Tsio’s parents — Pallabai especially — were emboldened by Count Dooku’s speech in 24 BBY, wherein he declared the establishment of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, to stand in opposition to the corruption of the Republic. And when war broke out two years later, they thought that the end of the Republic might finally have come.

Tsio meanwhile sought to insulate herself from galactic politics, and found a kindred spirit in Bol Vangh, the son of a wealthy arms trader from Valo.

Every year in Norupo, the Vangh family organised a fair for the townsfolk: with food, music, parades, and assorted other things. In 22 BBY — shortly after the outbreak of war — Bol asked Tsio if she would participate in this year’s parade; specifically as a member of his ceremonial guard, part of an old Alcedian tradition. She agreed — though much to his ire, she was not chosen to be the head of the guard: a position referred to as the ‘Tsio’.

During the parade, pro-Republic insurgents made an attempt on the life of Bol’s father. Bol and Tsio were caught in the blast, with the former being seriously injured. In the immediate aftermath, the Vangh family left Raxus, and Tsio never saw Bol again.

Any notions she had to follow him would be dashed: first when the CIS Navy instituted a blockade of Raxus; and later when the Empire consolidated their grip on the planet following the Antar Atrocity. For the sake of her parents, she decided to stay on Raxus for the foreseeable future.

Pallabai and Ahkin passed away quietly some time after, defeated and despondent.

Tsio has known she was Force-sensitive since she was a child. However, at her mother’s urging she kept it suppressed; and for a time, lived fearing that the Jedi were hunting for her. Indeed, much of Tsio’s early understanding of the Force was tainted by her mother’s prejudice towards the Jedi, who she saw as inextricably tied to the corruption of the Republic — in spite of Mikkian society’s general deference to the Force. 

Her father, Ahkin, would temper this fear in time; despite his own misgivings for the Republic and the Jedi, he had always been amenable to Mikkian tradition, and wanted his daughter to find her own path, free of interference. But by then the damage had been done, and it would not be until Tsio was near forty years old that she began to explore the Force in earnest.

Not wanting to draw undue attention, Tsio rarely utilised the Force in pursuit of her mission during the Galactic Civil War. Instead, she took to private meditation; which, without any tutelage, was slow to reward.

Her efforts over the next ten years did more to shape her philosophy of the Force, than it did her capacity to wield it. Tsio came to the conclusion that there must be a path she was following: an unknowable road, of indeterminate scope, laid down for her to walk. Each step then, became an exercise in faith. And this she believed, because of how she had come to join the Rebellion in the first place; for why else would she have found herself astray in the depths of space, with no means of saving herself?

Deriving from that then, Tsio realised that her fears were only burdens. If she gave herself over to the Force, then fearing death, failure, or loss was antithetical; whatever happened on the path must be will of the Force. She was quick to make peace with that reality.

However, recent events have made Tsio doubt the veracity of her convictions. She wonders if her idea of the Force is naive, that she does in fact have the agency to find her own way forward; or if in trying to forge her own path she will inevitably lead herself astray. Only time will reveal the truth of it.

Taerezh Büyük (born 43 BBY) is a former Echani freighter captain, turned flight instructor for the New Republic on Coruscant. He is the father of Mizhoti Bir-Büyük.

Taerezh joined the Rebellion with his son shortly before the Battle of Yavin — but did not participate in it. Instead, he used his experience as a freighter captain to help smuggle weapons and supplies to Rebel cells inside Imperial territory. Attaining the rank of Captain, he retired from the Navy at the end of the war, and returned home to Thyrsus, where he hoped to reconcile with his wife, Ieni Bir.

With the rise of Sevrann’s Imperial Remnant, Taerezh felt compelled to follow his son’s example, and re-enlisted in the New Republic Navy. He now serves under General Madine as an instructor at the New Republic Defence Fleet flight academy on Coruscant.

Taerezh first encountered Tsio during the war, when she approached him on the topic of his wife, Ieni Bir, who had made known her intention to defect. Over the course of many conversations, a close friendship was struck. Tsio now considers Taerezh her closest friend and confidant.