Aba'Tok Palam was a young aspiring politician on Pipada, destined to follow in his father’s footsteps as senator for his home region in the planetary senate. On his sixteenth birthday he volunteered for service in the Planetary Defense Force, like all the men in his family for generations. He joined out of a mixture of patriotic duty, to continue a family tradition and to further his political career, signing up for the traditional ten-year term.

After attending an officer school he was given the rank of Junior Lieutenant in the ground forces and put in charge of a platoon of soldiers designated as amphibious rapid response unit. Like his father before him he rose rapidly through the ranks, attaining the rank of Captain in four short years of peaceful service.

When the locals started protesting the Empire’s rise to power, Aba was on the fence, not sure if poking the Doba-eel was the right move in the situation. And then the Empire blockaded the planet, landing ground troops to quell the protests with batons and blasters. The final straw came when they executed the popular singer Sa’Kalla, after she called for the entire population to resist the Imperial occupation. Aba was there, in the crowd, when they killed her. And like everyone present that had not already made up his mind, that’s when he decided that he would have to fight.

Although the Planetary Defense Force was never formally called to action, every soldier in Aba’s company reported to the barracks early the following day. Operating as a part of a large battalion, Aba led his soldiers in desperate guerrilla warfare against the invading forces, striking at vulnerable targets and disappearing into the swamps when confronted with a strong force of Imperial troops.

After months of hit-and-run battles, Aba’s company, along with the other companies in his battalion, assembled at a secret location in preparation for a daring strike at the Imperial headquarters in the region. Aba was chosen to lead a diversionary attack on a column of Imperial transports, designed to draw out the defending troops. The diversion worked perfectly. The main attack did not.

Unbeknown to Aba and the others in his battalion, they had been betrayed by one of their own. His superior officer, Major Opia'Ramanak Toorth, informed the Empire about the imminent attack and the main attack walked right into an ambush. Faced with an overwhelming number of Imperial Army Troopers and mechanized units, a retreat was ordered. When the Drabatan soldiers attempted to fall back through an underwater escape route they had planned to use for just such an occasion, they found themselves faced with a large force of Imperial Swamp Troopers, cutting off the retreat. The attack resulted in the massacre of almost the entire battalion.

After he realized what was happening, Aba led his platoon in a desperate attempt to break through the imperial lines and help the larger force to escape, but they never stood a chance. Most of his soldiers died fighting and Aba was badly wounded, only surviving thanks to his Sergeant pulling him out and getting him to safety.

This was the end of the organized resistance in the region. The remainder of the Planetary Defense Force was mopped up quickly. When Aba recovered, hidden in a village deep in the swamp, he realized that the fight was lost. The Drabatans continued to resist in other regions of the planet, but he was certain that the Empire had committed fully to quashing the insurrection and no matter how hard the Drabatans fought, this was a fight they could not win.

And so Aba looked for a better way to win his home world back. He fled the planet with a group of soldiers and after hopping between planets for a few weeks, joined the Alliance to Restore the Republic. He now had an objective. Restore the Republic, end the Empire and free his home world in one fell swoop.

After watching so many of his friends fall, he wanted nothing more than to pick up a rifle and shoot Imperials until he either ran out of targets or got killed like his friends back on Pipada. He therefore enlisted as a private, not bothering to tell his superiors about his officer training. His training showed though, and his leadership abilities came to the attention of his superiors.

Motivation: Vengeance

For Aba, every dead Imperial is one more step in his long trek to avenge the friends he lost in the massacres on his home world and to free Pipada from the Imperial war machine. He has vowed to show no mercy to Imperial soldiers, overseers and others responsible for the repression of non-human species and the exploitation of resources on planets taken by force.

Duty: Combat Victory (0)
The duty of any officer in the Rebel Alliance is to defeat the Empire. Aba is a staunch believer in a decisive military victory to break the morale of the Empire, multiply the support for the restoration of the Republic and show the citizens of the Empire that the Rebellion can win.

Duty: Personnel (0)
Aba knows that for the rebellion to survive, the Ember needs to survive to fight another day. For that to happen it will need its crew, fighting like its never fought before, so he makes it his priority to keep the crew alive and ready for anything they could face.

Aba'Tok Palam is rather average, for a Drabatan. He is just shy of 170 cm tall and weighs a little over 70 kg. His skin is dark-green, almost greyish where it has started to wrinkle on his face. His eyes are small and beady, dark-brown in color, and his nose not much more than a pair of slits. His face is dominated by an enormous mouth. Big even when shut, it is large enough for Aba to stuff both his fists in his mouth at the same time.

Aba speaks with a deep barritone voice, both when he speaks in Galactic Basic and in his native Drabatese. He has a lovely singing voice, something every single one of his crewmates can attest to, due to his habit to softly sing to himself when busy with monotonous work.

While on a rebel base he tends to wear a worn uniform. He is almost always armed with his service blaster and a utility belt stuffed with things he might find useful for his duties. When on a mission his gear is picked to match the task at hand, but usually consists of combat armor and a blaster rifle.

Personality:

When off-duty Aba is fairly relaxed and easy-going, easy to talk to and a good listener. Although his squadmates have teased him mercilessly because of it, he is quite fond of what most would consider high culture, such as Rodian opera, Caamasi theater and, naturally, Drabatan singing. When a fellow rebel wants a favor the best way to get Aba in a good mood is to introduce him to a new type of music or discuss the topic with him in general, rather than plying him with liquor.

When he’s on duty he is a consummate professional, doing his best to remain calm and collected. In the height of battle he often follows his gut and lets his emotions show, something his subordinates find both comforting and a little scary, especially when he charges into battle shouting the Drabatan battle cry SA’KALLA at the top of his considerably powerful lunges.

Aba does have a temper, although he almost always keeps it in check. He uses his anger as fuel in battle, venting his anger and frustration on his enemies. His temper has gotten him in trouble, but so far no major incidents have found their way to his file

A Quote:
"Today we will give the Empire a lesson it will not soon forget. They do not deserve our compassion, they do not deserve our mercy. When you go out there, think about what they have done to you and yours. Stand fast and aim true. Kill them all."