Chapter Summaries

Doctor Aphra discovered that the being imitating her mother was a Gondravian Hook Spore connected to a Jedi corpse, and she stopped the attack to speak with it. The creature offered to choose Aphra as its successor, while Deathstroke revealed his knowledge of Leia’s past and hinted that he had known her mother.

• Doctor Aphra rejected Master Aphra as her mother and ordered BT to attack the gelatinous figure.
• Master Aphra used the Force to stop the missiles and deflect the blaster fire while claiming to be Aphra’s mother.
• Aphra identified Master Aphra as a Gondravian Hook Spore and told BT to cease fire so she could talk with it.
• The Hook Spore explained that it sought a suitable successor to fulfill its Jedi host’s last wish and said Aphra could not resist its Force Mind Reading because she knew nothing about the Life Force.
• Leia recalled Qui-Gon Jinn’s teachings about the Life Force, and Deathstroke said Leia was as gifted as Luke.
• Deathstroke told Leia he had known her mother and asked to speak with her alone after they finished.

Hook Spore explained why he had mimicked Aphra’s mother and revealed that Dr. Adams’s party had safely left the underground hangar in another ship. He also confirmed that Aldu Aspetu existed in hyperspace as an ancient Je’daii fortress, while Aphra and Deathstroke entered the ship to hear more.

• Su Ming considered Aphra’s unusual Force abilities and wondered whether she was secretly connected to Anakin.
• Aphra put away her blaster and challenged Hook Spore for pretending to be her mother.
• Hook Spore admitted that he had mimicked the loved ones of Dr. Adams’s party, killing only one person who attacked his host.
• Hook Spore opened the ship and told Aphra that Dr. Adams’s group had left the underground hangar in another spaceship twenty years earlier.
• Hook Spore confirmed that Aldu Aspetu existed in hyperspace as an ancient Je’daii meeting hall and fortress, and Aphra beckoned Deathstroke into the ship.

Su Ming explained the Je'daii’s origins and the long history of wars that shaped the Jedi Order. He blamed the Jedi’s intervention in the Goddess Campaign for leaving them politically isolated and reduced to the Old Republic’s police force.

• Su Ming told Aphra that the Je'daii were the predecessors of Force users and explained how the Tho Yor brought captives to Tython.
• He recounted how Xesh’s arrival caused the Force War, driving the Je'daii from Tython and eventually leading them to settle on Ossus.
• Su Ming described the succession of wars that devastated galactic civilization and reduced the Jedi from a vast order to a few thousand members.
• Su Ming explained that the Jedi had overthrown the Goddess Cult’s human-led government and replaced it with an assembly that included alien politicians.
• Su Ming concluded that the Jedi’s choice had alienated the Republic, which later left them isolated and confined them to policing duties.

Deathstroke and Aphra discovered a dead Jedi Master and learned that Hook Spore had chosen Aphra to inherit his knowledge. Aphra reluctantly touched the Bio-Symbiote Lightsaber, with Deathstroke assuring her he could kill her if she lost control.

• Deathstroke led Aphra to an egg-shaped cockpit chamber containing the remains of a Jedi Master.
• Hook Spore explained that he and his host believed The Force and life endured forever, and Aphra described how Jedi had branded dissenters as Dark Jedi.
• Hook Spore opened the chamber and told Aphra she was destined to bring balance to the Milky Way Galaxy.
• Hook Spore offered Aphra a living Lightsaber that would merge with her body and give her the host's knowledge and Jedi combat skills.
• Deathstroke placed Aphra's hand on the Lightsaber and told her he could kill her if she lost control.

Su Ming learned how the Jedi Master had died and why Hook Spore had remained in the underground cave. Hook Spore offered to help Su Ming grow stronger with the Force in exchange for finding the woman his host had saved.

• Hook Spore used Force Healing to stabilize Aphra after she absorbed thousands of years of memories and knowledge.
• Su Ming questioned how the Jedi Master had died, and Hook Spore explained that the Jedi had used Life Transfer to save someone mortally wounded.
• Hook Spore said he had not seen the woman in 3,652 years and suspected she had returned to the underground structures after the Jedi's death.
• Su Ming guessed Hook Spore wanted Aphra to find the woman or her remains and bring them back.
• Hook Spore offered to help Su Ming develop his Force abilities in exchange for finding the woman.

Su Ming agreed to help Hook Spore find its host’s former partner and apprentice in exchange for a way to gain an affinity for the Force. Hook Spore proposed that Su Ming and Strangle imitate the bond between a Jedi Master and Jedi Bugs, and Strangle realized how the plan could work.

• Su Ming deduced that Hook Spore wanted to find its host an apprentice and partner, and that it also hoped to create a partner for itself by planting a spore in a suitable body.
• Su Ming and Hook Spore sealed a deal for Hook Spore to help his Symbiotes imitate Jedi Bugs so he could gain an affinity for the Force.
• Hook Spore explained that Jedi Bugs could not be copied biologically and that a master guided an apprentice’s Jedi Bugs to respond to the Force.
• Hook Spore proposed replicating the bond between a Jedi and a Jedi Spirit, and Strangle worked out how he and Su Ming could imitate Hook Spore and its host as one whole.

Aphra awoke after receiving knowledge of The Force from the Lightsaber, while Harley teased her aboard the battered ship. On Dagobah, Master Yoda sensed a dark disturbance and an unclear future.

• Aphra resisted the Lightsaber’s influence in a dreamlike vision of The Force and tried to return to her body.
• Harley woke Aphra after surgery and joked that Mimi had been transplanted onto her butt.
• Aphra tried to outwit Harley, but Harley tricked her with a fake makeup prank and left laughing.
• Master Yoda awoke from meditation on Dagobah after sensing a cold black sun and a future he could no longer see clearly.

Su Ming gained the Force through Hook Spore and promised to help him find the woman his host had loved. Back in Haven IV, Aphra embraced her new Dark Jedi powers as Su Ming gave her a huge list of archaeological jobs.

• Su Ming demonstrated his new command of the Force, and Hook Spore asked him to spare alien species in his future plans.
• Su Ming agreed to search for the woman Hook Spore's host had loved, and Hook Spore gave him her records and portrait.
• Hook Spore sent Su Ming and the others out of hyperspace, returning them to the underground river on Haven IV.
• Aphra celebrated becoming a Dark Jedi, while Zero Three worried that Jedi and Sith would hunt the crew.
• Su Ming listed numerous relics and plans he wanted Aphra to find, and Aphra protested that the work could last her whole life.

Aphra considered working for Deathstroke after he promised her freedom, generous pay, and eventually a planet. After the group reunited and returned to the surface, Deathstroke and Harley relaxed beneath a tree and discussed their future plans, while Harley imagined training her pet beetle as a superhero.

• Deathstroke offered Aphra a well-paid job and promised her an uninhabited planet after decades of work, exciting Aphra and her robots.
• Deathstroke led the group through the underground river to Luke and the others, and they returned to the surface together.
• After Luke sensed a black sun and feared the disturbance would draw Seth, the group decided to leave, with Leia preparing dinner and Luke and Han repairing the Millennium Falcon.
• Aphra pulled her girlfriend aside to talk privately while Deathstroke and Harley sat beneath a tree and discussed ancient technology and the Planchana.
• Harley asked Deathstroke to make Lightsabers for her and her beetle, then considered naming the beetle Lady Beetle.

Su Ming met Jedi Master Barriss Offee and her apprentice, Mary Amethyst, who had waited for him on Haven IV. After discussing how they had survived the Jedi purge, Offee sent Mary to help Luke and the others while she spoke privately with Su Ming.

• Su Ming recognized Barriss Offee as she approached with her apprentice and invited them to sit.
• Offee said she was safe from pursuit because she had an agreement with someone and treated him occasionally.
• Mary Amethyst introduced herself and explained that she had escaped the Jedi Temple during Order 66 with a lightsaber.
• Mary told Su Ming that Master Yoda had left her with Offee and then flown away, muttering about his mistakes and the possibility of saving everyone.
• Offee sent Mary to find Luke and the others near the Millennium Falcon so she could talk with Su Ming.

Su Ming and Barriss Offee discussed uniting forces to prevent a future catastrophe and Su Ming’s plan to bargain with Darth Vader by restoring Padmé. The conversation ended with Su Ming asking Barriss where he could find a black Force Crystal.

• Su Ming met Barriss Offee on Haven IV and learned that Vader had asked her to monitor a mercenary tracking Aphra.
• Barriss said she wanted to unite people because the war between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire could leave the galaxy vulnerable to invasion.
• Su Ming described the Yuuzhan Vong’s future invasion and agreed that the galaxy needed to address its internal problems.
• Su Ming proposed killing Darth Sidious and offering Vader Padmé’s resurrection in exchange for the Empire.
• Barriss warned that factions on both sides might resist peace, and Su Ming said he had prepared for that before asking her about a black Force Crystal.

Su Ming, Aphra, and their companions followed Master Offee to an ancient Mandalorian mine on Haven IV to search for black Force Crystals. They began a rapid excavation, hoping to find the crystals needed for the next step of their plan.

• After the Millennium Falcon departed, Aphra and Su Ming agreed to join Master Offee and her apprentice Mary in searching an ancient mine for black Force Crystals.
• Aphra warned Su Ming that Master Offee might be dangerous, but he said their power meant they could kill her if she turned against them.
• Su Ming told Aphra he planned to meet Darth Vader and claim her protection, while privately keeping his real motives hidden.
• Master Offee led the group past the Imperial blockade to a quiet, ancient mine covered in charred crystalline formations.
• Su Ming released Doom Bots and had Adjutant direct them, speeding up the search for crystals.

Deathstroke and the others found a black Force Crystal in an abandoned mine and returned to Aphra’s ship. Deathstroke began negotiating with an unnamed contact, while Harley and Barriss waited to learn whether the plan would succeed.

• Deathstroke found and pocketed a black Force Crystal as Harley chose other crystals with help from the Bezen Queen.
• Aphra teased Mary, and Barriss urged the group to leave before Imperial patrols arrived.
• Deathstroke asked Barriss to contact someone and said she could inform Master Yoda if negotiations went smoothly.
• The Adjutant teleported the group back to Aphra’s ship, and Barriss contacted the unnamed person.
• Deathstroke took the communicator and moved far from the ship to negotiate, while Harley said she expected Darth Vader to accept his terms.

Su Ming and his companions reached Yavin IV to enter the Massassi Temple and use its Teleportation Array, but Imperial troops and a walker guarded the area. They planned a quiet approach, with Barriss and her apprentice masking the group, Aphra and the droids disabling the walker, and the Wookiee following with his weapon.

• Aphra reported that three platoons of Imperial soldiers and a walker were searching the former Rebel base near the Massassi Temple.
• Aphra, Barriss, and Mechanical Wolong discussed the Empire, the Rebel Alliance, and how to prevent wars.
• Su Ming revealed that the Massassi Temple held their only remaining route to their destination after the Kyber Temple was destroyed, and warned the group to avoid alerting the Empire.
• Barriss and her apprentice volunteered to bend the Stormtroopers' minds, while Aphra said she and her droids would handle the walker.
• Aphra pushed Zero Three and BT ahead to begin their work as Barriss ignited her lightsaber and called her apprentice forward; the Wookiee followed.

Aphra’s plan to disable the Imperial camp succeeded as Zero Three and BT seized an AT-AT and Barriss Offee subdued the Stormtroopers. The group headed for the ancient Je'daii temple while Aphra distracted Captain Cuddles, and Barriss showed unease when asked to join the others.

• Aphra sent Zero Three and BT into the Imperial camp to sabotage the walking mech while she watched from the bushes.
• Zero Three killed a maintenance robot, and BT hacked into the AT-AT, taking control of it.
• Barriss Offee subdued the Stormtroopers without killing them, and Su Ming arrived with Harley and Mary.
• Aphra freed Captain Cuddles from her mind control, then kissed him as he protested.
• Su Ming headed into the temple, Harley stayed to watch Aphra, and Barriss reluctantly agreed to go inside.

Su Ming, Barriss, Aphra, and the others activated an ancient Je'daii teleportation array hidden in a pyramid temple. They arrived at a lost city floating in space, where Aphra prepared to begin the discovery of a lifetime.

• Su Ming and Barriss explored the temple and found a star chart marking the array's destination.
• Su Ming made a makeshift key from crushed Force Crystals and identified the wall reliefs as instructions.
• Aphra arrived with the others, and Harley read the instructions for activating the array.
• Su Ming channeled the Force into the key, and the group teleported from the temple.
• Aphra identified the gray city floating in space as Aldu Aspetu.

The group explored the ruins of Aldu Aspetu, where conflicting legends described Ruur and the Celestials. Inside the city wall, they found a freezing landscape littered with Jedi corpses and ancient Lightsabers, leaving Aphra and Deathstroke examining the weapons.

• Aphra, Master Offee, Zero Three, Mechanical Wolong, the Wookiee, BT, Mary, and Harley shared conflicting stories about Ruur and Aldu Aspetu as they traveled toward the palace.
• Deathstroke opened the city gate, and the group discovered that the temperature inside the wall was far colder than outside.
• Aphra and the robots uncovered a charred corpse in Jedi robes, and Aphra concluded that the scattered Jedi had likely died in a Civil War.
• Aphra took an ancient bronze-hilted Lightsaber from a corpse and activated its golden blade.
• Deathstroke used Force Telekinesis to take another Lightsaber and activated its matching golden blade.

Deathstroke and Aphra examined the drained corpses in the city before the group reached the castle marked “Eternity Rul.” After Deathstroke lifted its enormous gate, they entered the darkened hall and set out to find the basement machinery and restore power.

• Aphra and Deathstroke concluded that the city’s inhabitants had been drained of life, much like Corpse Master, though their deaths appeared unwilling.
• The group crossed the empty streets to the white castle, where Harley and Aphra offered different translations of the inscription as “Immortal Ruur” and “Eternity Rul.”
• Deathstroke pressed a handprint into the massive metal gate and lifted its roughly thirty-million-ton weight so the group could enter.
• Deathstroke dropped the gate behind them, shaking the hall and dislodging dust and masonry from the ceiling.
• Aphra found the castle’s equipment shut down and guessed that its machinery was in the basement, while Deathstroke wondered how the floating landmass stayed in hyperspace.

Su Ming and his companions restored power to the ancient castle and discovered that Eternity Rul might still be alive. An elevator carried them into a crystal hall in the Milky Way Galaxy, where Su Ming sensed Ruur waiting with a powerful life force.

• Aphra had Zero Three clean the dusty machinery in the basement, then used Force Crystals to restore its power.
• The restored system opened the castle's compartments and revealed a mural of Eternity Rul beside an unfamiliar emblem.
• Aphra could not bring the central system online, but she opened the elevator and the group rode it to the castle's upper level.
• Deathstroke explained that the elevator had taken them out of Hyper space and into the Milky Way Galaxy.
• Su Ming sensed that Ruur was still alive and warned the group to prepare for a fight.

Su Ming and his companions crossed the space-bound fortress and found a control room inside its central crystal. There, they encountered a glowing apparition who identified himself as Eternity Rul and demanded to know the date.

• Su Ming sensed Ruur inside the enormous green crystal as the group crossed a bridge past the drained bodies of civilians.
• Aphra pressed a control panel, revealing a water-filled expanse and an elevator inside the crystal.
• The group rode the elevator to a control room, where Aphra identified a drained corpse as Eternity Rul.
• Master Offee warned the others that Rul was not dead, and Su Ming confronted the presence in the room.
• A green apparition appeared and called himself Eternity Rul, then asked what time it was.