Jace Rucklin

For other uses, see Jace.

I have a bad feeling about this…

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"The Resistance doesn't stand a chance. You're going to lose"
"Open your eyes, destroying planets of innocent people isn't winning.'"
"What would you know? The New Republic was corrupt. You're an enemy of the First Order. "

―Jace Rucklin and Venisa Doza^[9]

Jace Rucklin, later designated DT-798, was a human male racer who lived during the era of the New Republic. Rucklin, who headed his own racing team, had coveted Jarek Yeager's hyperfuel for a long time, and saw Kazuda Xiono's arrival on the Colossus as an opportunity to acquire it.

However, Rucklin's manipulation of Xiono to steal the fuel resulted in the loss of his racer, and thus all of the savings he had directed into it. Rucklin chose to ignore his own fault in the loss, and instead blamed Xiono, vowing to get back at him for it.

After the loss of his racer, in order to earn the credits for a new one, Rucklin was forced to take a job working in Doza Tower, cleaning and serving food and drink to its residents. Disillusioned with the Colossus and its residents, Rucklin soon joined the First Order alongside Tamara Ryvora, and died in service to it.

Biography

Aspiring racer

Jace Rucklin, by 34 ABY, was a racer who lived on the Colossus on Castilon, where he had a race team, consisting of himself, fellow human Lin Gaava and Sullustan Gorrak Wiles. Rucklin had aspirations of being one of the top racers, but instead of trying to work hard to get to that position, preferred to cut corners, steal, and cheat wherever possible. One of the ways he did this was by having all "extraneous" systems, including safety systems, removed from his racer to make it fly faster. He and his team knew that Jarek Yeager, a former racer on the station who owned a repair shop, likely owned a supply of coaxium, and wished to get their hands on it by any means necessary.^[3]

Exploiting Xiono

Rucklin saw the arrival of Kazuda Xiono, the newest member of Team Fireball, as the perfect opportunity to acquire the coaxium. Xiono acquired a deserved reputation for being naïve soon after his arrival on the platform, and Rucklin knew Xiono was unlikely to have heard anything about his reputation for being a lazy prankster. Thus, he and his team waited for an opportunity to approach Xiono. They found one in Xiono's early weeks on the platform, when he came up down to Aunt Z's Tavern due to experiencing frustration with the heavy workload Yeager put him under and little pay day he got. Unbeknownst to Rucklin and his friends, Xiono's frustration stemmed in part from the fact that he was a spy who was a pilot in the New Republic Defense Fleet who got recruited to serve in the Resistance and deployed to the station by Yeager’s old friend and his mentor Commander Poe Dameron to keep an eye on the First Order since they were planning a full scale attack on the New Republic and up to something huge and bad on the Colossus, and being a member of Team Fireball was a cover.^[3]

After a conversation in which Rucklin revealed Yeager's history as a racer to Xiono, Rucklin challenged Xiono to a friendly speeder bike race. Unbeknownst to Xiono, Rucklin had had Wiles sabotage the bike he was riding. This allowed Rucklin the opportunity to ingratiate himself with Xiono during the race by saving him from the "accident." Thus, when Xiono came by Rucklin's hangar later, he was able to use the incident as leverage to pressure Xiono into sneaking him into Yeager's private hangar to see Yeager's racer, intending to use the opportunity to try and steal Yeager's hyperfuel. When the two entered the shop, they had to avoid Yeager, his astromech droid R1-J5 ("Bucket"), and Xiono's coworker Tam Ryvora. They were not caught, and Xiono told Rucklin they would not be able to see the ship because the hangar door was locked. Rucklin stole the coaxium behind Xiono's back, and quickly made his exit claiming that they would have to try another day.^[3]

Rucklin was signed up in a race for that day, and expected with the coaxium he was bound to win it. When Xiono came by his hangar later, Rucklin and his team quickly blocked Xiono's view of the coaxium and declined his offer of lunch. Rucklin, however, was unaware more than a few drops of coaxium would turn a ship into a flying bomb, and thus added far too much while putting it in his racer. When Xiono learned of the theft and danger, he realized Rucklin was in trouble and rushed to save his life. Rucklin's friends noticed something odd with the racer's engines when he started them, but they were interrupted by Xiono and Dameron’s droid BB-8 entering the hangar. Xiono jumped onto Rucklin's racer to get him to stop, and wound up ejecting the two of them. As the ejection seat's parachute had been removed, the two nearly fell into the ocean before being rescued by BB-8 and Yeager.^[3]

Rucklin, after being rescued, ignored his own fault in the loss of his ship and, angry about the loss of all the savings he had spent on it, chose to instead blame Xiono, claiming that no one would ever know he had stolen the hyperfuel. He did not know that Yeager was in earshot when he said that. Rucklin eventually vowed to get Xiono back for the incident before storming off with his teammates.^[3]

Working at Doza Tower

Due to the loss of his racer, Rucklin was forced to get a new job, working as a servant in Doza Tower and the Aces' Lounge. There, he served drinks and cleaned for Captain Imanuel Doza and the members of the Ace Squadron. Rucklin encountered Xiono again when he was invited inside the tower by Doza's daughter Torra, who was lonely and looking for a friend to spend time with ever since he started forming his dangerous alliance with the First Order to stop the ongoing pirate attacks. When Rucklin encountered Xiono, he reaffirmed his intent to get revenge on him for the loss of the racer, before Xiono and Torra left the lounge area.^[10]

Rucklin later saw his chance when he witnessed Xiono sneaking into Doza's office. Xiono intended to copy the contents of a datapad Stormtrooper Commander Pyre gave Doza with the details of the Order's proposal to increase the Colossus’ security since Dameron wanted him and BB-8 to find any information about the deal the First Order wanted Doza to make with them. Intent on getting revenge on Xiono, Rucklin interrupted Doza as he was seeing Pyre off the platform, which made Doza angry with him. After Pyre's departure, Doza finally heard Rucklin out about the intruder. Due to his own suspicions of Xiono, he headed back to his office with Rucklin.^[10]

Xiono was alerted to the threat of discovery by BB-8, and by the time Rucklin and Doza arrived at the office, had hidden in a closet near Doza's desk. Rucklin heard Xiono gasp in shock upon realizing Doza had an Imperial uniform stashed in the closet and attempted to open the door, but Doza prevented him, angrily stating that the closet's contents were private. Rucklin was sent off to dispose of the office's garbage.^[10]

Torra's arrival in the office prevented Doza from looking in the closet himself, allowing Xiono to escape. Rucklin later accidentally saved Xiono's life when he and Torra were inside the trash incinerator, by throwing Doza's garbage in at just the right time for it to intercept one of the incinerator's blasts.^[10]

The Bibo Incident

During the "Bibo incident," Jace along with the human Vic and the Theelin Jooks implored Neeku Vozo to give up his new pet Bibo in order to placate an angry rokkna sea monster. The sea monster turned out to be Bibo's mother, who was searching for her child.^[11]

First Order occupation

During the First Order's occupation of the Colossus, Tam and the First Order Security Bureau Agent Tierny crossed paths with Rucklin and Lin, who were being led away by stormtroopers because they got recruited to join the last remnant of the Galactic Empire like Tam would soon afterwards.^[12]

Joining the First Order

Following the Colossus' escape into hyperspace, Rucklin, Lin, and Tam, who was given the designation DT-533, became First Order TIE Fighter Pilot cadets aboard the Resurgent-class Star Destroyer Thunderer. After discovering Ryvora listening to a comlink message from Xiono, Rucklin convinced a conflicted Tam to report the comlink to the First Order, warning she would get into trouble if she was caught with it. He also claimed that Xiono and Yeager had taken advantage of Tam and endangered her life.^[6]

A stormtrooper brought the pair to Commander Pyre and Agent Tierny on the Star Destroyer's bridge. Tam told the two officers Xiono contacted her. Tierny convinced Pyre that the comlink could be used to track down the Colossus before dismissing the two cadets.^[6]

Rucklin and Tam were later in their barracks when Commander Pyre and Agent Tierny visited them, bringing news they tracked the Colossus to the Ileenium system. Tierny tried to exploit Tam's grievance with Xiono and claimed she made the right choice, inviting her to witness the end of their friends on the bridge. Before leaving, Rucklin elbowed her. Despite tracking down the Colossus, it escaped again into hyperspace after Team Colossus and Captain Kragan Gorr's Warbird gang salvaged coaxium from the wreckage of the Mandator IV-class Siege Dreadnought the Fulminatrix which Dameron’s friends destroyed during the evacuation of the Resistance base.^[6]

Rucklin, Gaava, and Ryvora took part in training with other cadets to become TIE pilots under the guidance of Lieutenant Galek. During a live fire exercise, Rucklin damaged his TIE and was going to crash into the star destroyer's hangar. However, he was saved by Ryvora when she slowed his TIE. Rucklin thanked her for saving his life but it cost her the chance to become squadron leader because she disobeyed orders to destroy the enemy by rescuing a lesser pilot who survived on their own merit due to being unaware the First Order was built on survival of the fittest so anyone who cannot do their job and die in the service to the First Order is natural because it becomes stronger by getting rid of the weak.^[7]

Later, Rucklin and Ryvora saw several stormtroopers escorting a member of the Resistance who was flying her X-wing to find the Colossus, Commander Venisa Doza who was Torra's mother and Captain Doza's wife and another one of Yeager’s old friends so Rucklin felt the owner of the rogue supertanker fuel depot lied to the two of them and was working with the Resistance from the beginning of its creation and when Ryvora thought Venisa looked familiar to her and asked Rucklin he felt that too, he said no so his colleague told him to forget she said anything. When Doza escaped with Ryvora as a hostage, Rucklin snuck on her. Rucklin held Doza at blaster point with an RK-3 blaster and ordered her to drop her stolen blaster. Doza dared Rucklin to kill her because if he did, then he would kill Ryvora too. Rucklin, despite his hesitation to kill Ryvora since he owed her his life in spite of what Lieutenant Galek told them, vowed the Resistance would lose the war. Doza tried reasoning with him as well by telling him to open his eyes to see killing innocent people was not winning. Rucklin said Doza did not know of anything because he felt she was an enemy of the First Order and the New Republic as corrupt. Doza let Ryvora go, but her astromech Torch sealed the blast door between her and Rucklin.^[9]

It was revealed Rucklin was given the designation DT-798. He and Ryvora went with Commander Pyre who had an important on of the First Order’s key refueling stations the Titan for a supply run at the order of Lieutenant Galek. On board the Titan, Rucklin thought it was an improvement to the Colossus and found Xiono and Neeku in disguise as technicians and called in security. Despite Xiono's pleas to get a needed component back to the Colossus, Rucklin told him that he should have been smart and chose to join the First Order like he and Tam did instead of let Dameron recruit him to serve in the Resistance after serving as a pilot in the New Republic Defense Fleet. Rucklin was then ordered to lock down the area and seal the hyperdrive chamber. However, Xiono and Neeku escaped with the deflector. Rucklin asked Ryvora if she was glad to join the First Order after he thought he was getting promoted to Commander for turning in Xiono; she said yes but sympathized with her friends.^[13]

Hunt for the Colossus

Rucklin was pleased to hear the First Order took most of the major systems and was close to securing the galaxy when he found Ryvora standing in the hangar bored of waiting around so he decided to scare her by imitating Galek and asking her why her helmet was off again and promised her they would get their chance to get back out into the field again when the spider probe droids he heard about were on the hunt found the Colossus. Rucklin and Ryvora boarded their TIEs again when Pyre, Tierny, and Galek found the Colossus at the planet Aeos Prime. Rucklin was ordered by Galek to disable the Colossus before it escapes. Rucklin saw the Aces taking on the Thunderer head on which made Tam realize Kaz, who became the newest member of Ace Squadron, was leading the attack. Unfortunately, the Colossus escaped again and Tam got promoted by Tierny to Second Squadron Commander for her skill and bravery in saving her commanding officers from Xiono when Pyre inquired with Galek about who was the impressive pilot who saved them.^[14]

At the planet Dantooine, Rucklin was ordered by Galek to destroy three shuttles of Resistance recruits attempting to escape with the help of a convoy comprised of Hype, Kaz, Torra, and her mother’s squadron so he felt his day got a whole lot better when he saw Ace Squadron colluding with the Resistance. After Galek got killed by Venisa to save Kaz, Rucklin told Ryvora she was in charge. Despite Ryvora's order to let the shuttles go, Rucklin destroyed one in triumph. Despite his success, the others escaped. Rucklin was angrily jealous that Tierny promoted Ryvora again but this time to squadron leader and lieutenant and how funny it was that everything always worked out for her.^[8]

Betrayal and framing

After being accused of treason by Tierny when Tam defected from the First Order, Rucklin got arrested, despite his protests. He revealed the Colossus was in the Barabesh system, but it was too late to save his skin, as Pyre and Tierny did not trust him anymore but decided to investigate to see if his intelligence was true since they had one more chance to kill their enemies or Supreme Leader Kylo Ren would kill the two of them.^[15]

During the final battle with Team Colossus, Rucklin tried to stop Kaz, Tam and their friends when they were on board the Thunderer, so as to prove to his commanding officer’s that he was loyal to the First Order. However, he was knocked out by Tam and the Thunderer got destroyed.^[15] Rucklin died with Pyre and the crew when the Thunderer got destroyed by Ace Squadron and Jade Squadron while Tierny met her end at the hands of Ren for being weak and he called off the hunt for the Colossus.^[2]

Personality and traits

Rucklin was a human male with blond hair, green eyes, and light skin. He had no compunctions about stealing and cheating in order to win races, and was willing to put others in physical danger for the purpose of manipulating them. He also had all systems he considered extraneous, including safety systems such as the parachute of his ejection seat, removed from his racer in an attempt to make it as fast as possible.^[3]

Though Xiono saved his life, Rucklin blamed him for destroying his racer and denied stealing Yeager's coaxium fuel.^[3] Rucklin remained bitter towards Xiono and attempted to get him into trouble with Captain Doza. However, his plot failed when Captain Doza refused to allow anyone to search his wardrobe.^[10] Rucklin later implored Neeku to surrender his "pet" to a rokkna sea monster in order to save the Colossus from destruction.^[11]

After joining the First Order, Rucklin's bitterness toward Xiono led him to convince Tam to report her comlink. Rucklin later elbowed Tam after Agent Tierny praised her for her help and invited her to watch the end of their friends on the bridge of the Thunderer.^[6] Over his time serving the First Order, Rucklin became more ruthless and cold to the point he had no qualms on witnessing the destruction of the Aeosian village that helped the Alliance to Restore the Republic and one of the Resistance’s cells, considering the Aeosians "subversives" who got what they deserved, refuting Tam's claim that some were innocent by stating they were not if they harbored "criminals."^[15]

He became increasingly arrogant, evidenced when he assumed he would get promoted to Commander like Pyre after revealing Kaz's identity, only for them to jump away before getting captured.^[13] He as well underestimated the strength of the Resistance and the Colossus, taunting Yeager, Kaz, and Tam that they lost and that he'd revealed its location, after which he got knocked out by Tam. Later, the shields on the Thunderer were disabled and the Colossus’ residents fought back while the Imperial remnant got defeated during and after the Battle of Exegol.^[15]

Skills and abilities

Rucklin was a competent but dishonest racer pilot who also knew how to fly swoop bikes.^[3] Due to his piloting skills, Rucklin was recruited as a TIE fighter pilot by the First Order.^[6]

Behind the scenes

"It's funny cause I think when people talk about the character or it's reference to me, it's reference as if he's a villain. I don't necessarily see him that way."
"Mhmm."
"He just wants to be better than everybody else and that's what's driving him and it's his ambition to be the best pilot, which is not uncommon in this universe."

―Elijah Wood and Andi Gutierrez^[16]

Jace Rucklin is a character created and developed for Star Wars Resistance. He is voiced by Elijah Wood.^[3]