The transition from the ancient, crumbling spires of Taris to the high-gloss, polluted efficiency of Eriadu was a localized sensory audit that Revan Shan met with a custom-filtered respirator and a fresh batch of Naboo spice-lattes. As 89 BBY flickered out of the galactic ledger and 88 BBY took its place, the Black Pearl breached the soot-stained atmosphere of the Outer Rim's industrial jewel.
Revan sat in his Sovereign's Command Chair, which was currently reclined at a forty-two-degree "Industrial Skepticism" angle. Calculus was curled into a ball on the thermal vent of the console, his orange fur twitching in sync with the distant thrum of planetary ore-grinders. Theorem, the silver-and-black kitten, was industriously trying to "audit" the holographic projection of Eriadu's shipping lanes, occasionally batting a blinking light into a localized orbit.
"You see, Chewie," Revan murmured, his voice carrying the dry, slightly manic rasp of the 12th Doctor. "According to my 2nd Doctorate in Planetary Ecology, Eriadu is what happens when you let the accountants win. They've traded their sky for a 12% increase in durasteel output. It's statistically magnificent and ecologically a catastrophe. Naturally, it's the perfect place for a Maverick to conduct an 'Industrial Evolution Audit'."
Chewbacca let out a resonant, low-frequency rumble—a Wookiee's way of saying he missed the humidity of Manaan but appreciated the ship's high-tech filtration systems.
"Cortana, status on the Automatic Stealth Generator," Revan commanded.
"Full mask, Revan," the AI replied, her avatar appearing on the dash wearing a tiny, holographic hard hat. "We are currently mimicking the signal of an orbital maintenance shuttle. The Tarkin-controlled sensor grids won't see us unless we start frothing lattes in their face. However, I've flagged a rhythmic anomaly in the Phelar Sector. It's not mechanical, and it's definitely not polite."
The Phelar Anomaly: A Secret Tarkin Wound
The Phelar Sector was a sprawling subterranean complex owned by the Tarkin family, the de facto rulers of the planet. While the rest of Eriadu screamed with the noise of production, Sub-Level 9 was silent—eerily so.
Revan descended into the depths of the factory complex, followed by HK-47, Eleven, and D6. He didn't use a standard Jedi mission profile; he moved with the fluid, lazy grace of Form VI Niman, his black robes casting a long, shifting shadow against the duracrete walls.
"According to my 3rd Doctorate in Sentient Sociology," Revan noted, pulling his Sonic Screwdriver from his belt. "A factory stops production for only three reasons: a strike, a mechanical failure, or something so 'unkind' that the workers' brains have decided to file for a statistical leave of absence."
He found the primary research laboratory—a massive, high-security chamber that shouldn't have existed on any public map. Inside, the workers were not on strike; they were huddled in the corners, their eyes wide with a rhythmic, localized madness. Some were weeping; others were staring at their hands as if they were made of glass.
In the center of the room sat a massive, experimental drill—the "Obsidian Bore." It had pierced a jagged, oily fissure in the bedrock. From that fissure, a dark-side rift leaked into the room like a pressurized gas of pure despair.
"Statement: Master, my sensors indicate a 97% increase in 'Eldritch Dread' within this localized coordinate," HK-47 whirred, his electrostaff sparking with a low-intensity hum. "Observation: I find the workers' mental collapse to be remarkably consistent with exposure to high-level Dark Side energy. Shall I audit their misery with a thermal detonator?"
"No detonators, HK! We're conducting a 'Kindness Intervention'," Revan chirped, clicking his Sonic Screwdriver into its high-frequency trill.
The Audit of the Rift: Purifying the Core
Revan stepped toward the fissure. He didn't use his degrees to calculate the thermodynamics of the rift; he used the Feeling. Through Force Precognition, he saw that the Tarkins hadn't been looking for ore—they were looking for an "Eternal Power Source." They had accidentally pierced a localized Dark Side focal point, an ancient pocket of the Force that had been trapped since the Sith Wars.
"Right then," Revan muttered, the 11th Doctor's manic enthusiasm surfacing. "The rift isn't a hole; it's a rhythmic disharmony. It's 'stuttering' against the reality of the room."
He pressed the tip of the Sonic Screwdriver to the drill's primary logic gate.
Whirrr-vwoop-trill.
> The Rift Stabilization Variable (\Delta_r):
> By his internal audit, Revan synchronized the Sonic's vibration with the 'Oily' frequency of the Dark Side rift. He utilized Force Barrier to contain the leakage, then channeled Force Light through the Sonic's emitter. He wasn't closing the hole; he was 'shushing' the atoms until they remembered how to be peaceful again.
>
The oily smoke began to recede, turning from a bruised violet to a clear, shimmering gold. Revan utilized Force Stasis to hold the bedrock steady while he used Mechu-deru to command the Tarkin drill to reverse its polarity, essentially welding the rift shut with its own kinetic energy.
With a final pop heard only in the Force, the pressure in the room vanished. The workers slumped forward, the weight of the despair lifted from their minds.
Scavenging the Evolution: The Industrial Loot
While the Tarkin security teams were busy being confused by the sudden "restoration" of Sub-Level 9, Revan conducted a thorough audit of the research lab. He wasn't a hero; he was a scavenger with eleven doctorates.
"Eleven, D6, get the mag-lifters," Revan commanded. "According to my audit, there are some variables here that are far too advanced for people who play with Dark Side rifts."
Eriadu Industrial Audit Tally:
* Industrial Plasma-Compressors: 5x Prototype units (Capable of increasing Prodigal Knight turbolaser yield by 15%).
* High-Grade Cortosis-Hybrid Plates: 100KG (Refined for experimental starfighter shielding).
* Kyber-Quantum Data-Shards: 3x (Containing Tarkin research on "Atmospheric Energy Siphoning").
* Sovereign-Class Fusion Cells: 10x Small-scale power units (Perfect for the Star-Sass auxiliary thrusters).
"Brilliant," Revan grinned, popping a lemon candy. "We'll send the data-shards back to the Temple archives. It'll give the Council something to worry about while I take my nap."
The Sovereignty of Science: The Tarkin Meeting
Before leaving the planet, Revan was intercepted at the spaceport by a minor Baron of the Tarkin line—a tall, skeletal man with the cold eyes of a predator.
"Knight Shan," the Baron said, his voice a dry rasp. "Our researchers say you... 'fixed' our problem. They also say you took our compressors."
"I conducted a 'Safety Audit,' Baron," Revan replied wittily, not even breaking his stride toward the Black Pearl. "According to my 5th Doctorate in Galactic Lore & Ethics, you were operating a localized nightmare without a permit. I took the compressors as a 'Consultancy Fee.' Try to be nice, Baron. Do good. But never fail to be kind to the reality of the Force. If you try to pierce that rift again, I won't be bringing a screwdriver. I'll be bringing a bill for your planet's funeral."
The Baron watched the Maverick walk away, unable to find a legal or physical argument against a man who moved as if he owned the very air he breathed.
The Twenty-Year Itinerary Update
As the Black Pearl lifted off from the industrial smog of Eriadu, Revan sat on the bridge, watching the soot-stained clouds fade into the starlight. He pulled up his datapad, the blue text shimmering in the cabin.
| Planet | Status | Key Progress |
|---|---|---|
| Naboo | 104 BBY Completed | Rakatan Stabilizer Audit |
| Ord Mantell | 103 BBY Completed | Droid Graveyard Scan |
| Kashyyyk | 102 BBY Completed | Life-Tree Restoration |
| Corellia | 102 BBY Completed | Speeder-Snap Record |
| Chandrila | 101 BBY Completed | Saved Mothma's Grandmother |
| Toydaria | 100 BBY Completed | Thought-Vault Secured |
| Onderon | 99 BBY Completed | Sarcophagus Audit |
| Dxun | 98 BBY Completed | Crusader Helmet Secured |
| Nar Shaddaa | 97 BBY Completed | Revanite Datacron Recovered |
| Hoth | 96 BBY Completed | High Republic Relay Fixed |
| Bespin | 95 BBY Completed | Platform Stabilization |
| Endor | 94 BBY Completed | Rakatan Bio-Station Audit |
| Takodana | 93 BBY Completed | Nexus Hidden / Maz's Gifts |
| Korriban | 92 BBY Completed | Original Mask Recovered |
| Manaan | 91 BBY Completed | Sunken Rakatan Station Audit |
| Taris | 90 BBY Completed | Revanite Vault Opened |
| Eriadu | 88 BBY Completed | Dark Side Rift Purified / Plasma-Compressors Scavenged |
"Seventeen down, three to go," Revan mused. "We're officially in the final stretch, Chewie. 85% through the adventure. Next stop for 87 BBY: Mon Cala. Underwater engineering."
The Sovereign's Nap: End of 88 BBY
The year ended with the Black Pearl hidden in the rings of a nearby gas giant. Revan was slumped in his chair, Calculus on his lap, Theorem on his shoulder.
"Status, Cortana," Revan whispered.
"Eriadu is audited. The Tarkins are statistically annoyed. The 4.3 Billion credits are stable," Cortana reported. "The Star-Sass has been fitted with the new plasma-compressors. We are essentially a localized supernova in terms of firepower."
"Brilliant," Revan yawned, the chair reclining to the Calculated Nap Angle of 134.5 degrees. "Adventure is the journey, D6. And 88 BBY was a masterpiece of industrial sabotage and sassing skeletal Barons."
He closed his eyes. The Maverick was at rest. The "Golden Age" of the Republic continued its slow, binary drift toward the fire, but in the heart of a black freighter, the books were balanced, the lattes were warm, and the journey was exactly on schedule.
"Try to be nice, 87 BBY," Revan murmured into the dark. "I'll see you at the reef."