Darth Vader (2015) 8

Darth Vader 8

Publisher's summary[]

*Bounty Hunters on the attack—against the Empire!*Darth Vader and Aphra continue their alliance – but how long will it last?*Plus: Who is Tagge's mysterious new agent?

Opening crawl[]

Chaos disrupts the galaxy. After thedestruction of the Death Star by amysterious Force-strong rebel pilot, theSith Lord DARTH VADER was deemedresponsible by his master, EmperorPalpatine. Now pursuing his own agenda,Vader enlisted the assistance ofthe bounty hunter BOBA FETT andarchaeologist DOCTOR APHRA.In an attempt to find the boy whodestroyed the Death Star, Vader returnedto the desert planet of Tatooine only tofind an empty husk of a hut, scorched withblaster marks where the boy battled theinfamous bounty hunter.Elsewhere on the Outer Rim planetSon-Tuul, a gathering of bounty huntersand mercenaries are greeted by Aphra,who offers them the chance to steal thesum of a lifetime from an Imperial ship....

Plot summary[]

The heist[]

Dr Aphra and her team of mercenaries follow anArquites-class light cruiser near the planetAnthan Prime in the edge of theOuter Rim Territories. This cruiser is carryingcredits confiscated from theSon-tuul Pride syndicate. Her plan involves blowing up a largeasteroid to create anasteroid field in order to distract the Imperial crew while she and her team board the ship. While the Imperial cruiser takes a hit from asteroid debris, Dr Aphra'sArk Angel ship disables the light cruiser with anion torpedo. With the ship disabled, she along withIG-90,Bossk, andBeebox board the ship's hull in space suits and magnetic clamps. Theastromech droidBeetee is given a separate assignment.

After entering the ship through a hatch, they head to the treasure vault. While Beebox keeps the Imperial crew door sealed, Dr Aphra uses anelectro magnetic pulse grenade to electrocute theViper probe droids, allowing Bossk and IG-90 to take them down. While Dr Aphra works on unlocking the vault,Triple Zero sends theWookieeKrrsantan in anAuzituck anti-slaver ship to drag an asteroid onto the Imperial light cruiser, causing a collision that exposes the vault to space. The confiscated Son-tuul Pride credits are sucked out into space while Beetee watches.

Aboard theArk Angel, Triple Zero congratulates Dr Aphra about the success of her heist but regrets that no humanoids were killed. Meanwhile, Beetee sucks up as many of the credits as he can, accumulating enough to fill two boxes. Back aboard theArk Angel, Dr Aphra is pleased with their heist. She proposes dividing the loot but Black Krrsantan agrees to take enough just to cover the expenses. Translating for Black Krssantan, IG-90 warns Dr Aphra not to cross bounty hunters, a sentiment shared by Beebox. Triple Zero also opines it is dangerous to hide. Dr Aphra says she has a lax attitude towards property rights but is smart enough not to cross the four deadliest bounty hunters in the galaxy. Bossk warns her not to do it. Beebox reminds her to pay up next time.

Meeting with Lord Vader[]

Dr Aphra, the droids and Black Krrsantan meet in a rocky cave onAnthan 13, amoon ofAnthan Prime. With Dr Aphra's knowledge, Black Krrsantan used a satellite to suck up a large chunk of the stolen credits from the Imperial light cruiser. Aphra promises to help Black Krrsantan with his problem and promises not to cross him. They are joined byDarth Vader, who had hired Dr Aphra to steal the credits to build adroid factory and to pay the bounty hunters. She asks Lord Vader what she will get in payment for her services.

Darth Vader responds that he needs information. When she asks if it is aboutthe boy whodestroyed theDeath Star, Vader says it is something else and hands her a microchip containing the information. He orders her to contact him when she has succeeded. Triple Zero requests his share of the reward but Aphra tells him to be patient.

The Plasma Devils[]

Later,Grand GeneralCassio Tagge briefs Darth Vader and Cylo's followersAiolin Astarte,Morit Astarte,CommanderKarbin, andTulon Voidgazer about the threat of arebel group called thePlasma Devils. While the Empire has "disciplined" the criminal organizations and planetary governors and forced the rebels into retreat, the Plasma Devils have caused trouble for the Empire onMygeeto,Son-tuul, andAnthan 14. Grand General Tagge tasks the Astarte twins with dealing with the generals.

Commander Karbin objects to the Astartes getting the assignment on the grounds that they lack military experience. Tagge reminds Karbin that he outranks him and that he is merely a tool ofthe Emperor. Tagge instead tasks Karbin with capturing or killing the rebel pilot who destroyed the Death Star. Vader objects on the grounds that he will hunt down the rebel pilot and bring him to the Emperor personally. Voidgazer tells Vader that they are not here to salve his conscience and blames him for the loss of the Death Star. She seeks to capture the rebel pilot as vengeance for the deaths of her comrades.

Grand General Tagge rejects both Vader and Voidgazer's demands, telling them that they are personally invested in the Death Star and warns that their passion can be disruptive. Tagge tasks Tulon with tackling certain research problems while assigning Lord Vader with punish those responsible for stealing the Son-tuul Pride's confiscated fortune. He tasks Lord Vader with delivering the Emperor's justice to the thieves before dismissing the group.

Grand General Tagge also assignsInspectorThanoth to serve as Lord Vader's replacement adjutant for the lateOon-ai at the Emperor's request. Inspector Thanoth tells Vader that the evidence suggests that the culprits used the moons of Anthan Prime to stage their heist. Thanoth also tells Lord Vader that there is a slight ionization of surface dust from Anthan 13 onhis armor. Thanoth warns the Sith Lord that he is not a sycophant, traitor or incompetent but a professional investigator. He vows to have the case resolved within several days. Lord Vader responds that "we shall see."

Media[]

Cover gallery[]

Textless cover byEdgar Delgado.^[2]

Final cover by Edgar Delgado^[2]

Collected in[]

• Star Wars: Darth Vader Vol. 2 — Shadows and Secrets
• Star Wars: Darth Vader Vol. 1
• Star Wars: Darth Vader by Kieron Gillen & Salvador Larroca Omnibus
• Star Wars: Doctor Aphra Omnibus Vol. 1
• Star Wars: Darth Vader Modern Era Epic Collection: Shadows and Secrets

Appearances[]

Sources[]

• The Hunt Is on for Truth and Treasure inDarth Vader #8 - Exclusive Preview! onStarWars.com(backup link)
• The Marvel Art of Star Wars

Notes and references[]

External links[]

• Darth Vader (2015) #8 onMarvel Comics'official website(backup link)

Vader: 1 ·2 ·3 ·4 ·5 ·6 Shadows and Secrets: 7 ·8 ·9 ·10 ·11 ·12 Vader Down: 13 ·14 ·15 The Shu-Torun War: A1 ·16 ·17 ·18 ·19 End of Games: 20 ·21 ·22 ·23 ·24 ·25 Trade paperbacks 1 ·2 ·3 ·4 ·Vader Down Epic Collection Vol. 1 ·Epic Collection Vol. 2 Other "The Misadventures of Triple-Zero and Beetee · "Coda" Hardcover 1 ·Hardcover 2 ·Omnibus Color Your Own Related media Darth Vader (2017) ·Darth Vader (2020)
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