The Rogues have finally captured Coruscant, but situations are far more dire than they could’ve imagined! Join the Legendary Adventures as we explore the Krytos Trap!
The Rebellion crippled the Imperial hierarchy at the Battle of Endor, killing the Emperor, Darth Vader, and a good chunk of the rest of the Imperial leadership. Unfortunately, the battle did not totally disband the Empire, as survivors were still spread across the galaxy, still anxious to keep whatever power they had before the battle. Pockets of Imperial leadership remained scattered across the galaxy, as Moffs and warlords did their best to consolidate their power base and become mini Empires of their own. Coruscant, Imperial Center itself, also remained a hotbed of Imperial power. This made it a great target for the New Republic to strike, hoping to end the war sooner rather than later. A strike at the heart of Imperial Center would be both a great way to remove some Imperial leadership, but it would also be an important symbolic victory, as it was the home of the Jedi Council and the former capital of the Republic.
Together, Princess Leia, Admiral Gial Ackbar, and Lt. Wedge Antilles came up with a daring plan to capture the planet. And, for the most part, the plan seemed, on the surface, to go better than expected. Some Rogues would attack the planet from space, while others would force a ground battle with a forceful incursion. The Liberation of Coruscant seemed to be a success, despite some major setbacks and loses. One such setback and loss, immediately known to the Rogues, was the supposed loss of Rogue Corran Horn. In fact, it seemed like Corran was not just lost, but in fact murdered in cold blood by a fellow Rogue, Tycho Celchu. We’ll return to this, as there was a more pressing, but not quickly identified threat to the New Republic.
Ysanne Isard, head of the Imperial Security Bureau, has unleashed a bioweapon on Coruscant called the Krytos virus. Unfortunately, biological warfare was not a new phenomenon in the galaxy. In the early days of the Clone Wars, the Separatists tried to unleash the Blue Shadow Virus on Naboo. Asajj Ventress and bounty hunter Dirge also oversaw the distillation of a virus on Naboo, which ended up wiping out a settlement of Gungans. Even more recently, sorcerer of Tund Rokur Gepta also unleashed a bioweapon that wiped out his fellow sorcerers. Isard hoped that unleashing the virus on Coruscant would distract the Rogues from the takeover of the planet, forcing them to spend their resources fighting the virus rather than the Imperials.
And, after a while, Isard’s plan did start to work. The virus ravaged the alien community of Coruscant, whereas the human population was completely immune to the virus. But, despite the Empire’s xenophobia, which might push aliens away from living on the capital of the Empire, the alien population was extremely large on the planet. The virus hurt untold numbers of aliens, forcing the New Republic to respond. One of the cures for the virus was bacta, a powerful healing substance. Unfortunately, the amount needed was more than the New Republic could supply on its own. Only Warlord Zsinj, one of the biggest power holders of the Imperial warlords, has enough bacta to help the sick aliens. One thing Warlord Zsinj knew well was that war was controlled by those who have power over medical supplies, something that the Republic and Separatists knew all too well in the Clone War. The Rogues would, again, need to develop a strategy for fighting in this highly contested area of power.
This would all have to be done without at least two valuable members of Rogue Squadron. With Corran Horn out of action, seemingly put out of action by a fellow Rogue, the Squadron is weakened. In reality, Corran was not killed, but was being held as a prisoner by Isard, who sought nothing less than the eradication of the Squadron. She also put a mole into the Squadron, who would feed information back to the Empire. Corran managed to escape from Isard, and also uncovered the identity of the mole, Erisi Dlarit.
Corran would take this information back to the trial of Tycho Celchu, who has already been under suspicion for a while. Despite his valiant efforts in the Battle of Endor, Tycho seemed to go rogue after being held as a prisoner himself for many years. Thankfully, Corran’s timely return with the identity of the mole freed Tycho from the suspicion that loomed over him. Which is good, because the Rogue Squadron, and New Republic, needs as many pilots as it can in order to win their upcoming battles for bacta…
Legendary Travel Tips:
-This novel is preceded by Wedge’s Gamble and followed by The Bacta War.
-{Editor’s Note}As part of the Essential Legends Collection, this book has received a new, unabridged audiobook narrated by Marc Thompson. He’s been narrating his way through the X-Wing series for the collection!
You can follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisWerms, and of course, you can follow the Manor on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor!
Essential Legends Collection: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction | Darth Bane: Rule of Tw0 | Darth Bane: Dynasty of Evil | Darth Plagueis | Shatterpoint | Kenobi | Rogue Squadron | Rogue Squadron: Wedge’s Gamble | Heir to the Empire | Dark Force Rising | The Last Command | Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter | Death Troopers