Cera (4)Full unit name: Cera
Last updated: 02.05.2024 14:29:00
Version: 8.02.002.2024.01.13
Basic info
First appearance: The Old Republic
The Old Republic
(VIDEO GAME)
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Known Facts (8)
The Corpse Counters (5) »
  • Was Archaeologist in Galactic Republic
  • Interacted with (dialog)
    Dialog transcript
    Participated in team's mission briefing
  • Garthe, Elihsu
  • Interacted with (dialog)
    Dialog transcript
    Cera asked Commander Viqui for help after she and her colleagues were attacked by rakghouls
  • Viqui
  • Interacted with (dialog)
    Dialog transcript
    Cera
    Thank you for coming so fast! I told you the commander would send someone, Garthe!
    Garthe
    The commander didn't send them! You think they're from base? You ever seen a regulation group of soldiers look like that?
    Cera
    Okay, maybe. But that doesn't mean they can't help us. Please, sirs, have any of you ever faced a rakghoul?
    Meteor
    Is this a research station or something?
    Cera
    We're a Republic archaeological salvage team. They call us the "corpse counters" because we're cataloging the bodies from the bombardment. It's important work-
    Garthe
    It's pointless work! People are dying out here so the Republic can have a list they'll never look at.
    Cera
    These people deserve someone to acknowledge their deaths.
    Garthe
    We were in an old Czerka Works pipe this morning when those monsters came out of nowhere. They killed our guards and dragged down half a dozen of our team before we could do anything. We don't know if anyone's still alive, but if they are, every second counts.
    Cera
    They might not be dead. We ran, we didn't see. Could you please... just check if anyone survived?
    Garthe
    Let it go, Cera. They're dead already. Another few hours won't matter.
    Hero of Tython
    If there is any chance your friends live, they deserve every effort to save them.
    Cera
    Thank you. I'm honored that you would help us.
    Meteor
    Don't expect miracles. If your friends have been gone long, there's not much hope.
    Garthe
    That's what I've been saying. Rakghouls don't leave survivors. They just make more rakghouls.
    Cera
    Someone could have hid... you never know!
    Voidhound
    I wouldn't want to be the one left behind in a hole full of those things.
    Cera
    I wanted to go back for them-
    Garthe
    Don't be ridiculous, Cera. Then we'd just be dead, too.
    Barsen'thor
    Might give it a shot.
    Cera
    Thank you. It means a lot, knowing we're not abandoning them. We were in the Czerka Works pipeline. If you go soon, there may still be someone there.
    Garthe
    No. There's no hope for our friends now... but maybe you can make those monsters pay for what they did.
  • Meteor, Aric Jorgan, Voidhound, Corso Riggs, Barsen'thor, Qyzen Fess, Hero of Tython, Kira Carsen, T7-O1, Garthe
  • Interacted with (dialog)
    Dialog transcript
    Cera
    You're back! And... I don't see anyone with you. Did you...? A- are they...?
    Garthe
    Dead? What did you think? The rakghouls would buy them flowers and send them home?
    Meteor
    I'm sorry. Your friends are gone, but I made sure those rakghouls will never kill again.
    Garthe
    Cold comfort. There's probably another swarm already moving in. If you killed those freaks, I'll call it even. At least we can clear out the corpses without becoming one.
    Voidhound
    Actually, one of them left you a message, Garthe....
    Cera
    A message? Oh, that must be Elihsu. They were very close. I'll call the base and tell them what happened.
    Garthe
    I'm putting in for a transfer. No job is worth this.
    Voidhound
    I hear you've found a way to make it worth your while.
    Garthe
    Wha- what did you find? Was Elihsu alive? What did that lying coward say about me?
    Hero of Tython
    You should have more respect for those murdered by the Sith.
    Garthe
    Three hundred years ago! All the Sith involved are just as dead as them.
    Barsen'thor
    Greed's one thing, Garthe, but grave robbing's just low.
    Garthe
    Okay, fine. So I'm sending some trinkets into the black market instead of Republic archives. So what?
    Barsen'thor
    Elihsu says he knows how the dead feel now when you desecrate them.
    Garthe
    I've given five years of my life to this rock! Now that's worth nothing because I laid claim to a few forgotten necklaces?
    Garthe
    So, fine. You found me out. Who cares?
    Meteor
    We'll see if you think prisoners have as few rights as the dead.
    Garthe
    Very funny.
    Cera
    The commander's sending a team to retrieve the bodies. Thank you for doing what you could.
    Meteor
    Ask your partner what's been happening to the valuables you find.
    Garthe
    Oh, please. This is so humiliating. Yes, Elihsu and I were stealing some trinkets for the black market. The blasted dead don't cry over it, why should you?
    Cera
    How could you! You told me those boxes were going to the Republic archive.
    Cera
    Yeah, so I lied. What... you going to turn me in for that, too?
    Cera
    We'll work this out later - we've asked enough of your time. Although... if you have a moment....
  • Meteor, Aric Jorgan, Voidhound, Corso Riggs, Barsen'thor, Qyzen Fess, Hero of Tython, Kira Carsen, T7-O1, Garthe
Burial Grounds (3) »
  • Was Archaeologist in Galactic Republic
  • Interacted with (dialog)
    Dialog transcript
    Cera
    Did you notice anything about the number of rakghouls in that pipe? I think it's more than most places, right?
    Garthe
    Oh, not that nonsense again....
    Voidhound
    You sound like there's something more on your mind.
    Cera
    Okay, this'll sound crazy - but there's more rakghouls at our grave sites than any of the Republic target zones.
    Garthe
    They're just drawn to the noise and the smell of flesh.
    Cera
    We're not any noisier or... fleshier than a platoon of soldiers. I think they're protecting their ancestors.
    Hero of Tython
    Ancestors?
    Cera
    I'm not saying they discuss it over tea, but I think something is driving them to defend these grave sites. They were human once, you know. The first ones, anyway. It's a disease that turned them into monsters. And we still don't understand how it works. All we know about rakghouls right now is they have a disease that can turn people into monsters, and they've taken over all of Taris. But if my theory is correct, it'll be our first insight into how they think. This could be a first step toward taking the planet back from them.
    Meteor
    Understanding your enemy is the key to defeating him.
    Cera
    Exactly. Right now, rakghouls are like something out of a nightmare. We never know when or where they'll attack.
    Hero of Tython
    Only if we look through their eyes can we understand what they see.
    Cera
    I kind of hope they're really the beasts they seem. Imagine if there's still a sentient person, trapped inside....
    Voidhound
    Can you prove it?
    Cera
    The salvage team can't get to the main bombardment sites...
    Garthe
    You're not sending them to the bombardment site, are you? That place is so thick with rakghouls you can see them from orbit!
    Cera
    Don't you interfere! We know what you think of the people of Taris. I'm right about this. Why else would they be so determined to guard the bombardment sites? Why so many rakghouls at the bombardment sites unless they're staying near their human ancestors?
    Garthe
    I told you no one cares about your crackpot theories, Cera. Stick to counting bones. Let someone else do the science.
    Cera
    Shut up and wait to be arrested.
    Really. I think I can prove it... If you could get samples from both the rakghouls and the skeletons at one of the main sites, we could see if they're related.
    Meteor
    Do you have details? What exactly are we talking about?
    Cera
    There probably isn't a way to get a rakghoul to volunteer a genetic sample, so, um, I guess you'll be killing them. Then we'll compare their blood samples with genetic material from corpses in the same area.
    Voidhound
    By tomorrow, you should be able to answer this question once and for all.
    Garthe
    The bombardment site is chock-full of salvage no one's ever managed to get to-
    Cera
    You never change, do you? Those are important archaeological artifacts, not some kind of... pirate treasure.
    Garthe
    This is ridiculous. Are you really going to take up more of their time with your crazy theories?
    Cera
    Let them decide if it's worth it. Please don't let Garthe discourage you. This is important. And I don't think there's anyone else on this planet willing to brave those rakghouls to find out. I'll be waiting to hear what you find.
  • Meteor, Aric Jorgan, Voidhound, Corso Riggs, Barsen'thor, Qyzen Fess, Hero of Tython, Kira Carsen, T7-O1, Garthe
  • Interacted with (dialog)
    Dialog transcript
    Cera
    The Republic sent a unit to retrieve our team's bodies. They said to thank you for your help.
    Garthe
    You're not going to ask if they went after your pet project?
    Cera
    Why do you always try to ruin everything? Do Sullustan moms not hug their children or something? Um... did you get to the bombardment site? I don't see a scratch on you.
    Voidhound
    The rakghouls didn't want to give up their blood, but we convinced them.
    Cera
    I'm sure you can be quite... persuasive.
    Garthe
    Aw, is that hero worship I see there?
    Cera
    Just let me see the samples. I've got a portable scanner that can give us preliminary results right.... Now. That's amazing. There's over a fifty percent correlation. Genetic drift usually means a much less marked connection even in a normal population after so many years.
    Meteor
    What does that mean? They really are defending their ancestors, then?
    Garthe
    It means we just made one of the most important discoveries in Tarisian history.
    Meteor
    Does that give us any insight into how to defeat them?
    Cera
    If we know they defend a territory, then we know where to avoid... or even how to draw them out.
    Garthe
    But consider what you're saying! This means rakghouls have remnants of sentience. We can't kill them.
    Hero of Tython
    They cling so desperately to their lost humanity.
    Cera
    It could just be geography, remaining close to their initial infection site. We'll need a xenobiologist out to study this--
    Garthe
    Don't just dismiss it now! This is an incredible find!
    Cera
    What? Where's the cynical disbelief?
    Garthe
    You can't dispute the numbers, Cera. You're right. This is amazing. If rakghouls have enough rationality to remember people and places that matter to them, we can't keep treating them like mindless animals.
    Barsen'thor
    If they can think, maybe someday we can make peace with them.
    Garthe
    Exactly. We need to cancel our operations in these grave sites. We can't keep antagonizing them.
    Cera
    But if we know they come to the defense of certain territories, we can bait them, draw them out so the Republic can send in troops to exterminate them.
    Garthe
    No! If they're sentient, we can't just keep murdering them.
    Cera
    I'll contact the Reconstruction Authority. Do you have an opinion on this?
    Barsen'thor
    If there's any way to coexist peacefully with the rakghouls, we should take it.
    Cera
    I- I guess it's a virtue to forgive, right? At least this way, maybe we can avoid those kinds of attacks in the future. I'll give the Republic your recommendation. Thank you again for all your help.
  • Meteor, Aric Jorgan, Voidhound, Corso Riggs, Barsen'thor, Qyzen Fess, Hero of Tython, Kira Carsen, T7-O1, Garthe
Summary
Cera was a human female who lived during the Cold War
The Cold War
Event
Cold War (3653BBY - 3642BBY)
. During the Republic
Galactic Republic
Organization
Galaxy-Wide Organizations
initiative to resettle
Taris Resettlement Initiative
Event
Cold War (3653BBY - 3642BBY)
Taris
Taris
Planet
, she and her colleagues worked as archaeologists
Archaeologist
Miscellaneous
Roles
and cataloged those killed when Taris was bombarded
Destruction of Taris
Event
Old Sith Wars
by Darth Malak
Malak
(Human)
Character
Major Characters
's forces. Determined, she was sure in the importance of their work and believed that the death of any victim must be acknowledged by someone.
When their team was attacked by rakghouls
Rakghoul
Creature
Non-sentient
while working near the ruins of the Czerka Works pipeline, only two of them escaped - she and her teammate Garthe
Garthe
(Sullustan)
Character
Minor Characters (TOR)
.
When they returned to the nearby Republic's Aurek outpost, she asked the outpost commander for assistance in rescuing their team, but the commander did not provide resources for the rescue mission. She then approached a group of Republic operatives
Republic Operatives
Organization
Temporary Unions
for help, and they agreed.
The operatives discovered
The Corpse Counters
Event
Cold War (3653BBY - 3642BBY)
the team's remains in the pipes, finding the datapad among their skeletons. On the datapad, Elihsu
Elihsu
(Sullustan)
Character
Minor Characters (TOR)
- one of the archaeologists - left a message for Garthe, telling him that he should stop stealing from the bodies, since Elihsu now knew how the dead felt. The operatives returned to Cera and Garthe with news of the team's fate, and revealed Garthe's crimes to Cera. Cera was furious, but decided not to hand Garthe over to the authorities, promising to deal with it later.
Cera asked the operatives to collect DNA materials of both the rakghouls and ancient skeletons at the burial sites, and when samples brought by operatives
Burial Grounds
Event
Cold War (3653BBY - 3642BBY)
proved that the rakghouls still had some remnants of intelligence, Garthe changed his mind and began to argue furiously with Cera, who insisted on exterminating the rakghouls. The operatives agreed with Garthe that if there was any way to peacefully coexist with the rakghouls, the Republic should take it, and Cera promised to take this recommendation to the Reconstruction Authority
Taris Resettlement Authority
Organization
Planetary and Sector
.

Read more...

See also
UH
Known for being a member of the following organizations
Galactic Republic
Archaeologist
All characters this character met
Barsen'thor
Hero of Tython
Meteor
Voidhound
Kira Carsen
Qyzen Fess
Aric Jorgan
Corso Riggs
Elihsu
Garthe
Viqui
T7-O1
Complete list

Full unit name: Cera Last updated: 02.05.2024 14:29:00