Lieutenant Tilheyra: Femtrooper

Lieutenant Tilheyra is a female stormtrooper (femtrooper) in the Legacy Era. Formally assigned to the 407th Stormtrooper Division, she is the commander of the resurrected Special Commando Advanced Recon Trooper (SCAR) program, closely modeled after the program of the same name originated by Sith Lord Darth Vader. SCAR was resurrected in 135 ABY as part of a larger effort to break the 5-year insurgency that had been taking place since the beginning of the Second Imperial Civil War. Lieutenant Tilheyra was selected for special assignment as part of a larger effort to break the insurgency, and was tasked with devising a special operations unit. Tilheyra's vast knowledge of history and tactics, in part due to being from a family that has served the Empire for many generations, and her time as a military instructor, requested to resurrect the SCAR program and lead a SCAR unit. Sith Lord Darth Krayt saw the potential of a SCAR unit, and appointed Lieutenant Tilheyra to lead a single platoon of SCAR troopers on an experimental basis. Although the larger effort to break the insurgency did not turn the tide, Tilheyra's SCAR platoon became valuable to Darth Krayt, who continued to use SCAR for special assignments, often in psychological warfare and enemy infiltration.

Lieutenant Tilheyra was born in 104 ABY into a family with a long history of service to the Empire. Her family taught her to serve the Empire to the utmost, with complete obedience to the throne. Her upbringing instilled in her a sense of service to the Empire, which led her to volunteering with the Imperial Mission following the end of her advanced education in 126 ABY, despite her family's desire for her to serve in the military. Tilheyra showed much more pacifist tendencies than the rest of her family, thus her preference for the Imperial Mission over the military. 

However, that changed at the beginning of the Sith-Imperial War in 127 ABY, when Tilheyra enlisted as a Private, and was assigned to the 407th Stormtrooper Division. Her aptitude during combat during the Battle of Botajef resulted in a promotion to Corporal. By the time of her involvement in the Battle of Coruscant, Tilheyra was now a Sergeant, and learned and executed the diversion tactics necessary to divert the Jedi from a stronger showing in the the Battle of Caamas. Sergeant Tilheyra was awarded the Medal of Valor for both her successful diversion of Jedi in the Battle of Coruscant, as well as for rallying two other squads for an impromptu rescue of a surrounded platoon during the battle. Sergeant Tilheyra was wounded when a laser bolt shattered her left pauldron (injuring her shoulder) in the resulting rescue effort. Although somewhat dazed, she continued to lead in the absence of the platoon's fallen lieutenant, successfully evacuating the platoon and her own squads to friendly lines. Without aiming to do so, she became a decorated war hero, continuing the Tilheyra family's tradition of exemplary service to the Empire.

Her family's pride in her would be short-lived, however, when she was the lone member of her family to declare loyalty to the Empire of Sith Lord Darth Krayt, following Krayt's coup over Emperor Roan Fel in 130 ABY. Despite the great personal cost, her early declaration of loyalty to Darth Krayt's Empire was politically convenient in that a newly-decorated war hero and member of a prominent family supportive of the Empire added legitimacy to Darth Krayt's usurpation of Imperial power. In truth, Tilheyra was loyal to the throne, not Darth Krayt himself, and her service during the Sith-Imperial War transformed her into an enthusiastic trooper for the Empire itself. Nevertheless, her loyalty was soon rewarded when she was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Lieutenant Tilheyra's service record in the Sith-Imperial War provided clear reasoning for her promotion, and promotions like hers were sorely needed to help fill the power vacuum left by so many officers defecting in their continued loyalties to Emperor Fel. With no support network outside of the Stormtrooper Corps, Lieutenant Tilheyra poured herself into the service, absorbing herself in the fellowship of the officer ranks in light of her family severing ties with her.

Still recuperating from her injury incurred during the Battle of Coruscant, Lieutenant Tilheyra was reassigned to the demolition trooper specialty in 130 ABY, with the ultimate purpose of becoming a demolition and heavy weapons instructor. Lieutenant Tilheyra also continued her studies in diversion, leveraging her experience in and training for the Battle of Coruscant to become an instructor of diversion as well. By 132 ABY, Lieutenant Tilheyra had once again become fit for combat, but her position as an instructor meant she was in the most valuable place she could be for the Empire. Nevertheless, her desire to return to combat led her to persuade the higher ranks for a combat assignment, which was finally granted in 134 ABY. Her joint specialty in diversion and demolition suited her well to leading platoons in luring out and striking enemy forces in the insurgency of the Second Imperial Civil War. Her service in fighting the insurgency once again placed her on the radar of Darth Krayt, who called upon her to form a special operations unit in 135 ABY, which became the resurrected SCAR unit.

The resurrected SCAR program is intentionally kept small and little is said about it. As such, given the public profile of the Tilheyra family, Lieutenant Tilheyra's formal assignment to the 407th Division is emphasized to hide her leadership in SCAR. Lieutenant Tilheyra is the sole commander of the SCAR unit, consisting of only one platoon, with the structure broken further into four squads. The squads consist of one sergeant and four troopers of lower enlisted ranks. Tilheyra floats from one squad to another, depending on the needs of each squad and the missions assigned. Although Tilheyra is a demolition stormtrooper, she oversees the continual training for each of the specialties in the SCAR program. Having significant autonomy as the sole commander of SCAR, Tilheyra has kept the identity of SCAR in alignment with standards of the Stormtrooper Corps to maintain SCAR's relative anonymity. This relative anonymity is furthered by the individual SCAR squads being inserted into different companies within the 407th, with only the officers of the companies, their respective superiors, and the members of SCAR being aware of SCAR's existence within the 407th. Other stormtroopers within the division have noticed that certain squads tend to have different activities from time to time, even though they are not aware of SCAR members within their ranks. Nevertheless, as stormtroopers should, they respect the needs of operational security by not openly questioning the activities of these squads.

This blending of SCAR within the ranks of the 407th is contrasted by the public image of Lieutenant Tilheyra. Certainly, her public profile has waned since the publicity campaigns of the newly-promoted war hero in the earliest years of the Second Imperial Civil War, but her name and image are still swiftly recognized when mentioned or shown. Tilheyra did not much like the publicity when she was center-stage as a war hero and loyal officer (from a long-serving pro-Imperial family) to the new emperor, and allowed her instructor duties to serve as reason to reduce her involvement in public life. Nevertheless, Lieutenant Tilheyra is highly visible within the ranks of the Stormtrooper Corps. Tilheyra has crafted an image of continual readiness for herself, preferring her armor over the officer's uniform, and foregoing her armor on only the most formal occasions. This practice has endeared her to the enlisted ranks of the Stormtrooper Corps, but her presence quickly rebukes any incorrect assumption that she is any less than an officer.

Tilheyra's armor has always seemed to elevate her visibility within the ranks. Since the time of her enlistment Tilheyra has preferred the FEM7 armor over the standard female stormtrooper armor, clearly setting her apart from other stormtroopers in general. No other stormtrooper in the 407th wears FEM7 armor. But one's social persona is constituted through much more than personal appearance, and Tilheyra is known more for her determination, perseverance through adversity, and commitment to the Empire than she is for her appearance. Her service record speaks to all three elements, enough so that she is looked upon by many other troopers as a mentor.

One of the strongest mentor-mentee relationships Lieutenant Tilheyra is part of is with the notable Jes Gistang. The two first met when Tilheyra was Gistang's sergeant during the Sith-Imperial War. Gistang served as the Corporal of Tilheyra's squad during the Battle of Coruscant, and Tilheyra insists Gistang was just as much an essential part of the mission's success. Most importantly, Gistang organized and provided valuable cover fire as the wounded Tilheyra commanded the rescue and evacuation. This joint trial by fire formed an even closer bond between the two troopers, and this bond continued through Tilheyra's involvement in Gistang's further heavy weapons training in the early stages of the Second Imperial Civil War and beyond, due to their assignments within the overall structure of the 407th.

Author's Note: I still need to develop the middle of the story, so here, the text abruptly jumps to the year 137 ABY. Those familiar with the Star Wars: Legacy lore know many pivotal events unfold beginning in this year. The story of Lieutenant Tilheyra continues below:

Lieutenant Tilheyra's commitment to the Empire began to shift during the year 137 ABY. Two events shocked Tilheyra's conscience. First, the complete annihilation of the 908th Stormtrooper Division and the death of Gistang and much of Joker Squad in that same effort, shocking Tilheyra that stormtroopers were forced to fight stormtroopers to the last. Second, the Genocide on Dac would lead Tilheyra to adamantly oppose Darth Krayt. These events, in close succession, imbued a sense in Tilheyra that Darth Krayt was not serving the ideals of the throne and Empire Lt. Tilheyra had so enthusiastically sought to support and defend. Darth Krayt was now a threat to the very throne he occupied. Divided over whether to defect to Emperor Fel's forces or to resist from within the Krayt Empire, Tilheyra viewed internal resistance as her best role, and began feeding reports of the Genocide on Dac to those outside of the Krayt Empire as part of an effort to shock the conscience of the galaxy.

Fortunes turned worse, however, when Darth Wyyrlok usurped Darth Krayt's power. Darth Wyyrlok began the Final Protocol on Dac, which resulted in the extermination of 80% of all life on Dac. Lieutenant Tilheyra helped smuggle resources out of the Empire to aid in the evacuation of Dac by the Galactic Remnant and the Empire-in-exile. Her activities of smuggling both information and supplies out of the Empire continued throughout the next year, and the lack of interest Darth Wyyrlok had in SCAR helped keep enough distance between her and Darth Wyyrlok to where her smuggling activities remained unnoticed outside of the internal resistance. Darth Wyyrlok, despite not having interest in SCAR, kept the SCAR forces at the ready, and occasionally required the use of SCAR, but activities once again increased when Darth Krayt resurrected himself from the dead and assassinated Darth Wyyrlok in 138 ABY. Darth Krayt decided to use SCAR with renewed vigor, and the increased attention Krayt placed on Lieutenant Tilheyra meant she could no longer continue her internal resistance activities. Seeing no other option, Lieutenant Tilheyra began to seriously consider defecting to the Empire-in-exile. 

Although she never discussed her observations, Lieutenant Tilheyra readily surmised the disgust her own forces had for both Darth Wyyrlok and Darth Krayt, and the developments of the Empire in 137 and 138 ABY only solidified the general disgust with the Krayt Empire among the SCAR troops. Lieutenant Tilheyra continued to openly discuss loyalty and obedience of stormtroopers to the Empire, but it was clear to her troopers by reading between the lines that the Imperial throne and the Sith lords that occupied it were no longer one in the same. Tilheyra clearly knew the consensus among SCAR was to defect. Little did they all know, the opportunity to defect would present itself soon enough.

Darth Krayt ordered SCAR into action for the Attack on the Hidden Temple on Taivas in an attempt to defeat the Jedi in that area. General Moff Geist commanded the main land forces in the battle, with SCAR serving as a diversionary force to draw Jedi forces away from the main attack. Lieutenant Tilheyra and her SCAR platoon were provided access to the main comms among the forces to make needed adjustments to their plan based on what the other forces were experiencing. Although the SCAR forces were experiencing success on the battlefield, what they heard over the comms presented a very different picture. Ineffective coordination among the Imperial forces meant some forces were killed in friendly fire, caused the end of orbital bombardment. Soon enough, Imperial forces on the ground enagaged the Jedi at the temple, and SCAR could no longer divert the stream of Jedi heading back to the temple to mount a defense. The SCAR platoon could do little more at the time than observe the distant battle, under strict orders to allow the Imperial Army to engage the temple.

The decisive moment to defect came when Darth Krayt sprung his trap for the opposing forces, unleashing his Sith troopers onto the surface of Taivas. The Sith troopers were killing all they encountered, making no distinction between friend and foe. General Geist and much of his forces were killed in friendly fire, and this development disgusted so many officers and soldiers within the Imperial ranks that many decided to defect to the Empire-in-exile right then and there. Upon hearing Admiral Rulf Yage's holotransmission of his own defection to the Empire-in-exile, Lieutenant Tilheyra gauged the opinion of her SCAR platoon. There were no objections to defecting. However, the SCAR platoon had already been spotted by Sith troopers, and an escape had to be affected quickly.

Immediately, recognizing the fatal consequences of her platoon falling into the hands of the Sith troopers, and the SCAR platoon's collective decision to defect already clear, Tilheyra led her platoon's escape as far as she could. It soon became clear, however, that the full group would be unable to escape without some form of cover fire as resistance, and the SCAR platoon was too valuable to lose. There was no other option than to have one member of the platoon remain behind and slow the advancing Sith troopers, and all members of the platoon knew it. Lieutenant Tilheyra, accepting the weight of the responsibility upon her, quickly relieved one of her squads of their BB-23 blaster and their few remaining power packs, and upon ordering her platoon to continue their escape with the lone word of "GO," saluted her platoon one last time. Their duty to obey the orders of their superiors overcame their shock after a slight hesitation, and after returning her salute, Lieutenant Tilheyra's platoon continued their escape. Lieutenant Tilheyra began her last stand. 

Taking a position of cover, she lured the Sith troopers toward her by briefly rising from cover and firing the BB-23 in the direction of different Sith trooper squads each time, drawing more and more Sith trooper squads toward her with each shot. Her few power packs did not last long, but it was clear several Sith trooper squads were now advancing on her position. Knowing she would only have one opportunity to inflict the most devastating blow she could against the Sith trooper advance, she took out her thermal detonator, set the fail-deadly setting, and pulled the pin. She knew her thermal detonator would do its job within seconds of removing pressure from the release, and she would not have time to outrun the explosion. With a firm grasp on the thermal detonator in her left hand, Lieutenant Tilheyra unholstered her sidearm with her right hand. Advancing from cover, the Lieutenant continued her firing toward the swiftly advancing Sith troopers, mutually closing the distance. A well-placed shot from a Sith trooper shattered her abdominal armor, knocking the Lieutenant to the ground, blood dripping from her wound. Endeavoring to hang on to life just a little longer, she waited until the Sith troopers arrived to finish the job, and once the Sith troopers were upon her, Lieutenant Tilheyra unclenched her left hand. The thermal detonator, pressure released, rolled across her fingers, and out of her hand. The Sith troopers raised their rifles to fire, but just as the laser bolts left the muzzle of the rifles, the thermal detonator exploded. The ensuing explosion vaporized Lieutenant Tilheyra, several Sith trooper squads standing before her, and in the white, hot illumination of the nuclear fusion reaction, signaled her own squads to carry on the mission of SCAR for the Empire-in-exile. Lieutenant Tilheyra's SCAR squads reached the forces of Emperor Fel with no further casualties, and their abilities as SCAR troopers were welcomed in the fight against the Sith menace.

 EPILOGUE

Although it is clear how Lieutenant Tilheyra fell in battle, the specifics of what occurred during her last stand remained uncertain for anyone not caught up in the blast. Her SCAR troopers recall hearing the many shots from the BB-23 as they affected their escape, as well as the sounds of laser bolt fire once the BB-23 blasts stopped. The guns fell silent soon enough, and a short time later, the sky was lit up with the blast from a thermal detonator. The explosion had the characteristics of the modified thermal detonators produced specifically for the SCAR squads, having been redesigned at the direction of Lieutenant Tilheyra shortly after the resurrection of SCAR. The blast radius was later determined to have been 100 meters, and the members of SCAR were the only troopers on Taivas possessing thermal detonators of that capability. One SCAR trooper recalled his conversation with the Lieutenant and his squad many months before the battle. Total commitment to the Empire came up, as it often did, and in a serious turn of the conversation, the Lieutenant was asked what she would do if she realized she would not return from a mission. After thinking over the question for a few moments, Lieutenant Tilheyra responded she would take out as many of the enemy as she could by drawing them toward her and then sacrifice herself by using a thermal detonator. All members of SCAR are confident that is exactly what she did, and the Jedi later confirmed six Sith trooper squads had, peculiarly, diverted their attention to, and converged upon, a seemingly insignificant part of the battlefield. The importance of where the Sith trooper squads had turned their attention became clear once the explosion occurred, and by the time the dust had settled, those six squads had disappeared. 

No trace of Lieutenant Tilheyra was ever found. The thermal detonator wrought complete destruction for anyone and anything caught in the blast. It is as if she became one with the atmosphere of Taivas. It is oddly fitting that the Lieutenant met a similar fate to her mentee, Jes Gistang. Both were placed in unenviable positions by the politics of the civil war, but both did their duty and fought to the last, vanishing in blasts on the battlefield. In like fashion to Gistang, Lieutenant Tilheyra left behind personal effects to be valued by those who knew her. Notably, pieces of the shoulder pauldron shot off of her at the Battle of Coruscant, writings with friends throughout the Stormtrooper Corps, and a recording of her last conversation with her parents. Lieutenant Tilheyra's connections in the resistance allowed for a brief rekindling of her relationship with her parents prior to Darth Krayt's taking power back from Darth Wyyrlok. These communications were done in secret, but it seems the Lieutenant could not allow a certain conversation to pass by without some form of memento. Although Tilheyra's relationship with her parents remained problematic to the end, this recording was of her parents reaffirming their love for the Lieutenant, despite being on different sides of the war from their daughter. Little did anyone know, this would be the last conversation between Tilheyra and anyone in her family. Her parents sleep better at night knowing that some of their last words spoken with the Lieutenant were  reaffirmations of their love for her.

The Second Imperial Civil War ended shortly after Lieutenant Tilheyra fell in battle. The final battle was on Coruscant only a short time later, and this led to the fall of the Sith empire. Although the Empire-in-exile was on the victorious side, Emperor Fel himself fell during the final battle, which allowed the Jedi and the Galactic Remnants to reassert their power over galactic affairs. Although the Empire itself possessed greatly reduced power and status following the war, the different sides of the Empire reconciled, and this was aided by the numerous members of Krayt's Empire who defected in the final stages of the war. Although she has a problematic legacy, like many who served Krayt, the consensus was to memorialize Lieutenant Tilheyra in a positive way, and many Imperial veterans approached the Tilheyra family about a memorial being created to honor the Lieutenant. The pieces of Lieutenant Tilheyra's pauldron from the Battle of Coruscant, as the only remaining pieces symbolizing the Lieutenant as a trooper, were encased within a monument depicting the Lieutenant in her characteristic armor. The monument was placed on Corusant, close to where Lieutenant Tilheyra became a war hero in the Sith-Imperial War.

The Tilheyra family visits the memorial every year on the anniversary of the Lieutenant's death, and every year a new wreath has been laid at the base of the memorial. No one can recall how the wreath gets there as it is already in place well before dawn, and no one has yet witnessed whomever lays the wreath in the darkness of night. The admirer also never leaves their name on the card that accompanies the wreath. Each year, the same message is written in this card. As the Tilheyra family (and all those who knew the lieutenant) are moved to tears by the words, they have adopted the words of the admirer as Lieutenant Tilheyra's epitaph: 

Fate gave our heroine a hero's death
Fighting to the bitter end
Sacrificing herself so her troopers could live
How were we blessed with such a friend?
Obedient to a greater cause
Loyal trooper through and through
Our Lieutenant inspired all whom she graced
So how can we carry on without you?
Your gave your blood to Coruscant
Keeping others in the fight
You remain on Taivas, among the winds
Does your presence transcend our sight?
I sense you now. Your presence is known!
You stick by us, through and through
Our Lieutenant remains in our hearts and souls
And by your honor we know this is true!