Atrelle Sovex

Atrelle Sovex was a female Synnott Centurion of the Order of Keltrayu who, upon her death, acquired the unfortunate distinction of having the shortest service in the history of the Order, being a commissioned Centurion for only twelve days. She was one of the Shest Minor Seven.

Training
Born on Synno, Atrelle was the younger cousin of Evelyan Sovex, another Force-sensitive Synnott. Evelyan was discovered by the Order of Keltrayu at the age of six, and in the process of his recruitment, the Praetor-Recruiter from the Order noticed Atrelle's Force-sensitivity as well. With the consent of their parents, both were taken into the Order for training as Novices.

Atrelle was a bright, inquisitive, and generally happy child, eager to learn and friendly with most of her fellow Novices, though she was particularly close with her cousin Evelyan and with Jira Seezhli, a Kasci girl her own age, and the Curh Selish Anteran. Though all three became full Centurions before Atrelle, she remained close with them her entire life, and before the outbreak of The Tribulation, Jira and Selish often helped Atrelle train, as did Kylaea Porén. Like Selish, Kylaea, and many other Centurions, Atrelle opted to specialize in the study of Shien.

Upon the outbreak of the Vagaari War in 141 ABY, Atrelle redoubled her efforts in training, unable to bear the thought of her brothers and sisters fighting and dying while she was still a trainee. However, Eskol Kaartinen, Prefect of the Order of Keltrayu, kept her as a Novice for another year, concerned that her desire to serve was so intense that it was causing her distraction and making her unable to focus. By mid-142, however, the need for Centurions in the field had become so great that Kaartinen allowed her to take the Centurion exams. Preparing with the aid of Jira and Tarzg Sav'lir, Atrelle narrowly passed her examination and became a full Centurion.

Shest Minor
The Armada forces fighting the Ssi-ruuvi Incursion, led by Sorrik, were bracing for a massive assault on the -held production world of Shest Minor. The Centurion and Legate Breek Zagrev had been chosen to lead the assault, and was desperate for as many Centurions as she could amass to contribute to the battle. Atrelle was dispatched to the southern front, and, despite her inexperience, Breek chose her as the last of eight Centurions (including Breek herself) to participate in the battle, as that was the most who could be spared.

Atrelle's sunny optimism and eagerness to serve helped to comfort the troops alongside whom she was serving before they made their landing. The chaos and constant violence and death of the calamitous Battle of Shest Minor, however, had a terrible effect on her. In the first day of battle, she killed well over a hundred people (including souls into Ssi-ruuvi battle droids). Her resolute devotion to duty and bright outlook on life had been deeply scarred by the experience, and she was equally frightened by the "kill or be killed" bloodlust that had driven her into battle after her first moments of shock.

Returning to Breek's command center, Atrelle was devastated to learn that four of her brothers and sisters had been killed in the first day of battle. Feeling overwhelmed by the horror she had not expected, she tried to speak to Breek, but the Legate told her to save it until the battle was over, as she needed to focus on strategy. Disappointed, Atrelle returned to her troops, passing a sleepless night amidst the screams of the wounded and dying. In the small hours of the morning, she at last opened up to the soldiers with her instead, openly admitting her fear to the youngest soldiers who were, like her, entirely new to battle. Though fear from a Centurion was not reassuring, they were comforted to know that even she was not immune to the horrors of battle, and the group began to form a bond of trust and camaraderie from shared hardship.

As the second day of battle picked up in earnest, Atrelle returned to the field with her troops, fighting with new determination. By noon, the colonel in command of her cohort had been killed by enemy fire, and Atrelle herself assumed command with the support of her men. She led a counterattack, seizing a fortified enemy weapons emplacement and saving the right flank's forward momentum by sunset. Shortly after dark, her force came under attack by a Ssi-ruuvi column. In the process of repelling fire with her lightsaber, she was struck twice in the chest by blaster shots, and died a few seconds later.

Aftermath and legacy
Infuriated by her death, Atrelle's troops rallied and massacred the attacking Ssi-ruuvi forces, though they sustained heavy casualties in the process. She was the sixth Centurion to die; Sato Raltharan died fighting over the course of the night, leaving Breek Zagrev as the Order's only survivor of the battle.

Days before the attack on Shest Minor, Atrelle had expressed an appreciation for the world's scenic beauty (based on reconnaissance holos) and mentioned to her fellow Centurions how she would love to be buried at sea, in accordance with Synnott custom, on a world like that. Out of respect for her wishes, Breek had Atrelle's body set into a flower-laden casket and sent down a river leading to one of Shest Minor's oceans, programmed to sink once it had reached a point with sufficient depth.

Breek was deeply affected by Atrelle's death, blaming herself for drafting such an inexperienced Centurion for the battle and especially for ignoring the girl when Atrelle tried to talk to her. Breek suffered nightmares for years after and carried the guilt for the rest of her life. Her close friends Jira Seezhli and Kylaea Porén, both also deeply affected by Atrelle's death, believed that while losing all seven Centurions had scarred Breek terribly, Atrelle had been the most painful of the seven.

Powers and abilities
Atrelle was trained extensively in and, although her field experience was very limited at the time of her death and she had practiced mostly in controlled environments and challenges. She displayed strong, surviving and repelling regular blasterfire over the first two days of the Battle of Shest Minor and finally succumbing only due to stress and exhaustion, whereas five more experienced Centurions preceded her in death.

Appearance and personality
Like all Synnott females, Atrelle had glossy black hair which came to a point just above the bridge of her nose. She followed the custom of more active Synnott women in growing it long, then tying it back in a long ponytail to keep it out of her eyes. Her eyes were dull green, and her skin a light khaki shade. In her short career as a Centurion, she wore her Centurion's service uniform every day, though she removed the cape for combat at Shest Minor. She carried a straight-hilted lightsaber with a hot magenta blade.

Optimistic and friendly, Atrelle made friends easily among her siblings in the Order of Keltrayu, and was particularly close with her cousin Evelyan and Jira Seezhli. A few, including Breek Zagrev, Tarzg Sav'lir, and Maliya, found Atrelle's constant cheeriness grating, but rarely commented on it because she was so widely loved otherwise. She was very loyal to her adopted family, and pushed herself hard in her last year of training because she could not stand the idea of them being in danger while she was (comparatively) safe.

Though she was a hard worker and a dedicated student, Atrelle's sunny disposition worked against her in her short career, as she was predisposed to look for the good in others and naïve about the harsh, brutal realities of war. Her participation in the Battle of Shest Minor rattled her deeply, leaving her shocked and hollowed by the experience of watching her fellow soldiers be mown down by enemy fire even as she killed enemies herself. On the second day of battle, however, Atrelle rallied enough to push past her fear and horror, inspiring the rest of her cohort to struggle on and even taking command when the cohort's colonel was killed. By the time she died, she had recentered herself in the Force.

Behind the scenes
Atrelle Sovex's character was written around her death and burial, which were themselves inspired by The Band Perry's "If I Die Young".