Throughout the Star Wars: The High Republic subseries, the Nihil have wreaked havoc throughout the galaxy. In Star Wars: The High Republic: A Test of Courage, Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh, Padawan Imri Cantaros, the Dalnan ambassador's son Honesty Weft, the young genius Avon Starros and her droid J-6 fled the Nihil's attack of their ship the Steady Wing and evaded capture on the panet Wevo. In the process, the young group forged friendships that made them stronger even as the Outer Rim plunged deeper into chaos.
In the final wave of Phase I of the subseries, Vernestra, Imri, and J-6 are thrown back into the fight after Avon is abducted by the Nihil. In honor of Star Wars: The High Republic: Mission to Disaster's hardcover release on March 1, Star Wars writer Justina Ireland spoke with CBR about her novel's young heroes and their growth throughout the subseries.
CBR: Throughout your work, you have explored the tension and connections between magic and science in the Star Wars universe. How does Mission to Disaster continue to explore these storylines and themes?
Justina Ireland: To me, science and magic exist on the same axis -- the only difference is whether or not we can/do explain things. A cell phone is magic until you understand cell towers, digital signaling, coding, etc. So I have always thought science in a space fantasy like Star Wars should feel like magic with an explanation -- even if it is only casually connected to the science that we know and love. In Mission to Disaster, we get to see how Avon approaches science, how it informs her as a person, the same way the Force drives Vernestra and Imri and all the rest of the Jedi. For her, it is magic, the same way the Force is a logical thing for Jedi.
The line between magic and science is much thinner than we pretend. And in Mission to Disaster, we get a chance to explore that a bit.
The High Republic subseries focuses on many complicated relationships between the younger characters in the subseries and their mentors or parents, including Avon Starros’ strained relationship with her mother and Vernestra Rwoh and Imri Cantaros’ unconventional master and apprentice relationship. How have these relationships evolved going into Mission to Disaster?
Characters change and grow, and without sharing too many spoilers our characters have changed and grown since we met them in A Test of Courage. Growing up is hard, and a huge part of that difficulty is in assessing our relationships and figuring out whether they water us or tax us. What kind of people do we want to be, and how do our relationships help or hinder that? For Vernestra, she is discovering that having a Padawan is part of her journey as a Jedi, and she's finally comfortable in that role. For Avon, she's realizing that not everyone like her is like her, that people can share ideals but have competing goals. This is something our heroes will have to accept and use to plot the course of their lives, and part of the fun of middle-grade books is those relationships inform the characters just as much as their actions.
Avon Starros is one of the brightest minds in the High Republic era. How does her fascination with logic and science contribute to her high shenanigan success rate? How have her past shenanigans helped prepare her to deal with being kidnapped by the Nihil?
Look, if you're going to go looking for trouble you've got to have contingency plans. Avon has those and backup contingency plans. Planning is preparation, and preparation is the key to success.
With Phase I of the High Republic coming to a close, what are some moments or storylines from the first phase or from Mission to Disaster in particular that fans might want to pay close attention to while preparing for Phase II’s shift to the earlier days of the High Republic era?
The High Republic is great Star Wars, and I'm not just saying that because I've written part of it. The storytelling has depth and meaning, and readers should honestly just focus on having a good time. Either way, it's all connected, and part of the fun is discovering those connections.
In a CBR-exclusive excerpt, Avon cleverly attempts to engineer her own escape and save herself:
Avon sat on the floor of the cargo hold of the Nihil ship and tried to look sad. Bored. Anything but anxious and clever.
They all sat waiting for the moment when the Nihil would bring them the last meal of the day. Avon had gone over the schedule with the other kids time and time again, until the plan had been airtight. The others, Liam, Krylind, and Petri, kept exchanging looks among one another. Avon could tell they didn’t think her idea would work, but that was only because they didn’t know her. Avon had an 87.3 percent rate of success when it came to hijinks and varying shenanigans. She could do this, and they would see just how brilliant her plan was.
There was a scraping noise at the door and swearing on the other side. Then the cargo bay door slid open with a shriek, courtesy of the goop Avon had jammed into the mechanism.
“Oy, what’s the big idea?” said the Trandoshan who entered, a box of rations in his arms. For a heartbeat, Avon thought maybe he was Master Sskeer, but this Trandoshan had a mean, snarly look that was totally different from Master Sskeer’s sort of growly look.
Avon gave a quick nod, and her plan snapped into action. Petri and Liam pushed the Nihil to the side while Avon burst through the open door, running full tilt down the hallway, her boots echoing on the metal floor as she went.
As she ran, Avon checked out the many doors in the hallway. One clearly led to the galley, from the noxious scents that tickled Avon’s nose as she passed, while another one sounded like a sparring room or some such, the sounds of people yelling causing Avon to keep moving.
This ship was bigger than she’d expected from the minuscule cargo hold, but then she saw it: the telltale wiring of a shipboard comm unit. The ship was an older model, so Avon was hoping that the internal comm unit ran through the external comms, an old shipbuilder’s cost-saving trick. By powering both sets of comms with a single power source and a single network switch, anyone within the ship could use the external comms, a time-saving feature in case of danger.
Meaning that Avon was heading in the right direction. Avon skidded around the corner, not paying attention to anything but the exposed comm wiring as she ran. All she needed was a single node, one point of communication. Pain bloomed in her side, and still, she kept going, ignoring the stitch. If she was going to make a call for help, she was going to have to push herself. She might not be used to running, but she could figure it out. The human body was meant for such things, even if Avon’s body felt like it hated every moment of the physical exertion.
Avon saw the cockpit a little way up ahead, and hope exploded in her chest.
The official description for the Star Wars: The High Republic: Mission to Disaster hints that Avon may discover one of the Nihil's deadliest schemes:
The Jedi think the dreaded Nihil marauders have been all but defeated. Their leader is on the run and their numbers have dwindled. Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh hopes this means she will finally have time to really train her Padawan, Imri Cantaros—but reports of a Nihil attack on Port Haileap soon dash those hopes. For not only have the Nihil attacked the peaceful outpost, they have abducted Vernestra and Imri’s friend, Avon Starros.
The two Jedi set off for Port Haileap, determined to figure out where the Nihil have taken their friend. Meanwhile, Avon must put her smarts and skills to the ultimate test as she fights for survival among the Nihil—and uncovers a sinister plan. Can Vernestra and Imri find their friend before disaster strikes?
The e-book and audiobook versions of Star Wars: The High Republic: Mission to Disaster are on sale now. The hardcover version of the novel releases on March 1 and is currently available for pre-order.