It is a period of unrest and opportunity in the galaxy. The Galactic Empire struggles to maintain control in the midst of civil war. Meanwhile, scoundrels and smugglers, explorers and expatriates, and fringers of all types scramble for a living on the edges of galactic civilization It is a hard life, but these renegades have more freedom and opportunity than any citizen of the Core Worlds.

On the desert world of TATOOINE, a few such renegades have run afoul of a local crime boss, TEEMO THE HUTT. Trapped in the tiny spaceport of Mos Shuuta, the renegades have no choice but to steal a starship and flee Teemo's forces. Fortunately, a suitable starship has recently docked at the landing bay: a freighter called the KRAYT FANG, captained by a Trandoshan slaver named Trex. As they flee through the suns-baked streets, the renegades duck into the local cantina to hide from their pursuers…

The desert sees three fugitives from Teemo's palace reaching Mos Shuuta on a stolen land speeder. Piloting the speeder is Noa Rai, a Twi'lek smuggler who recently not only lost cargo valuable to Teemo the Hutt, but also her ship in one messy incident. Next to her sits Mira, a doctor who painstakingly tries to blend in with the local crowd. At the back we see Loroc Tharj, hand on his blaster pistol's grip, scanning the desert for signs of pursuit. Unfortunately, a cloud of dust confirms his suspicion - Teemo has sent goons after them!

The speeder races into the small town. At the local cantina, the three jump off, program it to drive further and step down a short flight of stairs into the cantina's shadowy common room, the cool air a blessed relief from the scorching heat of Tatooine . The Devaronian bartender pauses in his chores to stare at them, his devilish features intimidating. On a stage against the far wall, a Twi'lek woman dances to recorded music. Private booths line the walls, and the cantina floor is scattered with tables and chairs. A few patrons turn in their seats to stare at the newcomers, then turn back around. Curiosity is not healthy in a town like this.

Hoping to have shaken their pursuers off their trail with their ruse, the three sit down and try to blend in with the crowd, but loud voices and grunts from outside spur them into action again - Teemo's goons are not as easily fooled. Loroc and Mira break into a small maintenance room and begin to widen the window in hope of escaping out the back, while Noa incites a nice bar fight just as Teemo's Gamorrean thugs begin searching the cantina. The Twi'lek dancer motions to Noa to come to her and shows the smuggler an exit behind the stage. The dancer introduces herself as Tia and asks if the trio has run afoul of Teemo. Noa answers truthfully and Tia tells her of a spaceship docked at Landing Bay Aurek belonging to the notorious Trandoshan slaver Trex: the Krayt Fang . Unfortunately, the dancer overheard that the Hypermatter Reactor Ignitor of the light freighter is broken and that Trex is trying to buy a replacement from Vorn, owner of the Junk Shop. Grateful, Noa asks if Tia wants to leave Tatooine, too, which the slave dancer happily confirms. Together they meet up with Loroc and Mira who have escaped via the maintenance room's window.

Sneaking around the cantina, the fugitives see the land speeder of the Gamorreans and decide to sabotage them. While Mira is able to cut a few important wires, a second group of thugs spots her and gives chase! The fugitives lure them into an alley and spring a well-executed trap, downing two Gamorreans with blaster pistols set to stun while Loroc knocks the last one out with a vicious uppercut. Emboldened by this success, the group heads to junk shop, but are told by Vorn that he only has one HMRI and that the part is as good as sold to Captain Trex. After their attempts to trick him into selling it to them fail, the fugitives decide that they are running out of time and take the spare part by force, knocking Vorn unconscious but leaving enough credits to pay for it - at least they think that it is enough.

The group splits up on the way to the landing bay, Mira running towards the Control Center of the spaceport to release the docking clamps while the rest investigates the ship. Luckily for them, Captain Trex has left and only one of his droids remains aboard the YT-1300 . But the droid proves to be rather resistant to trickery and so the duo deal slight damage to the ship hoping to draw it out.

Meanwhile, Mira sneaks around the guarded main entrance and reaches a backdoor, which she opens by overriding the electronic lock. She glides inside, keeping out of sight and reaches a computer terminal. Luckily, someone forgot to properly log out, and so she is able to release the docking clamps. She also notices that an Imperial Shuttle has docked in Landing Bay Besh. Just as she leaves she catches a glance at a couple of Stormtroopers accompanying a lieutenant talking to the Overseer.

At Landing Bay Aurek, the ruse works and the droid scampers down the ramp. The trio quickly disables it and proceeds into the Krayt Fang , beginning the launch sequence and replacing the faulty HMRI. Mira races to the landing bay and notices a speeder bike approaching. She slams the hangar doors shut and runs toward the ship, but before she can enter, a Trandoshan with a huge blaster rifle appears and shouts: “ That is my ship! ”

He puts the rifle to his shoulder but hesitates to shoot at his own spaceship. The Stormtroopers streaming into the landing bay have less qualms and blaster bolts rock the Krayt Fang . Loroc slides into a gunner's seat and fires the turret at the walls, showering all in dust and chunks of adobe, while Noa punches it - the Krayt Fang screams into the sky!

The fugitives cheer, but decide to fly low and gain some distance before leaving the atmosphere as they fear an Imperial presence. The ship is unfamiliar, all displays in Trandoshan script and language, an infernal noise is coming from the speakers, klaxons sound, warnings are flashing on the screens and a terrible smell of rot hangs in the air. While Noa pilots the ship, Mira manages to set the computers to Galactic Basic, but not before inadvertently deleting something from its memory banks, and finally shuts down the noise, which turns out to be some kind of Gamorran opera. The alert icons turn out to indicate that the fuel is low - just enough for a short hyperjump - and a reminder to feed and refresh the prisoner in Number Three Hold. Loroc investigates the cargo bay and finds cells and restraints designed for slaves, holding an old Twi'lek male, who introduces himself as B'ura B'an. After a short discussion, Loroc frees the Twi'lek, who tells him that he is a proponent for Twi'lek owned Ryll mines on Ryloth and seems to have run afoul of Teemo the Hutt in his capacity as a civic leader. although he does not know why.

Seeing as the navigational computer only has a handful of destinations already programmed - Tatooine, Christophsis, Geonosis, Ryloth, Trandosha and Kashyyyk - and some of them are outside their current range, the fugitives plot a course for Ryloth , hoping to return both Tia the dancer and B'ura to their home and being able to refuel there. Captain Trex obviously did not deviate much from his trade routes. He also is a sloppy eater; the seats around the mess area are covered in gobbets of rotten meat and rancid fat. But that is not the sole source of the terrible smell, which the fugitives further investigate. They find a hidden smuggling compartment in Cargo Bay 2 containing six uncured hides - Wookie pelts! Sick to the stomach, they discuss what to do with their grisly finding and put them away in an airtight freight container for now, hoping to be able to dispose of them in a way respectful to Wookies later. They also discover several pieces of brown chitinous shell, one of which is marked with curious designs in Number Three Hold.

With a restraining bolt found in the cargo hold, they bind Trex's droid to their will and order it to clean up as good as possible. Finally, Noa steers upward, trying to leave atmosphere and prepares for the hyperjump to Ryloth. But just as they enter space, a commanding voice hails them: “ This is Imperial Pursuit Squadron Nem-Zerek-One-Niner of Imperial Frigate Valorous. Return to Mos Shuuta spaceport immediately or we will open fire. Repeat, we will open fire! ”

Unwilling to face either Imperial or Hutt justice, the crew race to the battle stations. Noa punches it, sending the Krayt Fang screaming into the blackness of space, as two TIE Fighters pass close to the ship. Laser cannons are fired, the TIE Fighters dance around the defensive fire - the nimble starfighters are hard to hit. Noa spins the freighter into a series of aggressive manoeuvers, and just as the leading TIE aligns its weapons, Loroc scores a direct hit, obliterating the smaller craft into a million pieces. Cheers are heard as Mira hits the second TIE, sending the imperial running, trailing debris and oxygen behind it.

Noa flicks the last switch and the Krayt Fang jumps into Hyperspace …

While in transit, the group searches the ship more thoroughly. To their dismay, Noa discovers a Surveillance Tagger that has been activated. Mira shuts it down, but they fear that Trex might have been able to track their flight in the Tatooine system.

The droid parts in Number Two Hold turn out to be a R4 unit that was badly mistreated and dismantled in what looks like droid torture. Mira begins the arduous task of reassembling the astromech. After a couple of hours, she activates it and it presents itself as R4-D4, nickname Radar, who obtained manumission and worked as a freelance mechanic and astrogator. Trex hired him, but got angry at the flippant remarks and during the last flight to Tatooine purposely destroyed Radar. The little droid is anxious, but Mira manages to calm him and he agrees to help the group repair the ship and wipe the memory boards of the captured security droid.

Taking stock, Loroc finds some personal equipment that the group divides, as well as a fine Wampa rug in the crew quarters. Trex must have acquired the rug very recently. With some work, the group creates makeshift bunks for all of them, already planning to rip out the slave cages and rebuilt the passenger quarters that are standard on this model of the YT-1300. Noa tries to make sense of the navicomputer, but it is a very old model that has been abused and is barely functional given its data of the galaxy is on the verge of becoming obsolete. As she works with the computer, a beep sounds - Trex is still logged into his account at the Bounter Hunter's Guild . Three new bounties have been posted … Teemo the Hutt put 2.500 credits on each of their heads! There are some curses, especially from Loroc who knows what kind of scum this will attract, but he also discovers that Trex has an account with the Guild of Zygerrian Slavers . This lets Loroc hope that he might be able to find a trail leading to his missing siblings.

Finally, the Krayt Fang drops out of Hyperspace, still some distance away from Ryloth. Noa uses the in-system flight time to tell her new friends about her home planet, which is tidal locked; one side of the planet always faces its sun, which makes for extreme weather conditions. A large field of debris, remains of a large battle between Separatists and the Republic during the Clone Wars still orbits Ryloth. B'ura sends a message to his contacts and asks Noa to land the Krayt Fang at Nabat spaceport.

Just as the Krayt Fang passes the debris field, a proximity alarm sounds: a HH-87 Starhopper was hidden between the wreckage but now accelerates towards the Krayt Fang . With the fighter's intention clear, Noa punches it and the Krayt Fang screams toward their attacker. A short message is heard, spoken in nasal Huttese: “Teemo sends his regards!”

Loroc and Mira race to the turrets, while Noa spins the Krayt Fang into a series of evasive manoeuvres that throw off the aim of the fighter. Hoping to lose their pursuer in the debris field, Noa steers the freighter into it, racing through it at breakneck speed. Her ploy works as the pilot of the Starhopper is not as experienced and loses his aim. Sensing an opportunity, Noa brings her ship round and goes on the offensive. Both Loroc and Mira blast away with the turrets - and score solid hits! Chunks of the fighter are blown off and it drops into the atmosphere, streaming black smoke. Loud cheers erupt!

The further descent to Nabat spaceport is without further incident. No Imperial seems to be interested in the light freighter. At their landing bay, the group are welcomed by Nyn Kablo, leader of a small band of non-militant insurgents who fight for the rights of Twi'leks to own their own mines. She is happy to see B'ura and helps Tia find transportation back to her home. The group is led to the insurgent's headquarters where they can rest. B'ura and Nyn trade news, which are unfortunately not all good. A group of thugs under the leadership of one Angu Drombb have set up camp near the mines at New Meen and are harassing the miners. Noa knows the man since she once brought him to Teemo's palace in Mos Shuuta and the implication that the Hutt is behind this is disturbing.

Nyn proves to be a capable leader and offers the group a deal. The insurgents have ample contacts among the workers at the spaceport and thus direct access to the Imperial shipping offices. They can provide the group with a new ID for the Krayt Fang in two different ways, either using an existing ID or faking a new one including the ship's history. In exchange, they will need a ship and crew to transport Ryll spice off the planet without attracting Imperial notice and paying these “unreasonable tariffs”. After a short discussion, the group approves and the deal is struck.

While the insurgents refuel, repair and prepare the Krayt Fang , slicing its ID and introducing a new one in the spaceport systems, changing the name to Angry Bird , the group will get B'ura to New Meen, which is a few hours ride into the arid Badlands. Radar stays on board, supervising the repairs and making sure that everything goes as planned, while Noa sets a new launch sequence. After some further planning, Nyn gives the group a blaster carbine for the miners and tells them that they will get a V-35 landspeeder in a few hours. Until then, the group finally rests.

Some time later, the group races across the Badlands towards New Meen. Unfortunately, a heatstorm builds up and catches them out in the open. Noa decided to push on, as turning around would take even longer. Soon the landspeeders is engulfed in howling winds and clouds of sand, scorching heat blasting it. Suddenly, Mira points to a large rock formation and tells the others that they will find shelter there. Not believing her, Noa nonetheless pilots the speeder there, only to find a cave large enough to accommodate the V-35. The group disembarks in the relative safety of the gloomy and hot cave, wearily exploring the system of caves and tunnels while Noa and B'ura entertain them with stories of vicious Lyleks who are known to lair in such caves.

But Loroc feels that the caves are not the den of a Lylek and tells the others that he has a strange feeling of knowing this place. He guides the others to a larger cave which turns out to have been the home of some humanoid, with a bed and shelves and cooking equipment, all neatly put away and abandoned years ago. A strange atmosphere of serenity calms all. As the group searches the cave for more clues, a snarling voice behind them shouts: “Nobody steals from Trex!”

Blaster bolts fly, rocks tumble as the Trandoshan slaver opens fire, accompanied by two thugs, a human and a Gand . Hastily, the group dive for cover and trades fire with the bounty hunters. The human male assaults Noa with a large club, but is gunned down in the open, while precise fire wounds Trex. The Trandoshan decides that caution is the better part of valour and throws a grenade into the cave!

The explosion rips apart the air and leaves a ringing in everyone's ears, but the group can still hear Trex and the Gand retreating. They pursue, managing to shoot Trex before he can reach the bounty hunter's landspeeder. The Gand looks at his fallen comrade - and speeds away into the storm. Mira fires a few shots at him, but the storm envelopes the landspeeder and he is gone. Nonetheless, the group has taken out Trex and his human compatriot. Mira dresses both their wounds and saves them.

Meanwhile, Noa discovers that one of the blaster bolts dislodged rocks and revealed a small hidden space behind them, containing a strange cube made of metal and a blue glowing crystal. Mira remembers something of her youth: the cube is called Holocron and it is a technology used by Jedi to store data and more. Perplexed, the three watch it intensely … as it suddenly starts to move! With a faint click, its edges turn and then a small figure hovers above it, like a hologram. It is a woman dressed in a blue-grey robe, her green skin tattooed with geometric patterns.

“Greeting. I am Kjalla”, she says. “Guardian of this Holocron.”

Unsure what to do, the group introduce themselves, Mira using her full name - Mira Organa - for the first time which earns her a curious glance from Noa. They ask the Guardian questions and piece together that the Holocron was left by a Jedi Master called Kjalla, who hid in the cave for some time. She used it in part as a chronicle of her life. The last entry from seventeen years ago is:

I sense a dark presence has entered the star system and is coming towards Ryloth. I have not sensed so much fear and anger and hate since the dark days of the Clone Wars. I have no doubt that all this is directed at me. I shall go out and face my destiny in a manner of my own choosing and I rejoice, for I shall be one with the Force. This I leave behind, all my knowledge and what little wisdom I accrued, recorded in my years of solitude. I trust the Force finding those worthy of it. I hope and wish that you who find it live in brighter times.

This is my legacy. Fear not. A new dawn will rise, a new hope will be born of those who bring light into the dark. We failed in our duties, we failed you. But now you are chosen. Trust in the Force, always.

But the blaster bolt that revealed the Holocron also damaged it. According to the Guardian, the Kyber Memory Crystal is intact, but the cube cannot access all of it. Nevertheless, the discovery astonishes the group. A sense of destiny grips them, but then the harsh realities of being in a cave, trapped by a heatstorm, having to content with Trex and his accomplice set in again.

With a little coercion, the group questions Trex. He called in other bounty hunters for help and followed the group to Ryloth, knowing their flight patch from the surveillance tagger. On Ryloth, he was contacted by Twheek, a Kubaz working for Teemo who lead him to Nabat. The group deduce that this Twheek was the pilot of the Starhopper that tried to intercept them. From Nabat it was not difficult for Trex to guess their next waypoint, as he had captured B'ura in New Meen. The proud Trandoshan is unwilling to plead for mercy, but he threatens the group, telling them that more bounty hunters will be eager to cash in the money and that Teemo will not be pleased by their meddling. But at least he can be tricked into revealing his password for the Guild of Slavers.

Deciding to ignore the grandstanding, the group pushed on as soon as the heatstorm abates and reaches New Meen not long thereafter. The mining town turn out to be a small settlement within a canyon protecting it from the worst effects of the heatstorms. The miners are overjoyed to see B'ura again and a great celebration is held in the cantina. The small settlement itself is little more than caves and tents around the mines. About a hundred Twi'lek live and work here, all part of a collective that owns the land and the mines. It seems as if Angu Drombb tries to threaten the miners to sell, and he is succeeding, as the ongoing escalation worries them. Many fear that blood will be shed soon and that they cannot hope to fight against well-armed and determined thugs.

The group drinks their share and wonders if helping the free miners is possible …

Just as the party reaches its peak, a strange noise is heard from outside. Something big seems to have crashed, there are screams and angry shouts. The trio race outside to find a scene of chaos. Some kind of construction vehicle crashed into a building, there is dust everywhere and Tw'leks and Humans running around. Quickly the group ascertain that nobody is hurt. The perpetrators are a bunch of armed thugs in the employ of Angu Drombb, obviously drunk to some degree, who are laughing at the plight of the miners. All attempts to extract their vehicle fail and their leader, a burly Human, looks at the landspeeder of the trio and demands that they lend it to him and his thugs. Noa declines coldly, with Loroc stepping up, and after a couple of angry stares a compromise is reached: the trio will take the leader and the driver back to Drombb's camp to fetch another vehicle to tow the first one free.

The group are not happy to help the ruffians, but they fear bloodshed should the thugs get confronted by angry miners. The journey to Drombb's camp only takes a couple of minutes; it is built right outside New Meen. The camp is little more than a couple of building containers and three large construction vehicles, all protected by shield generators against Ryloth's volatile weather. Half a dozen more tough looking Humans and Aqualish gather until Drombb himself appears. He sends his thugs to free the construction vehicle and invites the trio to drink with him, since he remembers Noa from a trip to Mos Shuuta. Inside the cantina, Drombb serves fine beverages and boasts that there is good money to be made in New Meen. He even offers the trio jobs, telling them that they can make 500 credits in the next few days. Officially, he and his gang are building a resort, but in reality, they are here to harass the miners until they give in and sell their claims.

The trio play along but refuse the job as they have important cargo to deliver, but thank him nonetheless. As they leave, they are deeply worried. The crash seems to be the first step in a plan of escalating conflict. They fear that violence looms ahead, and the thugs seem more than eager to use their weapons. They drive back to New Meen and watch the drunken goons tow their vehicle free, thereby reducing the rest of the building to rubble. Miners watch in impotent fury as the gang rides off.

Together with B'ura, the trio hatches a plan. Firstly, they use the landspeeder to get the few children and other dependants to safety. Loroc drives them, asking Nyn Kablo for weapons for New Meen and checking on the Angry Bird . Radar is happy to see him and explains that the refitting is going well. Loroc tries to find links between Angu Drombb and Teemo the Hutt but only finds out that Teemo personally hired Trex to capture B'ura B'an without using the Bounty Hunter's Guild. Then he searches the database of the Guild of Zygerrian Slavers for clues about his siblings, but only finds evidence linking them to the slave market on Zygerria itself.

Meanwhile, B'ura talks to the miners, telling them that they have to fight for what is theirs. Noa and Mira scout the premises of Drombb's camp and identify the shield generators as the main weakness. Without caves or bunkers, the shield is the only thing protecting the thugs from a heatstorm. So when Loroc returns, they acquire explosives from the miners and use the lax security of the gang to have Mira sneak into their camp and place three charges, one at each shield generator. Noa approaches Drombb and tells him that she wants in, deceiving him into believing her to be his ally.

Then the other two gather all miners who are willing to fight, arm them with the guns Loroc brought - mostly outdated slugthrowers unfortunately - and head back to Drombb's camp. They call the thugs out and confront them. Just as Drombb is telling them that they are foolish to challenge him, Loroc blows up the first shield generator! Noa draws her blaster pistols and points them at Drombb's head! Guns are drawn, violence hangs in the air … but Loroc and Noa manage to intimidate some of the ruffians into leaving and finally Drombb concedes defeat. He and his remaining thugs pack their things and leave.

The miners ransack what is left and all return to New Meen to celebrate. Many toasts are given in the trio's honour and there is music, dance and laughter. For a short while, the group relax and enjoy the party, even though they know that Teemo the Hutt is still after them and that Angu Drombb might very well return soon.

So, in the early hours of the next day, they drive back to Nabat and meet with Nyn. She is overjoyed to hear the news and has some of her own: Her inquiries brought her into contact with someone who might be of use. The trio agree to meet this mysterious person and are introduced to Ota, a Bothan who claims to have deeper knowledge of Hutt workings. He tells them that Teemo is part of a larger Hutt clan led by Jabba the Hutt, which is usually not involved in the Ryll trade or even spice trade in general. Either Jabba's clan is looking to expand or Teemo is working on his own. Both possibilities could be openings.

The trio agree to a deal. They get Ota's information in return for a favour to be determined in the future. They learn that Teemo has business dealings with some Geonosians - an insectile species - and that his partner, Duke Piddock, is hosting a social event on Geonosis in the near future. The Geonosians are arms manufacturers, specialising in droids and used to be part of the Separatists during the Clone Wars. They have suffered greatly under Imperial rule, being slapped with strict trade tariffs and travel permits. Mira remembers the chitinous shell found in Trex's hold. This seems to stem from a Geonosian, possible some kind of trophy.

A plan is formulated. The trio will pose as intermediaries - arms dealers - for Twi'lek insurgents of Ryloth, looking to buy Geonosian weapons for a rebellion against Imperial rule. Thus they will be able to infiltrate the party and see if they can find more on Teemo's shady dealings. Nyn gets to work immediately and procures and invitation. Ota also tells the trio that other people have been trying to get information about the Krayt Fang .

The trio return to the Angry Bird and prepare to leave for Geonosis, but are being hailed by the Imperial Spaceport Authority. An officer from Imperial Customs seeks entrance to the ship. With fake smiles, Noa and the crew greet Overseer Terfel on board. The man is amiable enough, talking about routine inspections and non-bureaucratic solutions which gives Noa the necessary hints and a Credits change hands without much fuss. The Overseer tells them that they should always come to him when doing business on Ryloth, as he and his division can speed things up considerably when it comes to tariffs. All exchange another round of fake smiles and then he leaves.

Before they can leave for Geonosis, there are bad news: Mira was contacted by a shadowy figure via the Galactic HoloNet giving her the following message: There will be an ISB-agent at Duke Piddock's event monitoring the Geonosians. The ISB suspects they want to start producing and selling weapons again, against Imperial Orders. He will be under cover in the guise of a wealthy noble and arms dealer from the Core. Take him out of the game or he will receive your file.

She reveals that for all she knows, she is the last surviving member of the once mighty Organa family of Alderaan , and that despite her fleeing the Empire and hiding under a false identity in the Outer Rim , someone knows her secret and has been blackmailing her before. Neither does she know the identity nor the goals of this person, but she fears that if her true name is made known to the ISB, she will be hunted relentlessly. The trio discuss their options. While none of them has moral qualms about taking an ISB-agent out of the picture, they are loath to give in to demands like that. They try to deduce who the blackmailer could be, especially since s/he knows about their plans to travel to Geonosis, which have been formulated in a very small circle, but while they suspect Ota, they do not have any proof. The Bothans brings them their IDs for the event and tells them that he set everything up as planned. Nyn authorized the trio to strike a deal on behalf of the Twi'leks, offering raw Ryll for Geonosian weapons and has a batch sent to the Angry Bird .

With this worrying knowledge, they leave Ryloth and Noa plots a new hyperspace route to Geonosis, noting that the one already pre-programmed into the navicomputer is rather long. The jump is short, but unfortunately it leads directly into wreckage from one of the battles for Geonosis during the Clone Wars! Noa realizes that the galactic maps in the navicomputer are rather outdated as she frantically tries to avoid the debris, which she does - for the most part … a couple of hits later, the Angry Bird descends down to Geonosis, its sensors having taken a hit and acting up. On the plus side, the trio evaded the strong Imperial presence in the system in the guise of a squadron of navy ships including several Star Destroyers. Thus the trio reach the Gogum Hive undetected.

Officially, the event is hosted to celebrate the opening of the new spaceport of Gogum Hive, which offers facilities for offworlders. The hive itself is a gigantic structure on top of a veritable maze of tunnels and halls below the surface of the planet. The Geonosian architecture is difficult to grasp for non-Geonosians, but the spaceport is built along more conventional lines. In their quarters, the trio search for bugs of the small, listening device kind, and Loroc finds some but accidentally rips out a wall panel and is unable to fix it.

The event itself is held at the shiny new cantina, where a polished protocol droid greets the trio and offers them assistance should they require it. They approach Duke Piddock and introduce themselves, making an appointment for a later, more private discussion before mingling with the crowd. Most attendees are Geonosians, but there are a couple of offworlders, too. Noa recognizes two, Correlian siblings who ply the same trade as her. Deliberately, the trio make their rounds, trying to feel out the atmosphere and the other guests:

Orpa and Wex Vio are the owners of the Lucky Guess , a well-kept YT-2400. They are obviously trying to get business contacts or even contracts and while Wex is somewhat inebriated and in high spirits, his older sister Orpa is more discreet. But they hint that their next trip is taking them to Mos Shuuta and that they know Anatta, a Toydarian from Tatooine.

Anatta is open and friendly and makes no secret of his affiliation with Jabba the Hutt. The Toydarian is a self-proclaimed information broker and willing to both part with his knowledge for a price and buy information not yet known to him. Loroc's insinuations that there might be some spice trade on Tatooine gets him quite interested.

Maru Jakkar is a wealthy woman from the |Imperial Core , to which she still refers as Coruscant now and then. She proclaims to be a student of alien lore and a collector of alien artefacts, which seems to be true to some extent, but there is more to her. She is polite but curt to Mira, but opens up to Noa and has a lively discussion of Ryloth and Twi'lek history. She displays interesting intimacy with the seedier details of the Outer Rim underbelly, being quite knowledgeable about illegal trade routes.

Mu Nanb is a young Sullustan who claims to be a tourist who wanted to see the - quite spectacular - rings of Geonosis and who is at the event because a friend of his is also a friend of Duke Piddock and got them invitations. Despite saying he has never left Sullustan before, he possesses great knowledge of spaceships and seems to be a pilot, which he puts down to be a mere hobby.

Delton is another Coreworlder, a noble from Brentaal IV who is open about being on Geonosis for business reasons. He is quite slippery, but Mira senses his anger and hate rising as Noa mentions the destruction of the Death Star. The trio believe him to be the ISB-agent. Mira overhears his plans to sleep on his ship instead of the quarters of the spaceport and also gets the designation of his landing pad.

There is a Gand, but the trio give him a wide berth, fearing him to be a bounty hunter and not wanting to draw attention to themselves and the bounties on their heads.

Duke Piddock himself is a grand old Geonosian, polite and open. When offered Nyn's deal, he admits that Gogun Hive has recently built machines for Ryll processing and thus has the technology to make use of it. He is quite interested and offers weapons in exchange. Some haggling later, a deal that is acceptable for both sides is struck and a crate of the finest Geonosian weapons is delivered to the Angry Bird as a showcase for the Twi'leks. The trio deduce that the Ryll processors are meant for Teemo the Hutt and that Vio siblings are due to deliver them tomorrow.

During the festivities, as the band gets on stage and plays and everybody is somewhat distracted, the trio sneak out and take a closer look at the spaceport. The ships mostly seem to corroborate the attendees' stories. There is the Lucky Guess , a sleek Baudo-class star yacht probably belonging to Maru Jakkar, a battered Firespray that could belong to the Gand and a inconspicuous CorelliSpace Gymsnor-3 light freighter which belongs to Delton. But one landing pad is set apart, a small subsection of the spaceport allows for ships to land in hangars and the pads have collapsible roofs. Only one is in use and Loroc sneaks into the tunnels and tries to pick the lock. While he does not succeed, he notices a small info panel telling him that the Incom T-65 has been refuelled. After a short moment, the bounty hunter realizes where he heard that designation before - the Incom T-65 X-Wing was instrumental in bringing down the Death Star and is the mainstay of the Rebel Alliance fighter line-up!

As the trio returns to the party with this newfound knowledge, Anatta approaches them. He is very keen to get into business with them, as Jabba the Hutt would reward anyone bringing information about someone dealing in spice despite his orders handsomely. But the Toydarian also stresses the need for presenting concrete, 100% proof, especially if accusing another Hutt. Hearsay and circumstantial evidence will not cut it. Capturing Angu Drombb would be good, but still impose a risk. Showing Ryll processors in Teemo's palace would be much better.

But before they can formulate a plan, the trio receive a message from B'ura: Trex has escaped! The Trandoshan gnawed off his own hand to slip out of his manacles and fled into the badlands. B'ura tries to assure them that Trex will probably succumb to either heatstorms or the dangerous faua, but the trio remember that Trandoshans are able to heal quickly and regenerate, sometimes even whole missing limbs. They fear that they have not seen him for the last time.

As the party slowly winds down, Anatta invites the trio to a private booth and uses some kind of white-noise device to discourage eavesdropping. The wily Toydarian reveals that he has established contact with a possible helper, who could even provide a covert entrance into the spice business of Teemo the Hutt. They agree to meet Xeran Tarel, a human mechanic and engineer who has been hired by the Geonosians to provide technical assistance to Teemo, because there was tension with Geonosians, even one disappearing much to the dismay of the Duke.

Before they meet Xeran, they tip off Duke Piddock that Delton might be an Imperial spy to which he reacts with considerable anger towards the Empire. Xeran himself proves to be a reasonable man down on his luck, only having taken on the assignment because finding work as an off-worlder on Geonosis is difficult. He already made one trip and tells stories of slaves working in an underground complex. Unfortunately, he does not know where, since he was transported there in the cargo hold of the Lucky Guess . It does not take much convincing as he fears for his life once the spice refinery is up an running. Teemo seems very intent on keeping this business secret …

Luckily, the Vio siblings are even more ready to help - for a fee. They accept a bribe to take the trio on board, no questions asked, offering to rendezvous the Angry Bird in orbit over Tatooine. The plan seems sound and soon thereafter the trio find themselves on the Lucky Guess posing as new slave workers brought in by Xeran. Radar keeps the Bird in orbit, waiting for a signal to start an extraction run.

As the Vio siblings land on Tatooine in the dark of the night, their passengers get a glimpse of the destination - it is Teemo's palace! Or more specifically, a series of cavern dug into the giant rock on which it rests. But there is no time to rejoice about this damning evidence, as they are put to work unloading the tramp freighter and setting up the spice refinery. A grim Twi'lek names Sol is the master of the slaves, about three or four dozens of them, most all but broken.

The next hours and days are tough; work is hard, the conditions terrible, and there are armed guards everywhere. While Xeran supervises the construction, the trio get to know the slaves, gather intel on Teemo's thugs and try to formulate an escape plan. Just as they come to grips, Angu Drombb appears! The ruffian is Sol's boss, instructing him to drive the slaves even harder and finish the operation as soon as possible. Hiding behind machinery, the trio avoid being seen by him.

Just as they want to relay their position to Radar, they realize that they cannot establish a connection. The caverns are too deep below the rocks and all their smuggled communications gear has no signal. So they have to attempt to get to a spot where they can call in their ship. Loroc tells the others that he can do that. He jumps on top of a big piece of machinery, looks up - and jumps into a ventilation shaft. The rest are dumbfounded by this display of athleticism. The bounty hunter crawls up until he can reach Radar and sets time and date for the extraction, and then plants a camera to collect even more evidence.

Meanwhile, Mira, Noa and Xeran inform the slaves that there will be an escape attempt with a spaceship waiting. They enlist the most able slaves to their help. As the work winds down and the caverns settle for the night, Mira and Xeran take out Sol, while Loroc and Noa stealthily subdue the guards at the front gate. Xeran sneaks into the control room and cuts all power and communications lines going up to the palace while the trio attack and stun the other guards at the entrance to the palace.

The slaves imprison the remaining sleeping guards in their own barracks and join the spacers. Together they manage to hack the lock of the main gate and rush out. The Angry Bird descends, piloted by Radar, just at the specified time. Everybody rushes aboard, Noa jumps into the pilot's chair, the engines scream and the Bird races away with Mira and Loroc in the turrets, scanning the skies for interceptors. But it is from the ground that danger comes: the heavily fortified and armed landing pad at Teemo's palace launches a missile!

Noa sends the Angry Bird into a stomach-turning series of evasive manoeuvres, sending the freighter spinning close to the ground. Xeran's fingers race across the keyboard of the co-pilot's station. The missile gets closer, Noa desperately evades - and Xeran jams its sensors! A giant detonation shakes the desert, blowing up sand, as the Bird escapes into space.

With the ship full of freed slaves - who incurred some injuries during the wild flight - the Angry Bird makes for Mos Eisley. There the spacers meet Anatta in his office. They hand over their evidence and the Toydarian promises to do good by them. Nonetheless, the wait is brutal as they fear for reprisals by the Hutts. But Anatta returns with money, a reward from Jabba the Hutt. They get the news that Teemo was taken away to Jabba's palace and that a junior Hutt was promoted and given Teemo's holdings. Hutts have long memories - Teemo will spend a long time as a guest of Jabba.

As about a dozen Twi'lek slaves want to return to Ryloth, the spacers offer them passage on their ship.

For untold centuries, the Zygerrian Slave Empire spread terror and fear throughout the Galaxy. Only the brave actions of the Jedi put an end to its nefarious schemes.

But with the rise of the GALACTIC EMPIRE, the slavers have returned to power. Once again, their fleets scour the hyperlanes.

Now, a small band of adventurers and misfits has learned that the family of one of them has been sold as slaves on Zygerria …

The flight to Ryloth is without events. The Twi'lek of Nyn Kablo take care of the freed slaves in Nabat. She informs the spacers that the first batches of Ryll should be ready in a short time, so they set up a means to remain in contact. Afterwards they use the Galatctic HoloNet to research Zygerrria and its Slave Empire. Before the rise of the Galactic Empire, and before the [redacted] overcame the Zygerrians, there was an organisation set up by the Republic and the [redacted] Council that bought the freedom of slaves. All its business was done by the InterGalactic Banking Clan on Mygeeto . Unfortunately, the documents do not contain the name of this organisation.

While Mira and Loroc ask the Holocron of Kjalla, who knows quite a bit about Zygerria, but regrettably mostly has outdated information, Noa sets up an appointment with the local branch of the Banking Clan. The meeting is somewhat awkward, but the spacers manage to convince the local representative to at least tell them the name, since the last transactions were 104 years ago: Trinity Alliance, with headquarters on Junction .

With the help of Radar, Xeran installs a new - well, used but not in as bad a shape - navicomputer. Noa plots a course to Junction that would allow a short detour to Kashyyyk , using a very good smuggling route avoiding major hyperlanes. They reach the Kashyyyk system and find it heavily patrolled and blockaded by the Imperial Navy. After surveying the situation, they decide to go in dark, powering down most of the ship and trusting Noa to enter the atmosphere without powered flight. But as Xeran tries to disable the sensors, he inadvertently sets them into self-diagnosis mode. While he frantically tries to shut them down mechanically, Noa brings the Angry Bird close to the planet. The entry vector is steep, the freighter is thrown around, something breaks. But Noa cannot use the thrusters just yet, as the navy cruisers would detect them.

The Angry Bird plunges into thick clouds, falling like a stone. At the last second, Noa restores power to the engines and the ship screams through a wooded canyon. Flight is rocky, but finally they spot a possible landing site far away from the Imperial bases. Just as the ship touches down, the ground gives way - they landed in a swamp! Only Noa's fast reflexes keep the Angry Bird airborne and she manages to land on solid ground.

The hot entry and wet landing have left the Angry Bird both dirty and in need of repair. Radar, Xeran and Noa get to work, while Mira and Loroc scout the area. It is a thick jungle, with gigantic trees and strange creatures. Their hands on their blasters, they make their way - only to find themselves staring at bowcasters ! A band of Wookies has encircled them, growling menacingly. Mira steps forth, explaining who they are and why they have landed. Loud howls answer them. But their leader, whose name is Lowhrik, lowers his weapon.

The duo lead the Wookies to the Angry Bird and introduce the rest. While the Wookies are furious at seeing the pelts, they are also grateful that the spacers returned them to their home planet. Lowhrik explains that Trandoshans sometimes capture Wookies and release them on another planet, hunting them for sport. The Imperials are using Wookies as slaves. They hide in the jungles, always hunted. The spacers trade what little they have, and Lowhrik gifts them an ancient Ryyk blade as a token of their esteem and friendship with all Wookies.

Take-off is much quicker than the dangerous landing. Noa simply breaks through the blockade, evading the big cruisers, pedal to the metal, and then jumping to hyperspace. The flight to Junction is easy as well, and they arrive with time to spare. Asking around on the planet, they finally get directed to an old, three-sided pyramid in the outskirts, far away from the great space port. At first, the building seems abandoned, but then a small creatures opens the door. It is wizened, of a species the spacers never saw, and introduced itself as Nalaly, the keeper.

As it hears that the spacers want to free slaves from Zygerria, it rejoices and invites them in. The building is large and once obviously housed many people, but now its halls and passages lie empty. Lots of odd stuff, bits and ends, is stuffed everywhere, generously covered in dust. But Nalaly can actually get ancient computers to work again and log into the database of the Zygerrian Slave Guild. It manages to locate Loroc's siblings:

• Kela, his younger sister, was sold for 40.000 credits to Araj Frentil, a Zygerrian slave princess.
• Valloc, his older brother, went for 2.500 credits to Moff Rellak, a mysterious figure who resides on Coruscant.

There is little more that Nalaly can do, as the funds of the Trinity Alliance are all but used up. The spacers thank the creature and depart. They contact Maru Jakkar who agrees to gather some information on Moff Rellak - for a price! She can already tell them that he is singular among his peers, for he does not govern a sector and seems to have permission to access the Deep Core, a region of space tightly controlled by the Emperor himself.

Other avenues turn into cul-de-sacs; Kjalla's contact of twenty years ago was executed by Stormtroopers right after the rise of the Empire. Since Junction is a major trade hub and all manner of goods can be obtained, the spacers not only get spare parts for the Bird , but also find a black market doctor who is willing to replace the rather bad cybereye of Loroc with a much better model.

The spacers leave Junction behind and travel to Zygerria. There is lots of traffic there, indicating that the slaver trade is a thriving business. They land close to the palace of Araj Frentil and begin searching for Kela. After some cautious investigations, they realize that Loroc's sister is an up-and-coming podracer using the nom-de-guerre Red Flame. Loroc curses - getting her out of here will be much more difficult than anticipated. He uses his newly developed powers to leave a message for his sister, asking her to meet him in the desert.