Chapter Summaries

Satine Kryze explained that Pre Vizsla planned to use a brainwashing device and referendum to remove her and gain power with Republic support. Hermit suggested Vizsla might expect the Galactic Republic to collapse soon, leaving Satine and Jango stunned.

• Satine told Hermit that Pre Vizsla planned to use the brainwashing device to control her and manufacture support for a referendum in Sundari.
• Jango asked whether Pre Vizsla intended to join the Confederacy, but Satine said the Republic would use the referendum as a pretext to occupy Mandalore.
• Satine explained that Pre Vizsla would help the Republic quell the resulting dispute, depose her, and become Grand Duke with Senate backing.
• Hermit compared Satine's political strategy with Tang Xiao's and said Tang knew when to abandon political maneuvering for force.
• Jango questioned why Pre Vizsla would become a Republic proxy, and Hermit suggested Vizsla expected the Galactic Republic to collapse soon.

Hermit warned Satine Kryze that the Galactic Republic would become the Galactic Empire and urged her to help uncover the mastermind behind Pre Vizsla’s plot. Meanwhile, Tang Xiao showed High Priest Shadi Li the scenic Planet Kaal as a possible new homeworld for the Vasari.

• Satine Kryze insisted on warning the Galactic Republic about Pre Vizsla, but Hermit argued that an unseen mastermind backed him and that they first needed to stop the citywide mind-control devices.
• Hermit told Satine Kryze that Vitaly Orlov was likely alive, had obtained crucial intelligence, and might be connected to the search behind the brainwashing devices.
• Tang Xiao explained Planet Kaal’s history and current population of four and a half million human immigrants to High Priest Shadi Li.
• High Priest Shadi Li considered Planet Kaal while Tang Xiao offered the Vasari leader the choice to accept or remove its residents.

Tang Xiao considered the history and capabilities of the Vasari Rebels he had awakened, especially their star gate technology and desire for a stable home. He planned to offer them Planet Kaal, while recognizing that their technology could bypass the Milky Way’s established hyperspace routes.

• Tang Xiao realized that he could not understand many non-human technologies and would need their own scientists to study them.
• The chapter recounted how the Vasari Empire fled its Core Worlds after an unknown darkness consumed star systems and destroyed fleets.
• The fleeing Vasari split into Loyalists who continued to plunder and Rebels who sought alliances and a new homeworld.
• Tang Xiao chose to awaken the Vasari Rebels, whose goals aligned with his ability to provide a stable home on Planet Kaal.
• The chapter explained that Vasari star gates could connect distant points directly, bypassing the fixed hyperspace routes used across the galaxy.

Tang Xiao negotiated with High Priest Shadi Li to help the Vasari establish themselves as a core species of the Fourth Civilization, including access to labor and a volcanic planet. After agreeing to settle on Mustafar and form an alliance, Tang Xiao received an unexpected communication from Zekrath.

• Shadi Li asked for time, servants, and a volcanic planet so the Vasari could reproduce and build their industry.
• Tang Xiao offered the Vasari droids, Kig-Yar, immigrants, and Vaxian workers, then proposed Mustafar for their use.
• Tang Xiao considered how the Vasari settling on Mustafar might alter the events surrounding Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader.
• Shadi Li agreed to establish research facilities and join forces with the Fourth Civilization against the Galactic Republic.
• Tang Xiao granted the Vasari independent legislative and military authority, and Shadi Li performed a Vasari gesture of friendship.
• A communication from Zekrath interrupted Tang Xiao and changed his expression.

Tang Xiao discovered that Darth Tenebrus had used Proto-Body to severely damage Gabriel Tosh, then treated Tosh while resolving to return to Dawn Star Planet. He left the mystery of how Tenebrus had acted unresolved and confronted the corpse he had been secretly preserving.

• Tang Xiao traveled to Rono with Shadi Li to examine the Dark Side power Zekrath had extracted from Gabriel Tosh.
• At the Psionic Laboratory, the extracted power vanished, and Tang Xiao recognized it as Proto-Body used by someone he knew.
• Tang Xiao treated Tosh's damaged nerves with Life Force aboard the shuttle and brought him to the Glory mothership for further care.
• Shadi Li returned to Planet Kaal, while Tang Xiao entered his hidden chamber and addressed the preserved corpse of Darth Tenebrus, whom he identified as Tosh's attacker.

Darth Malthael realized Darth Tenebrus had abandoned his powerful body and secretly orchestrated events across the galaxy. He traced the scheme’s discovery to the Protoss’ ability to control and contain Force energy, while Tenebrus learned that his deception had been exposed.

• Darth Malthael examined Darth Tenebrus’s corpse and reflected on their bargain: Tenebrus had taught him the Dark path in exchange for the possibility of resurrection through Essence Transfer.
• Darth Malthael realized Darth Tenebrus had concealed a single crucial plan amid his genuine knowledge and promises, then abandoned his body to escape his control.
• Darth Tenebrus used his freedom to draw Darth Sidious, the Galactic Republic, Darth Malthael, the Fourth Civilization, Count Dooku, and the Confederacy of Independent Systems into a hidden scheme.
• Darth Malthael determined that the Protoss had made the scheme detectable by extracting and containing a portion of Tenebrus’s power.
• Darth Malthael’s Force use during Shadi Li and Zekrath’s argument alerted Darth Tenebrus that his power had been controlled, and the two realized that the other knew the truth.

Darth Malthael confronted Darth Tenebrus about betraying him over Semirres Planet and the Endless-class Super Carrier, while both pretended to preserve their alliance. The exchange ended with Malthael sending hunters to Mandalore and Tenebrus changing course to avoid them.

• Darth Malthael contacted Darth Tenebrus in his Bith body and accused him of giving the Republic the secret route to Semirres Planet to seize the Endless-class Super Carrier.
• Darth Tenebrus defended his actions as necessary to gain power against Darth Sidious and promised to explain himself after blocking the Republic Fourth Army's main fleet.
• Darth Malthael ended the transmission, then ordered unseen allies to go to Mandalore and kill any Bith they found.
• Aboard a black spacecraft near the Mandalorian system, Darth Tenebrus ordered a change of coordinates and warned Pre-Vizsla to leave Mandalore.
• Shen-Jon asked whether Darth Malthael knew, and Darth Tenebrus said he would be disappointed if Malthael did not.

Hermit, Satine Kryze, and Jango Fett searched the Sunset Bar’s underground cellar and found evidence linking the hidden spice den to Zann Corporation and Mandalore’s repair workers. The clues pointed toward a lead at the spaceport, though the people behind Vitaly Orlov’s attack remained unknown.

• Hermit identified the cellar as the place where Vitaly Orlov was attacked, and Satine Kryze looked for a way inside.
• Jango Fett knocked out a bar attendant and used his access card to open the cellar, where Hermit detected a hidden spice den.
• Jango Fett and Satine argued over Mandalore’s honor, poverty, and relationship with the Galactic Republic.
• Hermit found a bloodstained cloth marked with part of the word “ANN” and a chip of Thyssel tree bark, which Satine connected to Zann Corporation.
• Jango identified the cloth as spaceport repair-worker clothing, giving the group a possible lead.

Hermit and Jango Fett suspected Satine Kryze had been brainwashed and headed to Sundari Spaceport to investigate Vitaly Orlov's clue. They hid the unconscious Satine near Zann Corporation's office, where Jango created a diversion to help Hermit approach the guarded warehouse.

• Jango Fett accused Satine Kryze of being a controlled traitor, and Hermit knocked her unconscious after agreeing something about her story was suspicious.
• Hermit carried Satine, deciding she could serve as a bargaining chip, while he and Jango debated how Vitaly Orlov had escaped control.
• Hermit and Jango hid Satine in a cargo crate at Sundari Spaceport, and Hermit used the Force to ensure she slept for several hours.
• Hermit and Jango watched the guarded Zann Corporation warehouse, and Jango left to create a diversion.
• A starship suddenly took off and fired its turrets wildly, drawing attention away from the warehouse.

Hermit infiltrated a warehouse and discovered the underground facility powering Pre Vizsla’s citywide brainwashing device, where captive Force-sensitive women were being tortured to generate brainwaves. After damaging the machine and escaping the facility, he found himself surrounded by guards as Death Watch warriors closed in.

• Jango Fett drew the city’s attention by leading pursuing ships into a chaotic aerial battle, allowing Hermit to enter the warehouse.
• Hermit followed a familiar scent to a hidden entrance and used Force hypnosis to make a guard lead him underground.
• Hermit discovered Force-sensitive women imprisoned in glass tanks, whose brainwaves were being amplified and broadcast across the city.
• Surveillance detected Hermit, and he fired at the device before fleeing through the warehouse as hundreds of guards pursued him.
• Jango Fett’s ship was shot down, and dozens of Death Watch warriors flew toward Hermit in jetpacks.

Hermit escaped the citywide pursuit and reunited with Jango Fett, then learned that Satine Kryze had been captured again. After discussing the guarded basement and their next move, Hermit concluded that Vitaly Orlov was at the transmission tower.

• Hermit evaded Death Watch, Zann Corporation guards, and controlled Sundari police before reaching the cinema rendezvous.
• Hermit found Jango Fett waiting safely backstage and learned how Jango had escaped the ship's explosion.
• Jango told Hermit that guards had discovered the cargo container hiding Satine Kryze and that the Zann Corporation basement was now likely heavily guarded.
• Hermit told Jango about the imprisoned women and argued that finding Vitaly Orlov was still essential.
• Hermit deduced that Vitaly Orlov was at the transmission tower, where his communications were being sent.

Hermit and Jango Fett attacked the communications transmission tower to find Vitaly Orlov, but their raid was overwhelmed by guards and Destroyer droids. Hermit found Vitaly hiding inside the tower, and as guards closed in, a voice spoke in his mind.

• Hermit and Jango Fett decided to raid the transmission tower, believing Vitaly Orlov might be hiding there.
• Hermit and Jango Fett stormed the tower, where Destroyer droids attacked; Jango destroyed one but was captured by guards.
• Hermit fled upward through the tower as guards and Death Watch warriors pursued him.
• Hermit discovered Vitaly Orlov hiding in a maintenance room and learned that chewing Thyssel tree bark had protected him from the mind-control device.
• As guards searched outside the room, Hermit prepared to fight, then heard a voice in his mind say, "Al'a korr de zhakan".

Sola-A rescued Hermit and Vitaly Orlov from their pursuers, then joined them to investigate the crisis on Mandalore. Hermit warned her that Pre Vizsla was using the launch tower’s cables to brainwash the city and prepare a referendum, and Sola-A went to destroy them.

• A Protoss voice spoke telepathically to Hermit and Vitaly Orlov, and Hermit recognized that their pursuers had been killed by Protoss warriors.
• Hermit and Vitaly found more than a hundred bodies around the launch tower and watched ships flee the area.
• Sola-A appeared, introduced herself as a member of the Sali-Gal tribe, and said she had come at the request of Dawn Star Planet’s Governor to stop events on Mandalore.
• Sola-A told Hermit that Jango Fett had been rescued and that her companion Aura'Khan was below, while warning that more enemies were approaching.
• Hermit asked Sola-A to destroy the launch tower’s cables because Pre Vizsla was using them to control the city and prepare a referendum, and she went to do so.

Hermit, Jango-Fett, Vitaly-Orlov, Oola-Khan, and Sola-A prepared to rescue Duchess Satine-Kryze before the Sundari referendum, after destroying the transmission tower’s wiring. Vitaly-Orlov revealed that Thyssel tree bark had come from a box containing a biological chip, while a broadcast announced that the referendum would begin the next morning.

• Hermit and Vitaly-Orlov left the transmission tower and found Jango-Fett among the dead guards and a severed Destroyer droid.
• Oola-Khan revealed himself and learned that the group needed to destroy the spaceport control device and rescue Duchess Satine-Kryze.
• Sola-A reported that she had destroyed the transmission tower’s wiring, but Hermit said the core device still needed to be destroyed.
• Hermit chose to rescue Satine first, and Jango-Fett armed the group while Vitaly-Orlov explained how he had obtained the Thyssel tree bark.
• Vitaly-Orlov said a Zann Corporation worker had found the bark in a box with a piece of flesh, and Hermit identified the flesh as a biological chip.
• A broadcast announced that the Sundari referendum would begin the next morning.

Vitaly Orlov explained that three conspiracies were unfolding on Mandalore: a referendum being used to justify a takeover, a brainwashing-device experiment, and a secret mission involving a high-ranking Coruscant figure. As the others planned to destroy the device, Obi-Wan Kenobi removed his mask and went alone to rescue Duke Satine.

• Jango Fett warned that the referendum could give the Galactic Republic grounds to occupy Mandalore, and Oola-Khan said they could still stop it.
• Vitaly Orlov argued that the referendum was already impossible to stop and explained that the brainwashing device was being used in an experiment on people from Dathomir, while serving either outcome on Mandalore.
• Vitaly Orlov revealed that a secret figure from Coruscant had brought a biological chip to Mandalore and that he had learned about the figure through a stolen box and an intercepted communication.
• Hermit proposed destroying the brainwashing device, and Oola-Khan agreed that they should avoid the trap at the palace.
• Hermit gave his mask to Vitaly Orlov, identified himself as Obi-Wan Kenobi, and went alone to rescue Duke Satine.

Jango Fett and an invisible attacker assaulted a Zann Corporation facility while Sundari’s referendum descended into chaos as citizens awakened from brainwashing. Sheev Palpatine declared war on Mandalore, and Obi-Wan Kenobi seized Satine Kryze and fled the palace balcony.

• Jango Fett attacked the Zann Corporation warehouse as an invisible lightsaber-wielding assailant killed guards and Death Watch warriors inside.
• Citizens at Sundari’s referendum began recovering their memories and protesting Duke Satine Kryze’s government.
• Sheev Palpatine denounced Mandalore in the Galactic Senate and ordered the Second Systems Army to occupy it, despite Padmé Amidala’s warning.
• An invisible Force-user used an iron chain to disrupt the four Death Watch warriors behind Satine, allowing Obi-Wan Kenobi to grab her and flee.

As Mandalore began a referendum to leave the Galactic Republic and join the Confederacy of Independent Systems, Count Dooku and Tang Xiao recognized the political trap but did not know who had arranged it. The Confederacy publicly disavowed the referendum and blamed the Galactic Republic, while the Republic’s fleet continued toward Mandalore.

• Count Dooku contacted Tang Xiao to ask what was happening on Mandalore, and Tang Xiao claimed he sensed a new darkness there and had sent Jango Fett and other subordinates to intervene.
• Count Dooku ended the call only half convinced, while Tang Xiao kept Darth Tenebrus’s involvement secret.
• The Confederacy of Independent Systems announced that it neither knew of nor supported Mandalore’s referendum and affirmed its respect for the Neutral Systems Alliance.
• Count Dooku urged Duchess Satine Kryze to halt the referendum and accused the Galactic Republic of orchestrating it to justify occupying Mandalore.
• Count Dooku declared that the first fleet to reach Mandalore would expose the referendum’s mastermind, while the Galactic Republic’s Second Systems Army fleet continued on its way.

A bombing destroyed Zann Corporation’s brainwashing device in Sundari, unleashing unrest and a political crisis as Satine Kryze disappeared and Almec formed an interim government. Palpatine planned to pressure Mandalore politically while secretly investigating why the upheaval had unfolded so smoothly.

• Explosions destroyed Zann Corporation’s warehouse and brainwashing device, freeing Sundari’s residents and triggering riots against Satine Kryze.
• With Satine missing, Almec formed an interim government, while Pre Vizsla declared support for him from aboard a starship.
• Almec told the Republic that the referendum remained Satine’s decision and asked it to wait a month before holding an election.
• The Republic’s Second Systems Army fleet gathered at Korriban under Master Windu, while Palpatine ordered it to pressure Mandalore without entering its system.
• Palpatine told Mas Amedda to contact Mandalorian powerholders and secretly investigate the cause of Mandalore’s upheaval.

Darth Tenebrus and Shen Jon planned to let the Galactic Republic and Darth Malthael become entangled in Mandalore while Death Watch quietly prepared to seize power. The chapter then traced Dathomir’s history, ending with the Nightsisters united under Gethzerion and armed with her Book of Shadows.

• Pre Vizsla reported that Mandalore’s referendum had brought Republic troops to Korriban, while Duke Satine Kryze had been taken away and the mind amplifier destroyed.
• Darth Tenebrus ordered Pre Vizsla to leave Mandalore’s turmoil to the Republic and prepare Death Watch on Concordia, with Prime Minister Almec left to manage the immediate chaos.
• Shen Jon explained that Mandalore and Semirres would occupy Darth Malthael, while Tenebrus dismissed the lost biochip and planned to decipher the Endless-class Super Carrier designs.
• Shen Jon agreed to return with Pre Vizsla and protect him from invisible assassins as Tenebrus stayed on Dathomir to work with an old woman and excavate the Kwa Star God Temple.
• The chapter recounted how Allya’s descendants developed Dathomirian magic, how fallen witches bred with Zabraks to create Dathomirians, and how Gethzerion united the witches as the Nightsisters.
• Gethzerion wrote the Book of Shadows, recording many forms of Dark Side magic.

Mother Talzin described how she ruled the Night Sisters and secretly aided Count Dooku before Sola Balk arrived seeking powerful warriors. She offered her finest fighters but asked for help against a dark force that had caused dozens of Night Sisters to disappear.

• Mother Talzin enforced strict laws over the Night Sisters and Night Brothers, secretly supplied assassins to Count Dooku, and kept her tribe officially neutral.
• Sola Balk arrived on Dathomir to ask Mother Talzin for warriors to support Count Dooku.
• Mother Talzin showed Sola Balk her Night Sister elites training in brutal, deadly combat.
• Sola Balk judged the warriors too weak to contend with Jedi Knights, and Mother Talzin said one of her Night Brothers possessed stronger magic.
• Mother Talzin warned that a dark force was devouring the Night Sisters and had made dozens disappear, then asked Sola Balk for help stopping it.