Space pirates and mining droids attack the former Jedi Taanar Ryl and her companions in retaliation for freeing natives of Ta’amel III from slavery. During the fight the former Imperial Knight Vimma Montari lead the pirates in combat, only to be defeated and captured by the heroes. After making sure the miners and pirates wouldn’t harm the natives, the group returns to the core to hand over Montari to Imperial authorities….
In the aftermath of the fight on Ta'amul, the crew of the Dark Star found themselves in charge of a prisoner and ex-Jedi Tanaar Ryl had a moral dilemma. Their intent had been to rescue Vimma Montari from her kidnappers. But now the young woman they had aboard their ship appeared to be voluntarily working with the First Order. Tanaar had no desire to be a jailer. In this situation, returning Vimma to the Imperial Knights didn't seem like the ideal option. She didn't want to force Vimma to return to them if that wasn't her wish. But she did want to offer the young woman a chance to reconsider her support of the First Order.
When Ayja came to explain that she couldn't keep Vimma sedated indefinitely, Tanaar agreed that Vimma should be transferred to one of the Dark Star's small cabins. She also asked Ferb to plot a different course back to the Unknown Regions, in the event that the Dark Star was being tracked. After Vimma was moved to the cabin everyone aboard kept themselves armed out of caution and Ayja prepared a fast-acting sedative as a contingency.
But when Vimma asked to see Tanaar, her demeanor wasn't that of a fanatic determined to escape her captivity or destroy the enemies of the First Order. She was calm and self-possessed. She told Tanaar that she wanted to return to her masters. Tanaar took note of the fact that she used the plural, but couldn't elicit who those masters were. When Tanaar asked Vimma about the children she had been trying to protect, Vimma responded that they were better off where they were. Tanaar tried to gently plant seeds of doubt in her mind about this, but didn't linger on the subject. Then Vimma asked if she could be allowed out of the cabin, promising to do no harm and stay out of the cockpit and engine room. Tanaar told her she would consider the request.
After Tanaar left Vimma's cabin, she retreated to her own to meditate. Nima joined her, but both of them were troubled by a sense of unease. Tanaar realized that there was a malevolence emanating from the mysterious amulet Master Neri had given her. Nima sensed the malevolence also. Further examination of the amulet didn't provide any clues as to what was causing the sensation, but Tanaar decided to put the amulet in the secure weapon storage rather than keep it close by.
Later Tanaar met with the rest of the crew and told them of Vimma's request. After they discussed their concerns - the Secura brothers and Nima were all convinced that Vimma had been brainwashed - they agreed to grant the request.
Vimma's behavior seemed acceptable after she was permitted to move about the ship. The only unusual event was while she was dining with the crew one meal. Ferb mentioned a craving for food from the Biscuit Baron franchise, and almost immediately Den agreed with him with such enthusiasm that the two of them were soon planning how they could make a detour to a planet with a Biscuit Baron location. Ren didn't share his brother's craving and began to feel concerned by how focused Den and Ferb were on their plan. Vimma smiled a little at their conversation, but there was nothing obvious that hinted at any outside influence on their behavior.
When the Dark Star reached the Unknown Regions, Tanaar contacted Leia to tell her what happened with the Blazing Chain. She also asked Leia's advice regarding Vimma. She was still hesitant to take the young woman back to the Imperial Knights. Following her conversation with Leia, she seached her feelings and came to a decision. She contacted the Jedi Order and spoke with Master Kanan, asking him if the Order would be willing to allow her to bring Vimma to them. Kanan agreed.
Tanaar recognized that this decision might cause friction with the Imperial Knights. But she felt more comfortable taking Vimma to a neutral party, one where the young woman would be given support but wouldn't be pressured into choosing a particular path. Tanaar was confident that the Jedi Masters would be able to determine whether Vimma had been coerced or compelled to give her allegiance to the First Order.
When the Dark Star arrived at the Jedi Sanctuary, Tanaar was pleased to find the Skyriver Venture was present. She was greeted with a fierce hug from her old friend Lowarra and a slightly less fierce one from Dash. Even Master Neri was present for a change. Neri invited Vimma to stay at the sanctuary and find her center. Vimma didn't react to this request with anger or resentment, which Tanaar took as a favorable sign.
While the Dark Star had been in transit, Nima had been working on building her own lightsaber, an important rite of passage of every Jedi. She consulted with Master Kanan, who helped her settle herself and encouraged her to use the sanctuary's facilities to begin the final phase of construction.
Tanaar also had conversations with Neri and Kanan, and Kanan gave her a data disk of information about the Blazing Chain. It seemed that they might have originated as a group of Sith refugees, but the source of this information wasn't entirely reliable. Tanaar had a talk with Neri about the amulet's malevolent presence as well. It had never manifested such a sensation while in Neri's possession, and Neri apologized to Tanaar that she would never have given it to her if she had known. In the end Tanaar decided to keep it and continue learning about it.
The Dark Star crew remained at the Jedi Sanctuary for another day after delivering Vimma Montari. The Jedi opened their armory to the Secura brothers, allowing them to restock the Dark Star's armory from their supplies. But the time came for the team to leave, with the intention of going back out to the Unknown Regions to meet with the Blazing Chain again.
Just as the Dark Star exited the the minefield that protected the Sanctuary from intruders, they found themselves facing a disturbing sight: a Star Destroyer of unfamiliar design was approaching the Jedi Order's safe haven!
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