Star Wars Annual (2015) 1

Star Wars Annual 1

Publisher's summary[]

*Galactic espionage hits the Empire—hard!*Haarkon Dak has been undercover in the Imperial bureaucracy for years...*...but now, he's the only chance to save Rebel sympathetic senators!

Opening crawl[]

It is an era of renewed hope for theRebellion.The evil Galactic Empire's greatest weapon,the Death Star, has been destroyed by theyoung rebel pilot, Luke Skywalker. ButImperial forces still stand strong.Rebel spy Eneb Ray has infiltratedCoruscant, working under an Imperial guiseand the name Tharius Demo. He quicklylearns that some missions prove to be muchmore complicated than others....

Plot summary[]

TheRebel AlliancespyEneb Ray has infiltrated the galacticcapitalCoruscant disguised as theImperial tax collectorTharius Demo. "Tharius" saves the owner of an export business by cautioning him not to mention the Rebellion. Out of fear mixed with gratitude, the man offers to pay the money after "Tharius" warns him about the horror of having his children sold intoslavery.

After returning to his apartment, Eneb Ray uploads the shipping and procurement data for theCore sectors toPrincessLeia Organa viahologram. Princess Leia assigns Eneb on amission to rescueSenatorNadea Tural and other anti-Imperial senators fromArrth-Eno Prison Complex. Leia provides him with maps, relevant access codes and a ship willing to smuggle the senators off Coruscant. Despite believing the mission to be impossible, Eneb obliges out of deference to the heir to theAlderaanian throne.

While scaling the Arrth-Eno prison complex, Eneb reflects on his previous missions and on whether there are other rebel spies on Coruscant. Fighting through his own fears and doubts, Eneb enters the building through atransparisteel window. After taking out astormtrooper sentry, Eneb enters the senators' holding cell only to learn from Senator Tural that theEmperorPalpatine himself is coming to view their execution.

Eneb then enters the control room and forces the guards to surrender. One of the guards turns out to be a rebel agent namedColeet, who offers to help her contact Princess Leia while scrambling the sensors to prevent the Imperials from tracking her down. Eneb convinces a hesitant Princess Leia to take a major risk by sending the remaining rebel agents on Coruscant to assassinate the Emperor.

When the Emperor arrives to bid the condemned senators farewell, Eneb and six other agents spring their trap and attack the Emperor's stormtrooper andRoyal Guard. Watching the assassination unfold, Coleet and the captive senators cheer Eneb on. Eneb uses an electronic grappling hook to rip off the helmet of a Royal Guard and fires the weapon at the Emperor. However, the Emperor flees on arepulsorlift platform.

Issuing orders for the fellow agents to evacuate the senators, Eneb uses his grappling hook to pursue the Emperor to the roof landing platform. Following an exchange with two stormtroopers, Eneb guns down the Emperor only to discover that it was a body double. The real Emperor arrives on aLambda-class shuttle and mocks Eneb. Enebs tries to shoot the Emperor but the Emperor detonates a bomb that destroys the entire Arrth-Eno prison complex, killing everyone inside.

With Eneb distracted, the Emperor blasts him withForce lightning. Eneb barely escapes death by using his grappling gun to latch onto a passingairspeeder. While Eneb reflects on the deaths of everyone inside the complex, he sees ahologram broadcast of the Emperor claiming that the rebels had blown up the Aarth-Eno prison complex in order to prevent the senators from being tried in a court of law.

A devastated Eneb then meets his escape contact, who turns out to be the export manager whose life he had earlier spared. When the manager asks what went wrong, Eneb replies that he was naive. Deep down, he castigates himself for being a hero pretending to be the man willing to make hard decisions. As they escape offworld, the Emperor promises that vengeance will be inflicted for this "heinous, unforgivable crime."

Continuity[]

Marvel Comics editorJordan D. White and assistant editorHeather Antos make a small cameo in the third page of the comic.^[4][5]

TheCzech translation, included in theStar Wars Magazín issues 2/2017 and 3/2017, featured the comic under the subtitleUndercover.

Media[]

Cover gallery[]

Cover

Textless cover byJohn Cassaday

Collected in[]

• Star Wars Vol. 3: Rebel Jail
• Star Wars Vol. 2
• Star Wars by Jason Aaron Omnibus
• Star Wars Modern Era Epic Collection: Yoda's Secret War

Appearances[]

Sources[]

• Marvel'sStar Wars andDarth Vader Annual Covers - Exclusive Reveal onStarWars.com(backup link)

Notes and references[]

External links[]

• Star Wars Annual (2015) #1 onMarvel Comics'official website(backup link)
• Star Wars Annual (2015) 1 on theAurebesh Wiki