Zertik Strom

Strom was an Imperial Commander maintained a tense, working relationship with Senator Greyshade of The Wheel, during the years following the Battle of Yavin. A tall, bald man with a well-muscled frame, Strom commanded a unique cruiser that resembled a small Star Destroyer with the front third of the ship removed.

Shortly after the Battle of Yavin, Strom's small fleet attacked and destroyed a House of Tagge convoy, in an effort to discredit the Alliance. He used captured Alliance soldiers as evidence, leaving them inside damaged ships and adrift between the, hoping that any eventual rescue mission would see Alliance personnel and immediately assume it was an Alliance attack. Strom's ultimate goal was to rescind the no-fly rules surrounding The Wheel, so that he could take the station's profits for himself and capture the Alliance forces he believed were using The Wheel as a form of sanctuary. When Greyshade managed to capture Strom, he demanded a chance to become Strom's partner in return for Leia Organa. Greyshade took the first opportunity to doublecross Strom, who was drugged before he knew it and awoke to learn that Greyshade had stolen profits Strom had taken from the Tagge transport. In a rage, Strom set out to destroy Greyshade. His plans were utterly smashed when Master-Com discovered the recordings which were hidden inside R2-D2, detailing the Empire's plans to take over The Wheel. When these were broadcast over the station's public communications systems, the gamblers of The Wheel rose up against Strom's forces. Strom himself tried to flee the station, but was killed when he confronted Greyshade one last time. Rather than allow Strom to shoot him dead, Greyshade lobbed a proton grenade at Strom, who died instantly in the blast.