Lyrenne "Lyra" Castilla was a high-rankingInsurrectionist who captained theBellicose. She took an interest in her enemy Preston Cole to the point of marrying him while disguised as a civilian, but she left when her true identity was discovered.^[2]

Background[edit]

Insurrection[edit]

During the late-25th and early-26th centuries Lyrenne Castilla was a high-ranking member of the insurgency in theOuter Colonies. She was given command of the capturedUNSC frigateUNSCBellerophon, renamed toBellicose, which on three occasions engaged theUNSCGorgon, captained byPreston Cole. Twice she was able to escape and on theirthird encounter they fought to a draw. As the two ships coasted in space having fired off all their ordnance, Cole and Castilla engaged in a text-only conversation; she knew his identity, but he did not know hers.^[3]

Marriage[edit]

Three months later, in September2501, Cole was on leave on the colonyRoost in theLambda Aurigae system when he met Lyra tending bar on a beach. She told him she got her PhD in nuclear engineering before moving to Roost to fish and pour drinks. The two hit it off immediately. Cole would return to Roost the next three times he was granted leave. Preston Cole and Lyra Castilla were married November2502 during Cole's fourth trip to Roost. When he wrote home to tell his brother of his wedding, Cole reported that Lyra was pregnant. He also said that he was truly happy for the first time he could remember.^[4]

Faked death[edit]

On June 13,2503AdmiralHarold Stanforth sent ColeUNSC Transmission 08871D-00, informing him that theOffice of Naval Intelligence had determined that Lyrenne Castilla was a member of the insurgency. Cole was given the opportunity to try to convince her to turn herself in, but when he got to the bar on Roost he found only a transcript of his conversation with the captain of theBellicose, who he now realized was Castilla. Castilla likely gave birth to their child shortly after, while she was in hiding.^{[Note 2]}

On January 2,2504 UNSCBattle Group Tango, consisting of four heavy destroyers,cornered theBellicose in theTheta Ursae Majoris System. TheBellicose delivered heavy damage to two of the destroyers before apparently losing control and becoming caught in thegravity well of a gas giant. The UNSC reported theBellicose was lost with all hands.^[5]

A new war[edit]

Castilla was believed dead by both the UNSC and general public for the next four decades, but she and theBellicose remained active in the Insurrection. She would take great care to conceal her and her vessel's identities whenever she decided to reappear, often to attack cargo pods containing valuable resources to be used in the Insurrection.^[1]

OnMarch 12, 2526, Castilla and theBellicose hosted a conference between the representatives of various Insurrectionist groups that were prominent at the time: theBiko Independence Army, theFreedom League ofJericho VII, theGao Liberation Force, theVenezian Militia, theSecessionist Union, and thePeople's Occupation ofReach.GeneralHarper Garvin of theUnited Rebel Front led the meeting, which focused on theCovenant's attack on theOuter Colonies and the appearance of the mysteriousSPARTAN-II program. It was decided that the rebels would attempt to bargain with the aliens, supplying them with information on the UNSC in exchange for the promise that their own worlds would go un-glassed.^[1]

Reappearance[edit]

Then on March 6,2543, during theBattle of 18 Scorpii, UNSCBattle Group Sierra-3 found itself in trouble against a single Covenant ship. Just as things seemed most desperate, reinforcements arrived when unknown friendly ships jumped in system. The additional firepower penetrated the enemy's shields, winning the battle and saving the UNSC ships. The lead reinforcement ship's outline and the registry number gleaned from a passive transponder identified it as the UNSCBellerophon aka theBellicose.^[6]

The Insurrectionists' motives for helping the UNSC are unclear. In all likelihood Castilla orchestrated the apparent destruction of theBellicose and escaped by executing the first ever in-atmosphere slipspace jump.^[6]

On April 18, 2543, UNSC Battle Group India engaged aCovenant fleet in the largest single battle of theHuman-Covenant War, theBattle of Psi Serpentis. In the heat of the battle coordinated reinforcements - consisting of fifty-five highly modified older UNSC warships, merchant vessels bristling with missile pods and entirely new designs that neither human nor Covenant had seen before - led by theBellicose appeared and engaged the Covenant fleet. The insurgent-led forces decimated the Covenant while losing nearly one quarter of their own ships. They then transitioned back to slipspace. Their presence greatly influenced the outcome of the battle.^[7]

Codename: SURGEON determined that Admiral Cole almost certainly faked his death at the Battle of Psi Serpentis and survived by executing the second ever in-atmosphere slipspace transition. Evidence suggests that Cole somehow contacted or was contacted by Lyra Castilla before the battle and orchestrated the insurgent participation in the battle. In all likelihood, after faking his death, he rejoined Lyra and settled somewhere outside of both UNSC and Covenant-controlled space.^[8]

Physical description[edit]

Castilla had almond-shaped eyes above a thin nose and high cheeks. Her hair was a silky black and she spoke with a sure voice that instantly commanded respect.^[1]

List of appearances[edit]

• Halo: Evolutions
  • The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole(First appearance)
• Halo: Silent Storm
• Halo: Empty Throne(Mentioned only)

Notes[edit]

Sources[edit]

• Female characters
• Human characters
• Insurrectionists