer, she had been drummed out of Corellian Security.
“Inyri.” She turned to her parents as they approached. Her father was an average sized man, though he had put on some weight since his military days, so he had some roundness in his torso but not much. His brown blonde hair was still kept short, not a buzz cut but it never got long enough to require anything more than a brief combing, and his green eyes always seemed to have a slight ring of black around them. He wore a simple grey t-shirt and khaki colored cargo pants, as well as combat style boots.
Her mother was more professionally dressed, a dark blue blouse and black slacks with dress shoes, her red hair was styled in a single ponytail and she had a light amount of makeup on, including eyeliner around her green eyes.
“I don’t understand, why can’t I stay?” Inyri asked.
“It’s not something you did, but the Academy board won’t yield on this,” Her father said with frustration evident in his voice.
“Come on, we’ll discuss this on the way home. It’s okay, you did nothing wrong, and we’ll get this figured out somehow,” Her mother said, ushering them towards the exit of the Academy. Inyri nodded and followed her parents.
They exited the Academy and headed for the parking area for landspeeders. Inyri and her parents climbed into a silver SorroSubb V-19 Gian, the civilian model of a speeder favored on some worlds. Her father took the controls while Inyri sat in the back with her mother, and the speeder was angled back for their home near Gold Beach.
“Inyri, this is not easy to get into. Your father and I, we saw a lot while we were in the Republic military, but this is a subject neither of us have any knowledge in,” Inyri’s mother explained.
“What do you mean?” Inyri asked.
“The Academy board has completed its investigation and has determined that you exhibit signs of being a Force Sensitive. That’s why you’ve been expelled,” Her mother replied.
“That...what? Force Sensitive?” Inyri stammered.
“This isn’t something we know anything about. Sure there were rumors about Luke Skywalker and what he could do, but we weren’t anywhere near him during the war or after the Imps were routed at Jakku.” Her mother let out a sigh, shaking her head.
“So, what do I do?” Inyri asked.
“We don’t know,” Her father said.
“I wanted to do something with my life, do some good like you guys did before those kriffers in the Republic turned their backs on you. I don’t want to go to them, and I’m not going to go looking for their poster child war hero either,” Inyri scowled, “You think he’d take me in with our name? I doubt it.”
“The Jedi could be a place for you, though,” Her mother offered.
“They’re a legend, there’s no way some force of peacekeepers with energy swords and special powers just suddenly got wiped out by Palpatine. One man against many, that’s just myth and legend, I’m sure their reputation was just blown out of proportion like the rest of the Clone Wars,” Inyri shook her head with a dark chuckle.
“She’s right. We’re pinning hopes on some long gone outfit. And if Skywalker really was trying to bring them back, he’s not going to take her, not with our reputation over her head. It’s not right, but it’s the fact of the matter,” Her father replied.
“Look. Let’s just get home, and sort this out. I need to think,” Inyri said, and looked out on the cityscape of Coronet City. She felt a hand on her shoulder.
“Whatever you want to do, we’ll be here for you, Inyri,” Her mother said.
Gold Beach, Corellia
FOUR HOURS LATER
Inyri clambered into the small cave she had found as a child, high enough that the water didn’t get in except for the beginning of the lunar cycle, but still had a great view of the ocean and beach. It was hidden in a cove away from the main tourist areas, so Inyri could remain undisturbed, and even her parents didn’t know about it. Once inside the cave, she pulled her legs up into her chest and stared out into the night, the stars reflecting off of the water, the sound of the tide washing up and away drowning out the sounds of the tourists further down the beach.
It had been her third year at the Academy, she was on her way to graduating within the top fifteen percent of her class, and it practically ensured that she could have her choice of postings. She had been debating the merits of either following her father’s footsteps and going into Tactical Response or following her mother’s example and entering the world of Investigations, and now neither were a possibility. Now she had to re-evaluate her entire life.
Her expulsion made no sense. If she was Force Sensitive, why not let her stay, she could have been a valuable asset to Corellian Security. If anything, the board had just thrown away a unique opportunity to have someone that could have given the force an advantage that no other security force had. Inyri felt a bit egotistical to think she could have been some kind of secret weapon, but still, the logic was there.
Nothing made sense right now, except for why she had managed to replicate the effects of a flash grenade without the grenade during a practice session. But that alone was evidence that the board made a mistake in letting her go. That kind of ability would be invaluable in any situation, to disorient a suspect in order to take them down without any weapons, no one would be hurt and the suspect wouldn’t realize what had hit them until the cuffs were on. But no, she was something to be feared, cast aside, distrusted and isolated.
Inyri’s gaze fixed on the stars, wondering if maybe the answer was out there. Not with Skywalker or whatever was real of the Jedi, but somewhere that wouldn’t isolate and scorn her. Maybe somewhere out there, she could learn to use her talents and do some good for someone out there. Her answers weren’t going to be found on Corellia, that was becoming apparent. Both of her parents had chosen to leave and though they had been burned by the very people they had laid their lives down for, they had been better for it.
So, that was it for Inyri, she would have to leave Corellia and find her answers elsewhere, for better or for worse. She had some combat training, and could fly reasonably well. As long as she could turn to her parents for support to get off world, there was hope. And right now, that’s what she needed; hope.
Coronet City Spaceport, Corellia
TWO WEEKS LATER
Inyri’s jaw practically dropped as she walked into the docking bay and saw a YT-2400 freighter sitting there. Her father put a hand on her shoulder, beaming.
“We couldn’t let you leave without having a ship worth doing your trip in,” Her father said, “I had a couple of friends from CEC touch it up, she’s faster and more agile than normal, couldn’t do much with the weapons but even the ones fitted to it are pretty powerful. They hit about as hard as an X-Wing’s quad lasers.”
Inyri turned to her parents and hugged them both tightly. Cost, she knew, was not a big deal, her mother had found work as an actress in one of Corellia’s more popular police holodramas after retiring from the Republic military, and her father was an advisor with Corellian Engineering Corporation’s design teams. They weren’t super wealthy, but Inyri knew that she had grown up without fear of want, though her parents had made sure that she had not grown up spoiled or privileged.
“Thank you both so much,” Inyri said, stepping back with tears welling in her eyes. Both of her parents both had tears in their eyes as well.
“We love you, and we hope you find what you’re looking for,” Her mother said.
“And if you don’t, you’ll always have a home here, never forget,” Her father added.