Cody Sunn-Childe
In the medical wing of a makeshift Rebel base on the volcanic planet of Golrath, Luke Skywalker zipped up his flight suit and gathered his equipment. As he finished, Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca entered the sick bay.
Chewbacca barked a friendly greeting and Luke smiled at the tall Wookiee.
"How are you feeling, Luke?" Lando asked.
"Much better, thanks to you and Chewie," Luke answered. "If the two of you hadn't made the trip to the Red Nebula, the curse of the Crimson Forever would've claimed at least one more victim."
Lando waved the compliment aside. "Don't worry about it, Luke. If you ask the Princess, I've got plenty more to make up for. Now that's taken care of, Chewie and I can devote some time to finding Han and that bounty hunter."
"Nothing yet?" Luke asked.
"I'm afraid not. We're still having problems with the Falcon's hyperdrive. I'm starting to wonder if some of the spice Han smuggled has gotten into it's capacitors, because it's been acting up in the most incredible ways. Not long ago, it blew out just was we made the jump to lightspeed. I'm no astrophysicist, but somehow the explosion pierced a barrier between normal space and some other dimension, and the Falcon got sucked through.
"We found ourselves in some strange color-soak void, and the in the midst of it, an island floating in the ether, and on the island, a city! We were forced to make an emergency landing in the jungle outside the city."
Chewbacca growled a comment.
"Hey, given that the instruments were going haywire, it wasn't a half-bad landing! With the ship damaged, we had to push through the jungle on foot towards the city. From out of nowhere, a demonic creature attacked, and in less time than it takes to swat a Geonosian drone, Chewie and I were down. But there was someone else we hadn't seen. An orange skinned fellow stepped out of the jungle and with a wave of his hand, he knocked the creature out! Here's the bizarre part, the creature turned to energy which was drawn into our benefactor."
"That's amazing," Luke marveled. "Who was he?"
"That's just it, I recognized him! It was Cody Sunn-Childe. I saw him in action against the Imperials near the Sakya system when I was just a kid."
"Sure!" Luke replied. "The story of how he and Beelyard the Holy Terror liberated Bestine during the Clone Wars is legendary. But I thought Sunn-Childe was dead."
"You're not alone. He vanished a decade ago during the early days of the Rebellion. As we talked, he led us to the city. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. It was filled with astonishing symmetry, sculpture and music. After disappearing, Sunn-Childe had brought his followers with him. Ansible Beelyard was there and others too: humans, Gotals, Duros, Shistavanans, and even a Wookiee or two."
Chewbacca rumbled sadly in agreement.
"Sunn-Childe said that the legends about him weren't entirely true. He said he had come to relish war for its own sake. The rebellion had been for him nothing more than an excuse to indulge in wholesale violence. Those whose real goal was peace left him in disgust. Finally, the carnage that he craved claimed him. On some Outer Rim world, Sunn-Childe was struck down. But he didn't die. Chewie, stop me if get this wrong, because here is where it gets weird.
"Sunn-Childe fell into the bowels of the planet, and was consumed by a mysterious flame near the core of the world. But he didn't die. There he discovered a race of subterranean creatures called the M'Usts who worshipped the flame. Cody was the first person to survive the eternal fire. Somehow it changed him. He was filled with unimaginable power. While he learned to wield that power, he lived among the M'Usts"
Luke looked up in amazement. "It must've been a Force nexus. There is one on Dagobah, and I heard from one of the scouts of something similar to what you described on Koda's World."
"I didn't think anyone would believe me! Sunn-Childe said he learned from the M'Usts about a life of simplicity and peace. When he finally returned to the surface, he realized that he could not allow himself to lift a hand against a bellow being without unleashing the savagery that was in the darkest part of his soul. Instead he dedicated himself to quieter, personal revolution in a galaxy gone mad.
"Using the power of the flame, he was able to give corporeal life to his dreams. He breached the dimensions and constructed a kingdom from his own mind. The asteroid and the city, he created it all by force of will. He brought his followers there to live in the fantasyland he created."
"Incredible," Luke mused, and Chewbacca barked in agreement.
Lando shook his head in disgust. "He had this incredible power, but he only used it to shut himself away from a galaxy that could've used his help. He said he wanted only peace, but the creature that attacked us, and others like it, came from his mind. He called them the repressed horrors of his soul. But it didn't take much to see that he was no better than the rest of us. I tell you, Luke, he even had Chewie buying into it."
Chewbacca growled in irritation.
"You have to admit that when the Empire arrived it all came crashing down. Somehow, the Empire had tracked the Falcon through the tear in the dimensional fabric that pulled us through. They temporarily expanded it and followed with an entire fleet. I tried to convince Sunn-Childe to fight, but it was no use. Chewie and I had to get out of there.
"For a moment, I thought Sunn-Childe had come to his senses. As we were dodging fire from the Star Destroyers, Sunn-Childe summoned up more of those demons from his psyche. They were huge, big as Star Destroyers! But as soon as they appeared, Sunn-Childe called them back. It was too late. The Imperials turned their attention to the city. They... they just laid waste to it. In a moment the city was gone... With the Imperials distracted, we slipped through the rend in space and back home as the tear sealed behind us, trapping the Imperial fleet in the void." Lando shook his head again.
"Sunn-Childe had the power to stop the attack, save himself and his followers, but he just stood there and died. I know he believed if he allowed his violent nature free rein he'd be lost forever. Instead he created a dream city where he could live in peace, but he was wrong. Lofty ideals aren't enough when dealing with the Empire."
Luke smiled ruefully as Lando finished the story. "I can't agree, Lando. Sunn-Childe laid down his arms and died for a dream of peace. I have to believe there is nobility in that."
"Meanwhile the rest of us are left to deal with the Empire," Lando countered.
"I'm not saying I have all the answers. I'm still learning how to be a Jedi. But Master Yoda taught me that you can't end violence with violence. Revenge can only be overcome by abandoning revenge. Eventually all of us will have to lay down our weapons and stop fighting. I saw Ben Kenobi do it on the Death Star, and I hope when the time comes I'll have the strength to do it too."
Lando was about to reply, but Chewbacca's bark cut him off.
"All right! All right!" Lando surrendered. "We should get going anyway. I heard that Shem-Lern, a gunrunner who's done some work for Jabba just crossed over from the Corporate Sector. He might have some information on Boba Fett's location. We'll keep you and the Princess posted."
As Lando exited, Chewbacca playfully mussed Luke's hair and growled a farewell.
Luke patted the Wookiee on the back and grinned. "Thanks, Chewie, may the Force be with you too."
• Cody Sunn-Childe
Type: Alien Monk
Height: 1.7 meters
Species: Near-human
Sex: Male
| DEX 4D | PER 3D+1 |
|---|---|
| Blaster 6D | Command 6D+1 |
| Brawling Parry 5D | Hide 4D+1 |
| Dodge 5D | Persuasion 4D+1 |
| Melee Combat 5D | Search 4D+1 |
| Melee Parry 4D+2 | Sneak 4D+1 |
| KNO 2D+2 | STR 3D |
| Alien Species 4D+2 | Brawling 4D |
| Cultures 5D+2 | |
| Scholar 5D+2 | |
| Survival 5D | |
| Willpower 5D+2 | |
| MEC 2D | TEC 2D |
| Astrogation 5D | Demolition 5D |
| Repulsorlift Operation 4D | Security 4D |
| Starship Piloting 3D | |
| Starship Gunnery 4D |
Special Abilities:
Force Skills: Control 10D, Sense 8D, Alter 13D.
Force Powers (these are the known Force powers to which Cody Sunn-Childe has access but he learned other unknown abilities from the alien M'Usts): Absorb/Dissipate Energy, Accelerate Healing, Concentration, Control Disease, Control Pain, Detoxify Poison, Emptiness, Remain Conscious, Instinctive Astrogation, Magnify Senses, Sense Force, Farseeing, Telekinesis, Accelerate Another's Healing, Control Another's Pain, Control Disease in Another, Detoxify Poison in Another, Return Another to Consciousness, Affect Mind, Create Homunculus.
This Character is Force Sensitive.
Force Points: 15
Dark Side Points: 4
Move: 10
Equipment: Surplus uniform, high military boots, yellow cape.
Description: Cody Sunn-Childe is an orange skinned near human with silvery white hair and large, pointed ears. Although he has given up violence, he wears his old rebellion uniform as a reminder of his former life.
A Quote: "Lando! Try to understand the importance of what we're doing here! If there are no examples of another path then none will ever walk it!"
Cody Sunn-Childe was created by Wally Lomego, Carmine Infantino and Tom Palmer.