An individual from Alderaan once held positions as both a soldier and a TIE pilot within the ranks of the Galactic Empire. Initially, this person served as a member of the staff in the Royal family's household on Alderaan, but they made the decision to leave their home world and become a trooper in the Imperial Military. This soldier discovered a sense of connection and acceptance within the Empire, a feeling that had eluded them during their time on their home planet. As time passed, the soldier received information about the Destruction of Alderaan, a devastating event perpetrated by the Empire through the deployment of the Death Star. Despite the fact that the Imperials had annihilated their home planet, the soldier's loyalty to the Empire remained unwavering. Not long before the Battle of Endor, they were still serving as a stormtrooper and were assigned to the planet Yinchorr under the command of Imperial Governor Marcellin Wessel.
During their service under the governor, the soldier became entangled in a scheme to assassinate the leader of the Rebel alliance, who was also an Alderaanian, namely Princess Leia Organa. Wessel orchestrated a plan to lure Organa to Yinchorr under the guise of a meeting with the indigenous Yinchorri people. Upon Organa's arrival, the soldier shot down her shuttle, but she managed to survive the attack. The soldier then rescued Organa from the wreckage, intending to bring her back to Wessel for interrogation. During their journey back to Imperial headquarters, the soldier revealed their Alderaanian origin, which sparked contempt from Organa due to their continued allegiance to the Empire. However, as they traversed the Yinchorr desert, Organa gradually influenced the soldier's convictions. After handing Organa over to Wessel, the soldier was taken aback when the governor made the decision to execute the Rebel leader without delay. In a change of heart, the trooper liberated Organa and requested to join the Rebellion. As the two attempted to escape Yinchorr aboard the Millennium Falcon, the soldier was struck by blaster fire just as they were about to board the ship. Organa attempted to hold onto the man as the Falcon departed the planet, but he was too heavy. The soldier slipped from the princess' grasp and fell to his death.
This individual, who would eventually become a stormtrooper, was born on the planet Alderaan. This person became a servant to the royal family, becoming acquainted with the Organas, including the young Princess Leia Organa. Eventually, this individual departed from Alderaan to enlist in the Galactic Empire. They had not found a sense of belonging on their homeworld, and service in the Imperial forces became more of a home to them than Alderaan ever was. This person underwent training to become a stormtrooper and a TIE pilot, evolving into a skilled soldier for the Imperial war machine.
In 0 BBY, the Empire destroyed Alderaan as a demonstration of the power of their new superweapon, the Death Star. The Alderaanian stormtrooper eventually received news of his home planet's annihilation. However, his emotional distance from the world prevented him from taking any drastic actions, and he remained with the Imperial Military. Seeking to justify the destruction and loss of life, this person attributed the event to the Viceroy of Alderaan, Bail Prestor Organa. He asserted that Organa knew the potential consequences of opposing the Empire, and the viceroy's refusal to acknowledge the Empire's authority was the sole cause of Alderaan's destruction. Sometime afterward, the Alderaanian trooper found himself on the planet Tatooine. A trader there had salvaged a piece of rock from Alderaan's destruction. Desiring to possess a reminder of his destroyed homeworld, this person purchased the rock from the trader. The rock was attached to a chain and worn around the stormtrooper's neck, kept inside his armor for safekeeping.
Around 3 ABY, the Alderaanian trooper was assigned to the planet Yinchorr under the command of Imperial Governor Marcellin Wessel. Wessel was oppressing the native Yinchorri, and he eventually kidnapped the Yinchorri's Council of Elders. The Yinchorri were scheduled to meet with now Rebel leader Princess Organa about joining the Rebellion. Wessel blackmailed the Yinchorri, threatening to murder the Elder Council unless they delivered Leia Organa to him. Forced into a corner, the Yinchorri agreed, sending a Yinchorri commander to pick up the Rebel leader in a shuttle and turn her over to Wessel. The Alderaanian stormtrooper was tasked with escorting the shuttle into the atmosphere of the world. Piloting TIE Fighters, he and his wingmate flanked the Yinchorri shuttle as the craft prepared to land in the Yinchorr desert.
Wessel had decided to take no chances, however, and rather than capturing Organa, the governor ordered his men to simply destroy the shuttle and kill the Rebel leader. The trooper and his wingmate opened fire on the shuttle, catching the Yinchorri craft off guard. The shuttle began to take evasive maneuvers, flying close to the ground in an attempt to lose its attackers. In the midst of the chase, the ship began to return fire on the TIEs, eventually destroying the Alderaanian's wingmate. Even without his wingmate, the trooper was able shoot down the shuttle, causing it to plummet to the desert below. At the same time, the shuttle got off a parting shot, destroying his TIE's left solar array wing. The Alderaanian crash-landed in a rocky area of the desert, managing to avoid major injuries. Although battered and bruised by the crash, the stormtrooper extricated himself from the destroyed TIE and set off across the desert to complete his mission of killing all the passengers of the shuttle.
Upon arriving at the wreckage of the shuttle, the Alderaanian trooper discovered that all the Yinchorri crew members had perished in the crash. While inspecting the ship's laser cannon turret, the trooper recognized Leia Organa from his time on Alderaan. The Princess had been rendered unconscious and had a cut on her forehead, but her injuries were not severe. Choosing to disregard his orders to eliminate the Rebel leader, the trooper began working to free Organa from the shuttle's wreckage. Organa regained consciousness to find the trooper attacking the wreckage with a metal pipe, and she immediately began to struggle to escape her captor. To reassure Organa, the trooper removed his helmet, inquiring if she recognized him from his days as a servant on Alderaan. Organa had no recollection of the man but was shocked to learn that he was from Alderaan and still served the Empire. The two engaged in an argument, with the trooper asserting that Organa, as a member of the royal family, could not possibly empathize with his situation and had no understanding of what he had experienced. As they argued, they were unaware of the approaching native predators, the Rolk-mangir.
The trooper freed Organa from the wreckage, but she refused to let the issue of the destruction of Alderaan rest. Hoping to silence the princess, the trooper showed her his small pendant, his tiny piece of Alderaan. At that moment, one of the Rolk-mangir attacked, grabbing the trooper by the leg, and lifting him into the air. Unable to get to his blaster, the soldier was at the mercy of the predators. Organa decided to save the trooper, firing a blaster into the attacking Rolk-mangir's face, causing the beast to release him. However, the tough hide of the Rolk-mangir resisted the blaster shot, and it pursued Organa and the trooper across the desert. The Rolk-mangir slowly herded the two to the edge of a cliff, trapping them. Organa noticed a small ledge some distance below, and he ordered the trooper to jump down. The soldier obeyed, but when Organa followed him, she slipped from the ledge, nearly falling the rest of the way down the cliff.
The trooper grabbed her by the hand, pulling her back onto the ledge, saving her life. Tired over their ordeal, the trooper lamented the fact that the two had to be enemies. Organa agreed with the trooper and asked for him to turn away from the Empire and join the Rebellion. Bringing up the small piece of Alderaan that the trooper owned, Organa pointed out that the necklace was a symbol for the murder of millions of innocent people. Confronted with the evil that he had done and helped perpetuate, the trooper's resolve began to waver. However, he was still unable to give up all that he had gained under the Empire. Disgusted with the trooper, Organa insulted the man for having no integrity. Offended by her statements, the trooper took the Rebel leader captive, intent on bringing her back to Wessel for interrogation.
Simultaneously, Wessel had been scouring the desert with his troops, ensuring Organa's demise in the shuttle crash. Upon spotting Wessel's vehicle, the trooper guided Organa to the governor, surrendering her to his commanding officer. With the Rebel leader in custody, Wessel commanded his subordinates to execute the Yinchorri Elder Council, deeming them no longer useful. Organa attempted to protest, but Wessel declared that Organa would be the next to die. Appalled by Wessel's brutality, the trooper voiced his objection, but Wessel assured him that Organa's continued existence posed a threat to the Empire. Before Wessel could execute the Rebel leader, the Millennium Falcon arrived on the planet, intending to rescue Organa. The ship destroyed Wessel's vehicle and landed on the planet's surface, opening the boarding ramp for Organa to make a quick escape. As Organa made a run for the Millennium Falcon, Wessel ordered his men to kill the escaping princess. The trooper, remembering his training, instinctively reached for his blaster, but in his haste, he inadvertently tore the small piece of Alderaan from his neck.
Recalling Organa's words, the trooper resolved to turn against the Empire. Before Wessel could fire at Organa, the trooper shot at the governor, knocking Wessel's blaster out of his hand. The trooper told Organa that she was right, and asked if he could join her in escaping Yinchorr. Before the two departed, the trooper decided to kill Wessel for the atrocities he had committed, but Organa stopped him, claiming that there had already been too much killing. Leaving Wessel behind, the two ran to the Millennium Falcon, but before the stormtrooper could board the ship, he was hit by blaster fire from some of Wessel's other men. With the remaining Imperials still firing on them, the ship lifted off. The trooper, badly injured, was unable to get onto the ship, and he was barely able to hold onto Organa's hand as the Millennium Falcon fled from Wessel's men. Hanging off the end of the boarding ramp, Organa tried to hold onto the stormtrooper, attempting to lift him into the ship. Unfortunately for the new Rebel, he proved too heavy for the princess, and he slipped from her grasp, leaving only his rock necklace in her hand. Falling away from the ship, the trooper plummeted to his death.
With the Millennium Falcon on a course away from Yinchorr, Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian, the two Rebels who had come to rescue the Princess, pulled Organa onto the ship, apologizing for the loss of the young man. The two attempted to ask Organa about the trooper, but she could only show them the rock necklace, the only link that she had with the man whose name she had never even learned.
This stormtrooper demonstrated unwavering loyalty to the Galactic Empire. Despite learning that his home planet had been annihilated by Imperial forces, he persisted in his service. The trooper rationalized the destruction by placing the blame on Alderaan's viceroy, Bail Organa, for defying the Empire. However, he still harbored some guilt over the events, particularly concerning his allegiance to the Empire. Consequently, he acquired a small fragment of Alderaan from a trader on Tatooine as a memento of his lost home planet. Although he initially regarded the token as a sentimental souvenir of Alderaan, his perspective on it shifted upon encountering Leia Organa. The princess utilized the small piece of Alderaan to impress upon the man the gravity of Alderaan's destruction, asserting that the token was merely a symbol of the murder of millions of innocents.
The trooper initially displayed considerable hesitation in acting against the established order. He was reluctant to abandon the Empire, which had provided him with a sense of purpose and significance. Even after being convinced of the Empire's malevolence, he was unwilling to sacrifice his career for the Rebellion's vision of a future that might never materialize. He ultimately overcame his fears when confronted with the potential execution of Organa at the hands of Marcellin Wessel. He turned against the Empire, betraying his commander and deciding to join the Rebel Alliance. However, this decision cost the man his life, as he was gunned down by his fellow Imperials.
The trooper was also a talented pilot. During his pursuit of Leia Organa's shuttle, he was able to shoot down the fleeing craft, despite his wingmate being shot down and the shuttle weaving through rocky outcroppings. When he was shot down, even after losing his left wing, he controlled his TIE Fighter enough to survive the landing.
The unidentified Alderaanian stormtrooper was conceived by Randy Stradley for inclusion in the Marvel Star Wars comic Star Wars 86. The character was never given a name in the comic, and he met his demise at the story's conclusion, leaving his identity uncertain. During the story's development, Stradley aimed for a narrative with genuine emotional depth. Consequently, he sought to capitalize on a significant event already established within the Star Wars universe. Stradley selected the destruction of Alderaan as the key event to build upon, and, as a result, the stormtrooper in the story is a native of the planet Alderaan.