Kara DuMonte

Kara DuMonte
Biographical Information
Race	Corellian
Homeworld	Corellia , Corellian Sector
Mother	Lianna DuMonte
Father	Cmdr. Wilhelm DuMonte (ret)
Spouse	Ghon Webb (divorced)
Siblings	Sarena DuMonte (Sister), Samuel DuMonte (Brother)
Children	Mira Webb (Daughter)
Born	Year -13 day 138
Imperial Service
Branch	Imperial Army
Positions	Imperial Army Brigadier General, Commanding Officer, 3rd Imperial legion = Imperial Academy Training Officer
Prior Service	Imperial Academy Recruit New Republic General, New Republic Army Chief of State Director of New Republic Intelligence Senator
Awards

Kara DuMonte is currently serving as an active member of the Imperial Army.

Appearance

Standing at roughly five foot three inches, with long natural red hair and a lithe, well toned form, this short Corellian woman has almost supernatural grace and reflexes, seemingly able to move faster than the human eye can often track at times or able to predict where something will land before the event. When not in uniform, she can often be found dressed in a simple mute grey tunic and a pair of black breeches that are otherwise unremarkable, except for the yellow stripes carefully sewn into the fabric ; the distinguishing mark of first class blood stripes. Perhaps most noticeably, she almost seems to be bathed in a gentle glow from immersion in the Force, lending her features an almost luminescent beauty.

Pre Imperial History

Early Life

Born in Tyrena, on Corellia, Kara was the middle child of three siblings raised by Wilhelm and Lianna DuMonte. Although not politically powerful, or especially wealthy, Kara enjoyed a comfortable and happy childhood spent yearning for adventure and staring off into the beautiful Golden beaches that separated Coronet City and Tyrena, one of the many sights that marked Corellia as a stunningly beautiful Core World. With her father away on Imperial Duties and her siblings leaving to her to her own devices, she often spend a great deal of her childhood with her Grandfather along the coast of Tyrena, listening to stories of old battles, adventures and her Grandfather's time in the Old Republic's army.

When she was old enough to lift the old service rifle he had retired with, a customized Nightstinger long rifle nicknamed the Banshee's wail, she learned to use the rifle under the kindly old sniper's gaze. Even at a young age, she demonstrated a talent for marksmanship and grace that surpassed many trained professionals with years of experience. At the age of sixteen, she enrolled in the Cor-Sec Academy with the encouragement of her Grandfather and eventually graduated as a scout in Cor-Sec's enforcement division.

To this day, she continues to carry the old rifle that her grandfather left to her, in honour of the past.

Rebellion

Caught firmly in the grip of Wanderlust and bearing sympathies for less fortunate species in the Galaxy, an impressionable Kara was recruited into the Republic military by the recruits often found moving through Tyrena city on Corellia. Although she did not tell them why, she bid farewell to her family and left Corellia on a journey that would take her away from the Golden Beaches of Corellia for nigh on a decade.

On arriving at the Republic capital, Adabatar, she wasted no time in seeking out the Academy and immediately enrolled, opting to enlist in Star fighter Command, in order to try her hand at becoming an officer and, a quiet hope, a star fighter ace like the pilots of old. Owed to the Corellian affinity for ships and space, this seemed like a natural fit at first, with piloting and her reflexes being up to the task. This particular dream was not to be however, as she proved to be a rather average pilot, lacking the flair and aplomb of the true legendary pilots.

Regardless, she demonstrated capable leadership, organizational skills and a knack for finding trouble that saw her advance up the ranks to Flight Lieutenant before her future changed forever.

The Force Awakened

After being originally discovered to be force sensitive after a routine test by Master Owyn Darklighter, Kara formally resigned her commission from star fighter command and sought out traditional jedi teachings from the Jedi Order at the dawn of year ten. Her training began in earnest and she learned with exceptional ease and speed, proving to be incredibly gifted in the ways of the Force.

Owed to her remarkable connection with the force, it only took a couple of months for Kara to rise to the capabilities of a full jedi knight and construct her first lightsaber, the attuned crystal gathered from the Dagobah wilds adopting a brilliant violet hue, as a pastel representation of her spirit and internal strength. Constructed mainly from spare parts and a few salvaged, imbued components from an awing fighter, her first lightsaber was both simple and functional without any flaws. Rather than having succeeded and passed the trial, it showed Kara through her own actions that she was ready to hold the mantle of Jedi Knight.

A Council of Egos

Kara's first real taste of leadership was handed to her when the Jedi Order opted to elect a new Council to lead them forward after a series of demoralizing events had left the Jedi Council under-strength. During this, an election was held and Kara was invited to join the Council by popular decision by the group, although she was not granted the title of Jedi Master.

The Reign of the new Council was, for the most part, a peaceful one. The New Councillors all had the opportunity to grow into their new positions and learn to work together with frank honesty and a common goal, or at least, that was the ideal that would gradually start to unravel once egos and tensions started to flair. Owed to the alliance with the Exiles, the Jedi Order got involved in a dispute between the Exiles and the Aurodim Legion under Dorn Zeke over their invasion of an Exiles planet, since lost to the records of time. Both Kara and Ghon Webb would get involved, often verbally sparring with Dorn over the particulars of their involvement and actively helping to stem the tide of the invasion by preparing the locals to resist an occupation.

The Planet was eventually lost to superior numbers of the Aurodim Legion and the conflict was declared a loss.

Worse still, the Council began to fracture and divide itself when differences of opinion and direction began to show in closed council meetings, often leading to arguments and hastily spoken words. This came to a head when Council members began to resign either due to a cited lack of unity, or differences of opinion with other council members to the point where interactions were toxic. The Council was soon reduced to just Master Thragg Craghorn, Jedi Knight Ghon Webb and Jedi Knight Kara DuMonte.

The Council finally cracked in two when the suggestion to return a singular point of power, the Grand master position, the arbiter and sole power within the Jedi Order, back to being an active power. Disagreeing strongly to the point of action, Kara and Ghon both attempted to remove Thragg from his spot as Jedi Master in order to steer the Jedi back on course. The plan failed spectacularly, and soon saw both Kara and Ghon step down from the Council and the Order forever.

Return to the Republic

Having parted ways with the Jedi Order, and arguably, the Jedi way, Kara returned to the Republic and enlisted afresh in the Army, where her talents and aptitude for warfare were recognized by Republic Command. As a result of both a shortage in personnel and skill, Kara advanced quickly in rank and it was not long before she had advanced to holding a command position in Centurion as Division Executive Officer.

Though her leadership remained for much of the next year, she effectively withdrew from front-line activities in favour of lightening administrative duties in order to give birth to her daughter, Mira Louise Webb. With the birth of her daughter, her priorities also began to shift greatly for those she served with, putting more emphasis on protecting those under her command. To this day, she has been likened to an angry sand panther protecting her cubs.

Following her return to active duty, the Great Animosity Plague broke out across the surface of Derra IV, a planet that rapidly become a hostile battleground, with tensions reaching an unbearable level on the surface for the inhabitants, an event that sent shock waves through Republic Command : A response would be needed to help calm the planet and help safeguard the occupants during the harsh time in history. Matters worsened when the Metamorphosis plague re-emerged after nearly a decade, wreaking untold havoc on the inhabitants of the planet, and those arriving to take advantage of the chaos.

Detailed as part of the force sent in to secure Derra's main residential sector from the rioting and chaos that had overrun the city, Kara arrived to find a planet that was literally tearing itself apart with unbridled rage and senseless violence, for it's own sake. At many times during the conflict, Kara refused to use her heightened senses for fear of being swept up in a tide of unending blood. Tensions escalated into a full blown conflict with the arrival of the Empire, on their own peacekeeping mission to restore peace to the broken world. Conflict was inevitable between the two giants now present at Derra, with room for only one victor. With no change in her orders, Kara did what she had been ordered to ; Hold the residential zone at all costs and give no ground.

Lasting for weeks, the conflict had no clear victor with the combined task group made of up Galactic Alliance combatants and the Forces of the Empire dealing harrowing blows to one another, resulting in a high casualty rate on both sides. The situation would remain the same until elements of the Galactic Alliance decided to pull out, leaving the Republic and a few scattered allies to hold ground against the might of Third Legion. With the arrival of fresh reinforcements from the Empire, and the situation rapidly going down hill, Kara took charge of the remaining Republic forces and ordered an orderly retreat from the city - Regardless of whether the planet had been held, their force had held long enough to bring about an antidote to the aggression plague.

On the retreat, Kara would encounter Nathaniel Durane and the force he was commanding for one last battle, almost purely fought by Republic forces against the assembled strength of the Third Legion. Arguably one of the bloodier battles of Derra IV, both officers exchanged heavy wounds and at the end, respect. Although no clear victor ever came about, Kara could at least take solace in the fact she had held her ground and done her duty.

Following that last battle, the Republic and her allies officially withdrew from Derra

A New Way

Struggling with a lack of direction in the New Republic and heeding the call of the Force, Kara disappeared from known space half way through Year Fifteen to undergo a pilgrimage to planets touched by both extremes of the Force, in order to try and understand the will and direction the force often exerted on individuals subtly, seeking knowledge of both the light and dark side of the Force in order to understand the whole, Kara spent much of the year in meditation, moving from planet to planet in order to witness the ebb and flow of the force in action.

While lost in quiet contemplation, she received multiple visions of a time before the schism that shook the Force, resulting in the Jedi Order and the Sith way. Based around the concept that the Force exists in a careful balance of both the light and dark side of the force, each requiring the other in the grand scheme. Through the force, she was able to understand an old code, fallen into obscurity through the ravages of time, and the actions of a schism that would eventually prove to crack the Galaxy in half with an eternal struggle.

Republica Bound

Early Year Sixteen, Kara broke with her departure from the Galaxy and returned to the Republic, now armed with a new direction and certainty in the Force. Although welcomed back, she quickly began to learn that the Republic she had returned to and the one she had left were not the same government, with petty infighting and arguments raging out of control, with little or no guidance from self professed leaders. She witnessed a group that would gradually start hunting down and accusing it's own members out of paranoia and fear of those with a desire to change, those who possessed ambition.

All the while, the Galactic alliance looked on dismissively, content to grow stagnant on top of it's bounty of technology. Tensions between the allies reached an all-time high when talk of a reform began designed to place the current leaders at the top of an all powerful entity that would envelop the traditionally independent Republic and it's supporters and consolidate newly formed might into the hands of a few.

Although the proposal was defeated with the retirement of it's primary adherent, the tensions from the attempt remained, leaving relations strained.

The Last Straw

Worn down after almost a decade of dealing with imbeciles and growing ever more infuriated with the chaotic nature of the Galactic Alliance, Kara finally snapped at the treatment her friend, Jasper Merlyn, had received at the hands of the Republic and opted to leave both the Republic and the Galactic Alliance behind, both saddened and angry at institutions that she had spend years attempting to build up had fallen so low.

Imperial History

Imperial Academy

Returning to the skills she had learned both as a child and through her experiences in the Republic army, Kara was able to advance through the Academy at a respectable pace, sifting through Academy lessons and information on Protocol, expectations and requirements. Through her efforts and academic focus, she secured graduation with honours from the Academy and entered into service with the Imperial Army.

Imperial Army

With her graduation now behind her and honours awarded for excellence, Kara secured a commission for the rank of Captain, owed to her extensive experience in the field of war and her skill on the battlefield. With her path now set, she stands ready to leave her mark on the galaxy once more.

Joining the Guard

Following months of faithful service as a line trooper and adaptation to the new sense of discipline and order in her life, Kara has risen through the ranks in the Empire to Lieutenant Colonel, following on from an extended offer of executive officer for the Third Legion's Third Brigade, the Shadowguards. Having accepted, she now proudly bears the moniker of Guardswoman, an honourific usually reserved for the Emperor's personal guard.

Having cast off her old life, she stands now as a reminder of the Empire's mercy for the wayward and the misguided out on the rim and as a sign of the wrath waiting for the enemies of the Empire

Religion and beliefs

Personal Life

At her core, Kara is a woman that cares deeply - For years she stood against the Empire to try and forge a new sense of democracy and freedom within the Galaxy from within the Republic. She had truly believed this to be the right path, until the rot set in and the flaws in the system started to become more apparent with fewer patches and fixes available ; When free rights started to give way to the idea of cautiously revoking the right to be heard. This, in addition to daily life interacting with the Senate drove her to the idea that democracy was overrated and that it was one step above popular mob rule, demonstrated time and again with the failure of the Galactic Republic to avoid ending up a cesspit of corruption.

More than that, she wanted a future away from the strife and conflict of the Galactic Civil war for her daughter to grow up in and to be able to hand her the peace both she and the Galaxy as a whole deserves - she opted to do this by siding with the New Order to bring an end to the failed experiment of the Republic and ensure the Galaxy can continue to grow without the threat of insurgency. This decision had a momentous and quite devastating effect on her family, effectively ending the marriage she had so lovingly worked to protect due to inconsolable differences. This has only strengthened her resolve to help bring peace to the Galaxy so that her daughter can grow up in a society without the threat and danger of war.

As with everything in her life, the relationships of her private life are best described as being 'complicated'

The Code

There is no ignorance; there is knowledge.
There is no fear; there is power.
I am the heart of the Force.
I am the revealing fire of light.
I am the mystery of darkness
In balance with chaos and harmony,
Immortal in the Force.
-The Je'daii Code

Abilities

Primarily an adherent of Ashla, Kara has an exceptional strength buried deep within the Force and a wealth of knowledge at her fingertips. She is particularly gifted with the living force, being especially sensitive to the ebbs and flows of the Force and it's tidal waves of emotion. The strength of this bond to the living force is by far her strongest attribute and has developed into a deeply sensitive sense of empathy that ranges beyond most force users - While it has greatly aided her ability to sense and manipulate the emotions within others, it has also allowed her to develop the telepathic potential she possess into a force to be reckoned with. This sensitivity to the flow of emotion around her has also been known to affect her own mood from time to time, presenting a potential danger should she ever lose the control she has spent years developing.

This attunement to the living sense of the force has given her a talent for binding wounds and soothing pain through the gifts she has been afforded by the Force and focusing her mind into effective illusions and tricks of the mind ranging from suggestion to the mental fortitude required to survive in a galaxy surrounded with both negative and positive emotions throughout.

Owed to the intense study and focus placed she fell under early in her training, she has come to embody the spirit of Soresu, the third form of lightsaber combat or the way of the Mynock. This style relies on the concept of patience, energy conservation in combat and whittling down her opponent to the point where one perfect strike is all that's required to draw combat to a screeching halt. In combat, every move she takes is measured and weighed in order to best apply to the situation in front of her.

This sensitivity comes at a price as she experiences the emotions around her more keenly - Love, fear, anger...they are all felt more keenly and have a potent effect on her psyche she has spent the most of her time trying to block out. While she has learned to control her gifts, the loss of that control could be catastrophic.

Hidden Gifts

Her strength of will and character also houses a darker element to her abilities that she has kept quiet - Since the earliest days of her training, she has had the ability to amplify the volume and frequency of her voice to dangerously harmful pitches, able to both harm and demoralize. She has not sought training for this "gift" owed both to past affiliations and the fact she has not had access to anyone with the knowledge to learn more.

Trivia

Did you know

• - Kara loves the taste and aroma of a good cup of caf
• - Even though she's just an enthusiastic novice, she enjoys archeology and uncovering ancient mysteries
• - As an Empath, she feels emotions and feelings more acutely around her, as well as within. Although she's spent years learning to protect herself, strong emotion can still affect her and her mood
• - Kara dislikes spiders. Alot.
• - She is predominantly left handed
• - On the rare occasions she does drink, she tends to prefer older vintage Whyrrens reserve
• - She dislikes being used and manipulated
• - She had earned the right to bear the yellow piping of the Corellian Bloodstripes, both for her time served in the Corellian armed forces and during her time spent on the front lines of the Civil War
• - During her decade long exile on the outer-rim, what she missed most of all was her home and family
• - Despite leaving her previous life behind, she still has the uniform and medals the Republic issued her with as a keepsake and a reminder of the past
• - Her favourite dish is a medium rare bantha steak
• - Kara has been known to enjoy trashy holonovels in her spare time as a guilty pleasure.