Peshk Vri'syk

"The Bothans want a pilot in Rogue Squadron because they found the second Death Star and we killed it."

- Wedge Antilles

Peshk Vri'syk was a Bothan male who trained in flight combat at the Bothan Martial Academy. There, he performed well enough to qualify as one of the inaugural pilots of the New Republic's reformed Rogue Squadron in 6.5 ABY. Vri'syk was hand-picked for the squad by Commander Wedge Antilles, in part due to political pressure by the Bothans, although Antilles assured New Republic Defense Force officials that none of the selected pilots, including Vri'syk, were inferior to any other candidates.

Vri'syk participated without particular distinction in the Battle of Hensara, where he helped protect a New Republic frigate escape from Imperial capture. A few days later, he survived a covert stormtrooper attack against a Rogue Squadron base on Talasea, and participated in a retaliatory strike against the Imperial admiral who launched the assault. Vri'syk was killed during the First Battle of Borleias when a heavy ion cannon blast destroyed his X-wing starfighter. His legacy was later exaggerated by the Bothans to advance their political achievements.

Early life
"I graduated a year behind Peshk Vri'syk. He was good enough to join Rogue Squadron last year, and I was his equal when we were trained."

- Asyr Sei'lar

Peshk Vri'syk was born and raised on Bothawui. He trained in flight combat at the Bothan Martial Academy, one year ahead of future Rogue Squadron pilot Asyr Sei'lar, who was his equal when they were trained. Vri'syk performed exceptionally well at the Academy and so, rather than joining the Bothan element of the New Republic Defense Force, Vri'syk was transferred in 6.5 ABY to the elite Rogue Squadron, which was being reformed by Commander Wedge Antilles.



Although a talented pilot in his own right, Vri'syk was selected for the squadron in part due to his Bothan heritage. Bothan politicians, particularly Borsk Fey'lya of the New Republic Provisional Council, were pushing for a member of their species to be placed in Rogue Squadron due to the assistance Bothan spies provided the Rebel Alliance with the plans for the Death Star II, which ultimately led to the Imperial battle station's destruction. New Republic officials also believed including a Bothan in the squadron would help dissuade Bothawui from remaining neutral in the Galactic Civil War.

Although this political pressure benefitted Vri'syk, Antilles assured Admiral Ackbar, the Supreme Commander of the New Republic Defense Force, that none of the pilots selected for political reasons were inferior to any other candidates. Neither Antilles, nor any of the other Rogue pilots displayed any visible resentment toward Vri'syk for his presence in the squadron, where he was given the call sign Rogue Two.

Rogue Squadron
"The worlds who want to join us have; those who don't, haven't; and those who aren't sure will need some convincing.&hellip;The same goes for having the Bothan in the squadron."

- Corran Horn

Peshk Vri'syk got off to a promising start with Rogue Squadron, earning among the highest scores during a training run on Folor, although Wedge Antilles secretly provided Corran Horn's targeting data to the Rogues during that lesson. During actual battles, however, Vri'syk did not fare as well. The Rogues first saw first action at the Battle of Hensara, a mission was to protect the Battle of Yavin, a New Republic frigate that had crash-landed on Hensara III, from capture by the Imperial Strike-class cruiser Havoc. Although the battle was a Rogue Squadron victory with no casualties among their ranks, Vri'syk was among the least impressive of the pilots, and was visibly relieved after Gavin Darklighter, who secured no kills, was jokingly named "worst pilot in the squadron" rather than himself.

About one month after the squadron was reformed, the Rogues were moved to a training base on Talasea, which was intended to serve as a staging area for an eventual move against Imperial-occupied Coruscant due to the planet's proximity to the Galactic Core. One night, however, a platoon of Imperial stormtroopers were dispatched to the base by Admiral Devlia, based on information provided by Imperial Intelligence agent Kirtan Loor. Vri'syk survived the covert attack and participated in a retaliatory strike against Devlia and his forces at the Vladet base that resulted in victory for the New Republic.

Death
"Damn, Peshk caught that one. He's gone."

- Corran Horn's thoughts

Peshk Vri'syk flew with the other Rogues in the First Battle of Borleias, an attempt to capture the planet Borleias from Imperial control in order to use it as a staging point for a future assault against Coruscant. Due to the poor planning of New Republic General Laryn Kre'fey and unexpected security measures previously implemented by Imperial General Evir Derricote, the battle proved an overwhelming defeat for the New Republic forces. Peshk Vri'syk was among the first casualties of the battle after the base's heavy ion cannons fired at the Emancipator, a New Republic Star Destroyer. One of the blasts struck and eradicated Vri'syk's x-wing starfighter, instantly killing the pilot.

Despite Peshk Vri'syk's brief and ultimately nondescript career with Rogue Squadron, the Bothans exaggerated his accomplishment and hailed him as a hero in order to advance their political achievements, comparing him to the martyrs who secured the Death Star II plans. More than three years later, Wedge Antilles still regretted the loss of Peshk, and would remember him while recalling other close friends who had perished in battle, including Biggs Darklighter, Jek Porkins, Dak Ralter and others.

Personality and traits
"You are well on your way to taking your place in the constellations of Bothan heroes like the Martyrs and even your predecessor in Rogue Squadron, Peshk Vri'syk."

- Borsk Fey'lya to Asyr Sei'lar

Although less impressive than such Rogue pilots as Corran Horn and Bror Jace, Peshk Vri'syk was an excellent pilot who stood out among his classmates at the Bothan Martial Academy. Despite his shortcomings, Vri'syk possessed a great amount of pride in his abilities; while his colleagues felt guilty for excelling in a Folor training run at Horn's expense, Vri'syk took great delight in bragging about his score. Vri'syk was also the most socially detached of the Rogues; he seldom engaged in conversation with his fellow pilots, and reacted apathetically to Horn after the Folor mission, while the other pilots were happy to see him.

Behind the scenes
Peshk Vri'syk was created by Michael A. Stackpole and first appeared in X-wing: Rogue Squadron, the first novel in the X-wing series. He was first illustrated in the Japanese edition of the Rogue Squadron novel.

Appearances

 * X-wing: Rogue Squadron
 * X-wing: Wedge's Gamble
 * X-wing: The Krytos Trap
 * X-wing: Isard's Revenge