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Aaron Allston2006 – Del Rey40 years after The Battle of YavinSite Rating =
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SPOILER ALERT: This Will Spoil The Plot of the Book!
Luke Skywalker awakes in a start and he tells his wife Mara Jade that he’s had a dream of cloaked evil man that will bring pain across the galaxy and to him personally.
On Coruscant, the Skywalkers and Solos dine together along with Zekk. Han Solo is leading an argument over recent activity on Corellia which is withholding aid to the Galactic Alliance as it continues its rebuilding process. The GA is working to standardize processes across the many worlds, but Corellia (and Han) don’t want to take orders from the “almighty” Alliance.
As the family relaxes after dinner, Luke and Jacen Solo take a walk together. Luke tells Jacen that military intelligence has learned that Corellia is building a secret planetary fleet, but they don’t know who is behind it or what its use will be. They are also close to reactivating Centerpoint station, once thought impossible since it was believed that the now dead Anakin Solo was the only one who could operate it. Luke wants Jacen to sneak in and disable or destroy the station. Jacen will be taking his apprentice, Ben Skywalker, along for the mission.
After Han has trouble contacting Corellia, he begins to wonder whether a GA attack on the planet is imminent. He and Leia try to figure out how it will happen and see if they can pull out more information.
Jacen and Ben work through simulations on the assault and they all result in them inserting a datacard into a port that will destroy the system.
After several days of analysis, Han and Leia determine that something will indeed be happening on Corellia very soon. Leia says they should let it happen, but Han says a neat and tidy galaxy like she describes where no one has independence is not something he wants to be part of.
On Corellia, Wedge Antilles receives a visit from two intelligence officers who request his presence at a meeting that concerns Rogue Squadron’s original recapturing of Coruscant from the Empire.
Han and Leia contact Luke and ask if they can borrow R2-D2 for a quick vacation, but Luke says R2 is needed for a training exercise. The Solos don’t believe him and think he’s probably part of the invasion.
Wedge is brought to a secure GA facility where they inform him that there is no meeting and that he is simply being held there until the GA attack on Corellia is over. Wedge is unhappy that he won’t be with his family during the invasion. One of the guards feels guilty, but the other says he’s tired of the Rebel Alliance old timers always getting special treatment and hopes he’ll be able to shoot Wedge if he tries to escape.
On Corellia, Prime Minister Aidel Saxan meets with Han and Leia in secret. Han tells her that an attack is nearly upon them, but she thinks it’s unlikely that they were able to figure out what is going on. Han says he’s willing to support them, but only if the current regime resigns because he doesn’t like them playing both sides of the fence.
Every six hours, the guards bring Wedge food. He develops a plan and uses water and an electric cord to electrocute the guard and escape.
Toval Seyah arrives at Centerpoint Station and wonders what sort of tragedy will befall him once he arrives. He transmits a message to Jacen who is hidden in the station and he and Ben begin to make their move.
After travelling in disguise to Corellia, Jaina and Zekk find their way to the surface. They also send word to Luke that they are in position.
Luke and Mara prep their X-Wings and Luke tells her that he’s had another vision. This time he sees Ben talking to the evil man sometime in the future. Luke gets the go ahead that the mission is ready to begin.
Jaina and Zekk ambush the prime minister’s motorcade. They bring down a couple speeders, but the motorcade turns out to be a decoy and Zekk barely escapes before the vehicle self destructs. Jaina comes to his aid and she’s greeted by two droids that were waiting to ambush her.
The GA fleet arrives at Corellia and begins moving into position, but when the Corellian fleet arrives too quickly, the GA knows their surprise attack has been thwarted.
Jacen eventually makes his way to a room in the station where he meets Thrackan Sal-Solo and his elite guards who subdue him with a sonic blast.
With Zekk unconscious, Jaina and the rest of her team dispose of the droids and escape before more can find them.
Luke and Mara lead the attack and come under heavy fire. Despite a few casualties they continue towards the planet. He sends word to Jaina that her escape vehicle has been destroyed and several other teams have met with similar failures. She’s on her own to get offworld.
With the sonic waves pounding him as well as other attacks, Jacen is finally able to shut down all the generators. Sal Solo tells him they have enough droids to keep him busy, but Jacen knows they most likely have yet to find Ben.
Above the planet, Corellian pilot Lysa Dunter is nervous about being in her first combat. Both sides are close, but no shots have been fired. She tries to brush a nearby GA ship and instead destroys it.
GA Admiral Klauskin is distraught over their failure to quickly overtake the Corellians and decides they should instead occupy a nearby world as consolation.
Ben overhears some guards that think they have him cornered, but are cautious because he’s a Jedi. Ben decides to shed all of his Jedi attire and plays the ruse that he is only a lost child.
Lysa is flying around when her father, Wedge Antilles, comes up alongside her and tells her to regroup with her squadron.
Jacen uses the Force to detonate a bomb that is guarding the door and he leaps back through to escape. Ben hears the explosion as he’s approaching the repulsor control chamber. Still pretending to be a child, Ben is able to get past the guards and into the door he is trying to get to. Once inside the room, he is stunned to see and enormous droid that introduces itself as Anakin Solo!
Jaina meets up with other comrades that were leading investigations elsewhere on the planet. Another Jedi, Doran Sarkin-Tainer, plans to stay behind in Sal Solo’s house to get information out.
Luke learns of Jaina’s location and sends word to her of a meeting location so they can pick her up.
Ben argues with the Anakin Droid, and eventually convinces it that it is not actually Anakin Solo, but a droid. The droid relents and agrees to help Ben by using the datacards to disable the station so it will never be used again. It also shows Ben the way out.
Jacen has Sal Solo at the end of his lightsaber who surrenders. But Jacen looks into the future and see something so horrific that he must be killed. At the last second, Sal Solo uses a repulsor to launch himself up and away from Jacen’s blade.
Jaina is finally able to meet up with Luke and is whisked off to safety.
Klauskin leads the GA fleet to Tralus and after only a few hours they are able to occupy the planet. During the battle, Klauskin goes to his quarters where he begins to have a conversation with his wife…his dead wife! She tells him everything he did was the best he could and that it’s only a matter of time before everyone else realizes that he took a bad situation and made it perfect.
On Coruscant, Luke meets with Chief of State Cal Omas, Supreme Commander Pellaeon, and Admiral Cha Niathal and briefs them on the status reports of each mission. While some met with failure, the main mission, disarming Centerpoint Station, was successful. They tell Luke that Sal Solo is now the Minister of War and Wedge Antilles is his go between to the Prime Minister. They all wonder if Wedge or Leia could have been the leak that tipped off the GA attack, but Luke dismisses both. They ask his impression of Klauskin’s actions, and Luke says he did not act well under pressure. He also recounts a story from another Jedi about Klauskin apparently blanking out during a meal they were having. They reveal to Luke that Klauskin had a complete breakdown after the attack and was seen wandering the station looking for his dead wife. His decision to occupy Tralus has caused further problems with the Corellians. Pellaeon has agreed to meet the Corellian Prime Minister to discuss the matter and invites Luke along.
The meeting takes place on Toryaz Station in the Kuat system. The GA blocks off an entire section of the luxury station to hold the summit. As they’re leaving, Jacen tells his father that if he ruled the galaxy, Han could shoot anyone he wanted that caused problems. Luke has another flash of the unknown evil man.
The first meeting lasts for several hours with one of the sticking points being Corellia’s plan to have a military above and beyond that of the GA and then give fewer resources to the GA itself. Afterwards the Solos discuss with Luke this man who does not exist in his visions. Jacen is concerned that it may be something extremely old.
Office Tawaler is overlooking the security for his sector and meets with a mercantile princess who whispers in his ear that he is doing a good job, although it does sound a little condescending. He is to protect her from the rogue Jedi that will attempt to kill her.
Tawaler and the princess meet with a few dozen soldiers that are of various ages from Corellia. She tells him that they are all dying of one disease or another so they won’t fear death. She gives them various assignments.
Jacen, Luke and Mara all wake up as a door blasts inside and several troopers rush in, but the Jedi handle their attackers easily. Han and Leia meet similar attacks with the same success and head out to check on the delegations. Han and Jacen head to the Corellian sector and find they are too late. Wedge Antilles is waiting and informs them that the prime minister has already been killed! Leia finds that Pellaeon’s double has also been killed, but the old admiral is safe.
The various groups hastily meet and it is decided that Luke will head up the investigation into who lead the attack. The Corellian prime minister’s deputy Denjax Teppler will be taking over.
As the investigation begins, they learn about a shuttle that entered and departed just before the attack. It is traced back to Tawaler who they find dead in the airlock. Apparently a mysterious woman left him in there to die. Jacen can sense the female presence that was there, but cannot pinpoint who it was. Han believes that Thrackan is behind it. Jaina produces a strange tassel that was left behind, but no one can identify what it is. Luke sends Ben and Jacen off to look for the mysterious woman that was with Tawaler. He and Mara will investigate the origins of the attacks, while Han and Leia will look into the diplomatic side of things. Jaina and Zekk are tasked with looking into the mysterious tassel. Jacen looks closer at the tassel and gets a sensation from it. He convinces the others to swap missions with him since they are not receiving anything from it.
On the surface of Corellia, Luke heads to a small building and meets with a disguised Corran Horn. Mara sneaks into Thrackan’s base with the help of a Jedi on the inside. Inside she learns there are several escape pods throughout the area.
Han and Leia meet with new Prime Minister Teppler. He tells them that he’s headed to a meeting that he hopes will help save the long term future of Corellia, but they are not allowed to communicate this information back to the GA. He knows they cannot continue to negotiate as long as the GA continues to occupy Tralus. He hopes to initiate an act of war that gets them out and thus peace talks will be able to resume.
Mara slices into the computer and discovers a message from someone who claims to be able to provide all the security information about GA/Corellia Summit. While it doesn’t prove Thrackan committed the attacks, it does show that he was aware something was going on.
From their hiding place, Han and Leia oversee a Corellian military meeting attended by Wedge. They discuss their upcoming attack on the GA base on Tralus and detail how they plan to use GA ships in the attack so any civilian deaths will be blamed on the GA. Wedge is clearly dismayed by this and has another plan that won’t have as many civilian casualties. Thrackan’s voice is heard and he goes against Wedge’s plan. Wedge explains he surgical strike on the center lead by some older pilots. Same result with few deaths.
Elsewhere, Jacen learns from a Twi’lek that one of the strange knots on the tassel can be interpreted as “He will strengthen himself through pain.” The other knots are also forms of writing and he recommends a location that may be able to help him decode them. Jacen and Ben are now off to Lorrd to learn more.
As Han and Leia discuss whether Han should volunteer for Wedge’s mission, Thrackan orders Wedge to endorse a message that he’ll be giving to Wedge’s daughter, but Wedge refuses.
Inside the GA base, Lysa is approached by a Corellian who asks to speak with her. Later, she finds herself being interrogated by GA troops about the Corellian’s death, and they learn that she is Wedge’s daughter, Syal Antilles. She says that he threatened her family if she wouldn’t help the Corellians so she killed him. Syal’s squadron leader wants her kicked out, but instead she is transferred to another squad.
Jacen and Ben land on Lorrd and meet with Nelani Dinn, the Jedi assigned there. She takes them to Dr. Rotham who is able to translate another tassel that says “He will ruin those that deny justice.” They leave the tassel with doctor for further study.
Luke again meets with the GA Council and reports the information that Thrackan knew something was going on. Omas doesn’t think it is enough proof. Luke suggests arresting him anyway because it would probably help the peace process. He says that justice isn’t always the best answer; sometimes just getting the job done should be the goal.
Back on Lorrd, more of the tassel is revealed.
He will remake (or rename) himself.
He will determine the fate of the weak.
He will choose how he will be loved.
He will win and break his chains.
He will shed his skin and choose a new skin.
He will strengthen himself through sacrifice.
He will crawl through his cloak.
He will know brotherhood.
He will make (fabricate) a pet.
Jacen points to one portion that she did not translate. She says she could not read it but could tell it was from a brotherhood of some type. Jacen is suddenly able to translate it as “He will balance himself between peace and conflict.” Everyone is taken aback by this, and he tells them he just feels it. Ziost is a Sith world, and Jacen notes that the sayings are all related to the Sith creed. The doctor points out that she believes all the tassels were crafted by different people and assembled by one person. As they prepare to leave, Ben tells Jacen that he’s discovered the ship that escaped Toryaz station! It is registered to Brisha Syo who was just recently captured by base security.
The three Jedi question Brisha who admits she has been meddling in their business for some time and that she left the tassel behind to lead Jacen to her. She knew his connection with it, but refuses to give them more information. Jacen says that he’ll be going with her to her homeworld near Bimmiel and Nelani goes along.
Above Tralus, Leia meets with a GA admiral in hopes that she may be able to ensure that Han survives the attack. On the surface, Han is prepped for the mission and he and Wedge head out.
After their shuttle lands on an asteroid near Bimmiel, Brisha tells them that the station was once the administration center for the mining facility. She tells them that the last administrator arranged for it to be left behind and forgotten. Jacen thinks that must have taken some work, but she says not for a Sith! She tells them that she is also a student of the Force, but has focused on the Sith. She tells them of the mynock species that inhabited this asteroid before the miners and that the tassel Dr. Rotham couldn’t read was created by them. This species harbored dark side power and not long after the miners arrived they began to notice strange occurrences and acting crazy. The administrator covered it up, and left to eventually become the Sith Master Darth Vectivus. Jacen has never heard of him, and she says that’s because he never tried to conquer the galaxy or the Jedi. He had a strong ethical code before becoming a Sith and therefore didn’t try acting as other Sith, like Darth Vader (whom she claims to have known). She admits that she brought Jacen here because there is a Sith lord living in the mine and she doesn’t want to face him alone. Inside the mine, Ben can feel the Dark Side power, but he is suddenly yanked from his elevator seat and is flying through the air.
Leia is on hand when Wedge’s attack plan begins and offers to lend her knowledge. Han is waiting for her call in the cockpit as the fight begins in earnest, but Leia begins to feel a twinge of guilt as she helps him and not the GA.
Luke is jolted awake with dark visions of a mynock, then Leia, then Han, then Mara Jade’s dead body.
Ben and Nelani land at the bottom, but they are not alone as they are surrounded by hundreds of eyes.
As the elevator reaches the bottom, Jacen asks Brisha why she shoved Ben and Nelani from the car. She says it was for their own good, and he sees a man walk from a darkened corner. The Sith looks at Jacen who realizes the image is only a hologram. The Sith says he will be arriving soon, but Jacen must face his subordinates before he can reach the Sith himself. A man steps forward to face Jacen and it is a grizzled looking man who appears to be Luke Skywalker!
Elsewhere in the chamber, Ben and Nelani are set upon by the creatures in swarms. As they slice the mynocks in half, it becomes clear that they are only Force projections since nothing remains after they die. Ben sees an evil version of his mother igniting a red blade and coming towards him.
As Wedge and Han near their target, Leia tells Han that one of their pursuers is Wedge’s daughter.
Separated in their quarters, Luke and Mara are both faced with evil versions of Jacen and Ben attacking them just as Ben and Jacen are inside the mine.
Syal moves her ship in behind Han who uses two of his spotter droids and launches them at her. The droids hit her and she is forced to abandon the pursuit. She tries to escape when she sees an explosion in the street and the two bombers disappear into the hole. She lifts away from the battle and radios to all channels of the new bomber attack then surprisingly orders them to take out the building next to the base.
Jacen and Luke battle each other’s doppelgangers both adapting to each other’s attacks easily. Brisha calls off the battle and the hologram disappears, and Jacen realizes that she was behind the phantom attacks all along! She then leads him off to another tunnel.
The attacks on Tralus continue and Han blasts towards Syal’s ship to slow her, but not kill her. Missiles begin to reign down on the GA shield and eventually it gives way and the attacks begin to hit the base.
Luke and Mara relate their own phantom experiences to each other. Luke tries to contact other members of his family to investigate.
Brisha and Jacen reach a new well lit chamber. He looks around and sees many people inside various windows going about their pleasant business all bound by Dark Side energy. Brisha tells Jacen that she was trained by Darth Vader and she is better known as Lumiya. She was once shot down by Luke while hoping to discredit him within the Rebellion. Since she is mostly mechanical now, she will never be able to know the significant powers of the Force. Jacen says that Vader could never be the Master of the Sith. He now understands that she has lured him here to turn him to the Dark Side. Nelani, who was separated from Ben, interrupts them. Jacen wants to arrest Lumiya for a previous crime, but she mocks his fear that he is destined to be the Sith Lord that will use the power to help others. Jacen doesn’t believe her. Nelani begs him not to listen, but Jacen is intrigued when Lumiya says “Everything I say is a lie”, a phrase Vergere used. She says Vergere was training Jacen to be a Sith. She says Vergere trained with Sidious and tried unsuccessfully to kill him before fleeing to Zonama Sekot and the Yuuzhan Vong. Nelani attacks her and Lumiya digs her lightwhip from inside her leg to hold her off. She admits to killing the Security Chief on Toryaz station and learned that he was working for Thrackan Sal-Solo. She also says that the man Luke is having visions of is none other than Jacen himself! Nelani strikes out, but Jacen blocks it and says he isn’t finished talking and that he has decided to let her go and learn what he can from her. Lumiya agrees to be arrested as she knows Jacen is destined to be the next Sith Lord and will do as he wants. Jacen is unsure what the future consequences of this will be, but he knows that it will end in him killing Luke in battle. After Jacen decides to free Lumiya, he flashes again to the future and sees no future where Luke lives as long as Nelani does….we strengthen ourselves through sacrifice….Nelani tries to flee, but Jacen catches up to her. She tries to dissuade him from killing her because who knows what he’ll become. Nevertheless, he strikes her down!
Above Tralus, Leia gets the word that the headquarters was destroyed and all hell is breaking loose. Han sends word that Wedge, Syal, and Jaina are all alive. Leia talks to the admiral and two believe that this battle has a strange feel about it.
As Jacen and an unconscious Ben prepare to depart, Lumiya urges Jacen to embrace his destiny and become a Sith. Once they’ve left, Lumiya again speaks with the dark figure, only now it is seen to be the form of an evil Jacen Solo.
When Ben comes to, Jacen lies to him that both of the women were killed.
On Coruscant, Luke tells Mara that the mystery man now really exists.
Comments
I was thrilled with this first installment. Honestly, I’m not sure the rest of the series lived up this set up for me, but overall this book was one of my favorites over the last few years.
Major Characters |
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Luke Skywalker
Han Solo Leia Organa Solo Jacen Solo Mara Jade Skywalker |
Ben Skywalker
Wedge Antilles Thracken Sal Solo Brisha Sio |
Why Should You Read This Book? |
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| The first step in the Legacy of the Force series does not disappoint. Lots of good action. | |
Good Moments |
Bad Moment |
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“Han Shot First” |
Wasn’t thrilled about the Crazy Admiral seeing his dead wife scenario…
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Previous Novel |
Next Novel |
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Dark Nest 3: The Swarm War
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