Syrena Lyric (Jedi Renaissance)

Biography
In 22 ABY, Lyric turned twenty and had to undergo the Changing Ceremony, in which young Melodies would change from land-dwellers to water-breathers, making them Elders (the adults of Melodie society). Since Yavin 8 was dangerous, her two fellow Jedi trainees Anakin Solo and Tahiri Veila accompanied Lyric. Shortly after the trio's arrival, they fell under attack by several native predators including an avril, a reel, a purella and several raiths. However, Anakin and Tahiri fought and killed them all.

Having survived, Lyric participated in the Ceremony which took place at a shallow cove in Sistra which led to a series of pools that dominated much of the mountain. At the end of the ceremony, Lyric's legs were replaced by tail slits and she breathed through gills, making her an Elder. Presumably, this also limited her activities as a Jedi to her homeworld.

During the Yuuzhan Vong War, the extragalactic Yuuzhan Vong invaded Yavin 8 and destroyed all life. Lyric was among the dead, killed by a voxyn, a bioengineered beast created to hunt Force-sensitive individuals.

Behind the scenes
Lyric's name and that of her species are presumably a pun; lyrics are the words of a song, while a melody is the tune to which they are sung.

Walter Jon Williams originally intended to use Lyric in his book Destiny's Way, until he was informed that she had been killed in an earlier novel. Her role was then filled by the Anx Madurrin.

Syrena Lyric was a female Melodie Jedi Master serving the Jedi Order throughout the early Golden Age of the Jedi. Training to be a Weapon Master during her apprenticeship, Lyric anticipated her change from being able to walk on land to being restricted to under the sea in her selection of careers. Training at the island academy at Pyke on the Jedi academy world Tython, Lyric mastered underwater combat and learned to defend herself with a wide variety of weaponry and Force abilities which played to her strength. Despite having to remain in water at all times, Lyric remained an active member of the Order, taking on missions to ocean worlds and specializing in infiltrating underwater strongholds or exploring sunken ships and cities.

Early life
Like the rest of her species, Syrena Lyric was hatched from an egg on the watery world of to a community of fellow Melodie. Resembling a Human, Lyric lived at her family's home in the Sistra Mountains until her second name day in the Year 39 when the Jedi Order decided it was time for her to travel to Ossus to begin her training. Leaving her father, Gyle Lyric behind, the young Melodie child was taken to the crèche at the Acquisition Division Tower in the city of Knossa where her mind was opened to the Force by the docents of the Order. At the age of four-standard years old, Lyric was sorted into a clan of Initiates her own age and sent to the nearby Grand Academy for basic training on the Jedi path. Learning the most essential skills and the lessons which would provide the foundation for her future education, Lyric grew into an intuitive adolescent and was well-liked by her instructors for her compassion as well as her tact. When she was eligible to participate in the Apprentice Tournament at the age of thirteen-standard years, Lyric showed a competitive spirit which was tempered by her blatant respect for her opponents. Several Masters inquired into taking on the young girl as their Padawan, but it was Jedi Master Ayadura Sork who selected her for training. The large Sauvax Jedi was skilled in combat with her species' favored tool, the gruush, and was intrigued to teach the young girl the ways of combat and ways of the Force.

Because of her limited time remaining as a land-dwelling being, Lyric was eager to accept missions to worlds lacking vast oceans and wanted to run and walk as much as possible. Athletic and quick, Lyric's running capabilities were vital to the success of a mission to Demos IV where she ran faster then light to prevent an assassin's blade from striking the throat of the Queen Regent. Sprinting from half a kilometer away, Lyric caught the blade a mere ten centimeters from the assassin's hand with which he threw it. When her twentieth name day approached Lyric finally began preparing from her Changing Ceremony. Returning to Ossus, Lyric's master took her out into the depths of the great Lake Knoss where she was wrapped in blue-green algae which produced oxygen through photosynthesis and would allow her to breathe underwater during the changing process. Submerged under the lake near to the the Knowledge Bank at the bottom of the body of water, Lyric lay undisturbed for three weeks while her legs merged together and grew scales and flippers and gill slits opened up on her neck while her lungs grew weaker and weaker. Eventually she emerged from her long slumber and rose to the surface of the lake where she was greeted by her master and several friends. Celebrating her transformation, Sork declared that Lyric's apprenticeship had reached its end and she was ready to undergo her Great Journey on Tython.

Great Journey
Naturally, because of her lack of legs and mobility on land, the Great Journey would be even more specialized to Lyric's needs. In order to move around on land, a specialized tank was built to float on repulsorlifts and transport her from one location to the other. However, Tython was quite different from Ossus in that major roadways were few and the hazards of the jungle render her vulnerable to attack. To compensate for this, Lyric designed a special suit which utilized mechanical legs and a circulation system which gave her mobility and a way to keep water moving through her gills without having to swim around. Agile for a machine filled with water, the suit served as a second skin for the Jedi and allowed her head to remain visible above the suit's neckline; while she could still breathe air for the time being, eventually she would need to don a helmet to keep her hydrated and breathing.

Reporting firstly to the Grand Temple on the continent of Talss, Lyric acquainted herself with the diverse biospheres and continents of the planet using the resources and tools available at the Grand Temple. Eager to test out her suit's durability, Lyric set out for Akar Kesh at the center of the continent, forcing her to trek across varied terrain including dense jungle, mountains and marshland. Arriving at the Temple of Balance, Lyric climbed to the great stone monolith's summit and sat in meditation for days at the bottom of the meditative pool in the stone courtyard there. Her deep understanding of the Balance was noted by her fellow Journeyers and the instructors at the Temple encouraged further growth by participating in hours-long debates in the bright chambers of the academy proper. Leaving Akar Kesh behind her, Lyric set out for Anil Kesh where she hoped to understand her own biology better so that she might enhance her envirosuit and prepare it for further dangers. As she approached the Temple of Science, Lyric's mechanical leg became lodged in the craggy rocks near the opening of the Chasm. Using the Force to dislodge herself, Lyric was not aware of the fierce horranth preparing to attack her. Biting and clawing at the suit, the horanth attacked viciously at her left leg until partially disabling it. Lyric was able to kill the beast with her lightsaber and sustain no personal injuries before limping the rest of the way up to the Temple. Once there Lyric looked into developing a suit which would be resistant to leaks and other such problems she had faced along her journey thus far, studying the properties of dozens of alloys and metals until she found one that would satisfactorily galvanize the suit.

Making her way to Vur Tepe's furnaces, Lyric rebuilt several portions of the suit and installed several small weapons systems that allowed for mobility while giving her some more defense from predators and opponents. Once complete with her upgrade Lyric headed for Kaleth to study the ancient weapons of several different undersea cultures.

Powers and abilities
Syrena Lyric

received her initial training at the Jedi Grand Academy on Ossus, ensuring that she possessed a standard understanding of the Force and its applications. She had a strong, natural predilection toward telekinesis and was unafraid to push herself to the limits of her abilities. During her apprenticeship she underwent several missions with her master which tested her abilities and drew her attention to areas of study which she desired to pursue during her career. Madurrin was also proficient with a lightsaber, having crafted one herself and imbuing it with a blue crystal discovered in the caves of Ilum. During her Great Journey on Tython she completed her training at each of the nine Great Temples, finding the study of warfare at Kaleth and the breathing techniques at Stav Kesh most rewarding. During her time on Qigong Kesh, the Anx learned to see beyond her own body, receiving visions from distant worlds and pinpointing the exact location she wished to see during deep trances. Developing her skills as a Guardian, Madurrin was a natural pilot, using the Force to guide her through long journeys and honing her skills of navigation during her bout with the ExplorCorps. Talented in battle meditation, Madurrin's study of tactics and troop deployment strategy made her an invaluable asset to the Grand Army of the Republic and the Office of the Supreme Commander.