- Early Life -
Alden’s early life is somewhat shrouded in mystery, with many aspects withheld from public record. The reasoning behind the secrecy was simple, though, as the family’s heritage had the potential to paint an unwanted target on their backs.
Whereas the true origins of the man remain behind lock and key, released documents show that Alden’s childhood was much like any might suspect of a civilian family of the Core World, Rendili. He and his twin, Cam Akaran, were born in the capital of Rendili, the sprawling metropolis of Edethor. His mother, Margrete, was an aspiring diplomat within the governing legislative house of the world, and his father, Jorr, an officer in Edethor’s security force. Because of the position his mother occupied within the government, he and his brother were afforded what many would consider an upbringing of privilege, without need. The two received private educations and were never short of life's necessities. However, that did not mean the two were spoiled and drowned in luxury. With the help and mentorship of his parents, along with the countless staff that aided in the care of the two boys, Alden was forced to remain grounded and humble - being disciplined at the very sign of gallivanting about with how fortunes had been showered upon him and his position within the society. Unlike his twin, Alden was not so drawn to embedding himself with the common people of his home nor community outreach.
By the time he and his brother had become teenagers, the two had become inseparable from one another, doing nearly everything together. Cam had even coerced Alden into attending and participating in his community outreach functions. But, with time, interests would once more change and where his brother sought to follow in the footsteps of their mother, Alden looked for a path of his own. He'd long respected and admired the work of Galactic Alliance's military that protected him and his freedoms, so when he finally came of age, he was commissioned into the Navy, while Cam buried himself in texts and diplomacy.
- For the Alliance -
Alden quickly learned as he entered the Galactic Alliance Navy, that not everything was as easy as he'd initially thought. It was grueling, both physically and emotionally, and he became tested in ways he'd never imagined he could be. If the stereotypical military knowledge wasn't stressful enough, he was pressed further in the fact that he'd chosen to commission instead of enlist. Throw himself ever deeper into responsibility and learn what leading actually entailed. It wasn't just screaming out orders and expecting those under you to honor them. No, it was much more than that. You had to inspire them, make them believe. Their lives were yours now and just as their success would fall upon his shoulders, so too would their failures. That was something he took time to really learn and because of that, early on he struggled.
Promoting from Ensign to Lieutenant took him longer than it did for the average troop, but it seemed that once he figured things out, he embraced it. And he did so with a sense of purpose. He became that officer that inspired and led his men in every facet. The leader who made himself an example to his men and a reflection of their success. And he carried their failures as his own. Their failures were on him. He learned this well and never again held himself above them. They were the reason he was where he was.
It didn't take him long to promote again. And again. Making it eventually to Commander, the rank prior to any form of an Admiral position. This put many under his wing and lay a heavy burden upon his shoulders, but one he embraced and one he took on well.
- The Fall -
Life cannot always bless one with fortune and signs of fragility began to splinter throughout the Galactic Alliance and in turn the military that valiantly stood to protect her. Worry and panic had crept into the day-to-day lives of the crew aboard the Valiant, the cruiser Alden commanded and as the First Order lashed out to force the pillar of freedom to crumble, Alden was tested to ensure his men remained inspired and still believed in what they did.
But war was a fickle mistress and as it erupted, the Valiant found itself engulfed in its caress. Countless battles Alden commander, even flying his own fighter to ensure every able-bodied pilot was on board and allowed the time to recuperate after a mission. However, after a number of long battles, the Cruiser and the men that served her seemingly had fought its last fight. They'd engaged their last foe and ultimately accepted that they might soon be seeing their death. But, she endured. They endured, though the Valiant was heavily damaged, with several systems to include the hyperdrive and communications array rendered inert.
- Adrift -
The extensive damage left the Valiant to its own devices. They had no way to reach back to the Galactic Alliance for aid and no way to know that the Alliance had fallen. Instead they were forced to drift aimlessly through the void of open space. They were near no allied planet with no communications and no hyperdrive. They had less than a years rations which they might be able to extend to two, maybe slightly more, if they really stretched them. There was no time table. No comfort in their survival, but they had to believe they would. They had to believe in themselves and Alden had to inspire them to continue to drive forward. That they would return to a restored Alliance. One that had not given up on them.
After floating adrift in the vastness of open space for weeks, the ship finally made its way to the planet of Thyferra, where, without the ability to pilot or navigate any longer, crashed onto the planet's surface below. The "Valiant" was gone, shattered and broken - smoldering - and Alden faced the greatest test of his entire life. Alone and afraid, he awaited a hopeful rescue on Thyferra.
- Another Life, Anew -
After a daring rescue, from a Captain in the New Republic's Navy, Alden was broken by the news he received. The Alliance he once served was broken and gone. No more. In a sense, he died inside, but he knew he would have to move on. So now he found himself at an impasse. On one hand, Alden had the option to travel to where this "New Republic" was forming, and in the other he held the option to break his ties with it all. With the government he served no more, his oath to serving it no longer held true. His contract had finished. He could move on and forge a new life. Something new.
He set off and inevitably chose to sever his ties to what had once been. No longer seeking to dwell on the past and what once was. Instead, there was a future he could look forward to.
He left what had once been Alliance held ground and went to start a new life for himself. He found himself passing through several planets on the way before eventually settling on Makeb for a time. It wasn't pretty work. And it wasn't something he was terribly proud of or enjoyed, but it at least kept him fed for crews that run supplies for the Hutts were always in need of a talented pilot. But, like he figured as when he first arrived, this is simply something he could not find himself doing any longer and so he set off once more.
Eventually he found himself wandering toward space held by the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
- Awakening -
The Confederacy welcomed Alden into its clutches with arms spread wide, not once prying into what motivated the man to seek a better life. Not once holding the looming shadow of a failed past over him and forcing him to relive those horrors. Even more peculiar, perhaps, was the immediate interest he drew from the Confederate Exarch, [member="Adron Malvern"]. Invited to a private meeting deep in the heart of Confederate space on Geonosis, the former Alliance office, turned Confederate starfighter commander saw himself face-to-face with a man that would inevitably change his life forever.
Although a number of different things went on to occur in that very meeting, it was one revelation given to him by the Exarch that opened an entirely new path to him. All in an instant, Alden’s mind was blown and a truth he’d never believed possible came to light. No; it was not his family’s heritage come to light. It was not his past as a member of the Galactic Alliance come to light to cast a foul shadow over the present. But, it was that deep inside, Alden had a connection to the Force. An unexploited resource that he now had access to. A gateway to becoming a greater man. A bastion of strength that could be coalesced in a way to bring salvation to millions where he’d once only been able to place such influence over hundreds.
As he committed to training under the Exarch, he endeavours would take him a great many places. Ilum, where he uncovered the Lorrdian Gemstone which he bonded with and forged into the central construct of the lightsaber he would come to possess. Tatooine, where he would take his first steps in learning to dance that ancient dance of blades. And many more places in between. But that bond he would come to form between himself and the Exarch was only the beginning.
- The Swift Ascent -
If one were to take the time to truly analyze the progression of the man’s career after his arrival to the Confederacy and commissioning into its navy, it would be easy to see that there were greater powers at play here. For a man to come and forge himself a new home amid strangers and then see himself elevated at a pace far quicker than would be reasonably acceptable was sure to raise an eyebrow or two. After all, the time it took the man to rise from the pittling ranks at the bottom of the metaphorical officer totem pole to penacle over in half the time it would take an average service member was seemingly too good to be true.
And in some ways, that was the truth.
Alden hadn’t attained the rank of High Marshal by way of virtue and merit alone. It wasn’t simply his actions on the field of battle or his influence of those beneath his command that saw this swift ascent. No, certainly not. His master in the force, the Exarch himself, had allowed his hand to guide and influence the ever evolving career of the man. It had been his influence that had seen Alden promoted to each rank well in advance of the time in grade stipulations that had been in place. His hand the ushered the orders of the various step promotions achieved by Alden. The Exarch’s words that inevitably saw him elevated at last to High Marshal and thusly given command of one of the Confederacy’s six Armadas.
- Love Finds A Way -
If the man thought his life would be simple since being promoted to High Marshal, he would find himself to be very wrong. For one, he never expected to find someone to share his heart with again. Not since his one-time fiance had been stripped from him in the fall of the Galactic Alliance. From that point there had been something of a void in his heart and it tore at his soul. However, life, and eventually love, would find a way to heal that broken aspect of his being. Something about being connected to the Force that would shine through and see the pieces of his heart that had been ripped and torn repaired and mended. And in the process, life presented him with yet something else.
It was at his promotion on Geonosis that he had first seen here. But it wasn’t until that time on Shadda-Bi-Boren that he’d had the opportunity presented where he was actually able to meet her. But it was something that would inevitably prove to be a struggle for him.
From the moment the two first met, there seemed to be a connection. The cliche love at first sight kind of thing. However, no matter how they felt about one another, a relationship, should it continue to build toward that would prove to be a trying process. Not because of feelings they shared for each other not being genuine, but because of who she was and the complexity of a situation that would develop. But, that idea was quickly cast aside and he and [member="Faye Malvern"] began to see and commune with one another more and more frequently. All while keeping the status of their affections for one another secret from everyone in the galaxy.
- Faith Shaken -
In a world that appeared as though everything was as it should be, Alden continued to find his station elevated time and time again. But the surface could only hide so much. Bonds of friendship found themselves severed with little hope of once again finding themselves complete. Trust lost. His heart shattered. Even the foundation that kept him grounded seemed uncertain as work pulled him away from everything it was he desired most. His job became very much that. A job. Little enjoyment came from it, nor from his successes in it. And the tribulations continued to weigh more and more heavily on him, and his heart found its way to shadow and darkness, longing for a past that would likely not ever come to see the light of day again. He was Deputy Minister of War in the Confederacy of Independent Systems, but his once unwavering stance of loyalty and conviction felt compromised and crippled. His heart tugged this way and that and his bond with his other half threatened. And that was by his own doing.
Why, then, should he continue? Why was he where he was? Had he simply been a pawn not only to his own ambition, but that of a much larger game at play? If so, was it right for him to continue? Or would he choose to break the wheel and forge his own path? Attachment had threatened the very fabric of everything he stood for and though he knew what it was his heart longed for and where he felt it was he belonged, he couldn't help but to feel as though his faith had be shaken. That the man with which he'd become was not the man he desired to be.
The pressures of his homeworld looking to him for guidance while the weight of the Confederacy's military hung heavy on his shoulders after the untimely resignation of his predecessor and the limbo upon which the security of his position hung while the seat remained unfilled. A decision that, in his eyes, the Presidium continued to drag its feet on.
For now he chose to play his part, even with his stand not as steadfast as it had once been.
