Summary of YJK Arc III: The Black Sun Trilogy
Crisis on Crystal Reef
Lots of little things happen at the start of this book. Zekk builds a new lightsaber, and proudly shows it off to Old Peckhum, his guardian, who comes for a surprise visit. Zekk has put his past behind him and is ready to start anew. (Incidentally when Peckhum comes he asks to meet Anja who has been in Zekk's hololetters recently, and Zekk acts guilty, like he knows he's hurt Jaina.) Anja on the other hand, is going through spice withdrawal and is not doing very well. In fact she ends of up stealing Lightening Rod.
Faced with choosing to chase after her or file a criminal report, the YJK decide to go help their friend, who is going through a troubled time adjusting to her new positive feelings toward Han Solo. They follow her to Kessel. When Anja reaches on Kessel she meets Lilmit, a former employee of Czethros who Han and the kids had prevented from selling arms on Anobis. He spills the beans that he worked for Czethros and that he was going to go finish his task on transferring a stash of spice from Mon Cal. Hearing this betrayal Anja looks at things a little differently. She formulates a plan that she needs one more dose of Andris to tide her over, then she will go after a stash of the spice on Mon Calamari and ruin Czethros forever.
The kids on the way to Kessel, Jacen expresses another questioning attitude about Han's role in Anja's father's death, they all have a bad feeling about what is going to happen. But Lando and Nein Nunb, a Sullustan, run the mines now, and they feel that it is a safer place. Upon arrival they learn that Nien Nunb just escaped an assassination attempt, and that something sinister is going on at Kessel. He asks them for their help. The YJK agree. In their search they realize that something is going on, and they interrogate Lilmit who Anja stranded on Kessel. He tells them what he told her.
Deciding to split up, Zekk, Jacen and Tenel Ka go to Mon Calamari, while Jaina and Lowbacca stay behind to help Nien Nunb. At Mon Cal the three get help from Ambassador Cilghal (TK is interested to see that she is both a Jedi and an Ambassador, perhaps with her own questions of being the heir to Hapes AND a Jedi?). They arrive, find Anja who finally tells them everything—her involvement/her being controlled by Black Sun, her knowledge of the attempted murders on Cloud City (after the fact) and how she realized she had been duped. She tells them her plan and together the five (including Cilghal) go after the spice stash. They attempt to destroy it, but are attacked by a sea monster who gulps up the spice, and in rage (now that he's high) he attacks their sub driving them beneath an ice cap, freezing them in place. Anja, feeling the claustrophobia and addiction feels like she is dying and Cilghal who is also a healer offers to help cleanse her body of the poisons. (BTW, in her fever induced withdrawal Anja realizes that Han Solo probably was telling the truth and that the Jedi were her real friends.) They cut their way free of the ice cap, where Anja is tempted once again (i've excerpted this last part), but does not submit and return to Kessel.
On Kessel-Jaina and Lowbacca are having their own adventures. They watch as Czetheros, with the help of one of Nien Nunb's top aides takes over the spice mines. In a rousing speech he reveals his plans for the NR, that operatives are in place on key planets waiting to take down governments and financial systems as soon as the signal is given. Together Jaina and Lowie sabotage Czethros efforts to control the mines, and destroy the transmitter preventing his NR takeover. At the end they capture him, by watching him fall into a vat of carbonite, encasing him for the unknown future.
There's this very cute scene between TK and Jacen where he tells her to remind him that he has something for her. He had made it earlier and had been waiting for the right time to give it to her. Jaina and Zekk also have a touching moment where he teases her, apologizing that he didn't come back in time to rescue her. (It's a running joke through the books). They go back to the academy where Luke praises them and tells them of a ceremony the NR is going to put up in their honor for all their hard work. Jacen has a talk with his dad, saying that he's sorry he didn't trust him, and Anja apologizes and thanks Han for his help. Anakin comes up with a plan to root out all the Black Sun operatives on the NR worlds.
Everyone's family shows up for the ceremony and Anja reveals her decision to leave. I've used a POV scene change involving Tahiri and Anakin to show one of the final scenes of the book. (I really just wanted to try my hand at writing the two of them.) As well as showing Mara's POV of the ceremony (my perspective is, that despite not being talked about, she would have been at something as important as this...). The final lines of the book are as follows: "Slowly a hush fell over the audience, and Tionne lifted her voice in song. Her ballad told of the rise and fall of the Shadow Academy, the defeat of the insidious Diversity Alliance, and how the threat of Czethros and Black Sun had been overcome. The melody carried a message of new hope as Tionne sang e of bravery in the face of danger, betrayal and redemption, trust in the Force and sacrifice. New Legends of the new Jedi." (198)
