WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: The High Republic #2 by Cavan Scott, Ario Anindito, Mark Morales, Annalisa Leoni & VC's Ariana Maher, on sale now.
Star Wars: The High Republic #2 finds its newest Jedi, Keeve Trennis, scouring the galaxy with her master, Sskeer, and twins, Ceret and Terec, after their Starlight Beacon space station received a distress call. When they board, they discover the vessel has been attacked by the terrorist group, the Nihil, and it's all part of a sinister robbery attempt.
However, as Sskeer's team peers further into the crime, ardent it becomes clear that they've discovered a key ingredient in bacta, the healing liquid that will save Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Finn and countless others hundreds of years later.
The Jedi unit realizes this is a Hutt vessel and that everyone on board has been killed in the heist. They find a unique grain there, though, and Sskeer sends data about it over to the Starlight to study. Maru, the resident genius, confirms this rare barley -- Vratixia Renanicus -- is a key ingredient in Bacta. It seems that the Nihil is stealing the raw material so they can sell or make the substance. It's a replacement for the miracle salve, Rejuv, and something very valuable in the war to come, which has Sskeer on edge.
Bacta's the healing fluid that Vader used in his tanks on Mustafar to replenish his burned body and cells. Luke Skywalker also was submerged in a Bacta tank on Hoth after the wampa almost killed him on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back. It was used in critical and non-critical situations to treat everything from concussions to internal organs and broken ribs. It was used for cuts as well, and it could regrow some bones and nails. This made it a medic's dream and something soldiers begged for in the field.
many years later, bacta was made portable enough for soldiers to carry in battle, and modern fans also saw it when Finn wore a Bacta suit in The Last Jedi to heal after Kylo Ren cut him up. Still, Vader remains the substance's most frequent prominent user, since he regularly immersed himself in it to heal his shattered, charred body, as he did in Rogue One. It's said to have not just helped his body, but his mind as well, since he still had anger issues from when Obi-Wan left him in flames on the volcanic planet.
Even if they don't know how important it will become, Sskeer's team will definitely want to know who the buyers are and where the Bacta is being manufactured. Other terrorist cells could be purchasing it as well, and it could be fueling the rise of the Sith or other Dark Side users in this era. However, the fact no one was left alive to reveal what happened to the bacta raw materials on this ship means that there's a long, bloody trail to figure out where it is now.