Alien Exodus was the working title for what would have been the first installment in a trilogy of Expanded Universe novels penned by Robert J. Sawyer, a science fiction author from Canada. These books, unlike the Bantam Spectra series of the time, were slated for publication by Ace Books. Sawyer ultimately exited the project when its focus changed from a story within the Star Wars galaxy to an original narrative featuring entirely new alien designs. In 2003, he made the material he had written – the initial two chapters and a synopsis of the first novel – available on his website as fan fiction.
Sawyer's proposed narrative was structured in two parts, both revolving around the history of Humans within the Star Wars universe. The primary storyline delved into the ancient history of the Star Wars galaxy. The central character is Cosmo Hender, who leads the Human slaves on Forhilnor, a planet within the Varlian Empire. His fight to liberate his people, as well as the non-Human slaves of Forhilnor, also explores the origins of the Force, the Hutt civilization, and the origin of the name "Skywalker." The secondary narrative, presented as excerpts from a document entitled The Human Exodus, traces the origins of the Human species back to a lost expedition from 25th-century Earth. It also contains allusions to George Lucas's earlier works, American Graffiti and THX 1138.
Despite the fact that Sawyer's novel was never finished or released, it has gained attention from the online Star Wars community. The Deborah Chester's Alien Chronicles trilogy – the Ace Books project that ultimately used the new alien designs – has also been referenced in certain published Star Wars materials.
Back in 1994, Ace Books was in talks with Lucasfilm Ltd. to publish a series of novels that would explore the backgrounds of the alien races detailed in Monsters and Aliens from George Lucas, a book showcasing creature designs and concept art from the original trilogy, the Ewok TV films (Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor), and other Lucasfilm projects. After Ace Books reached out to Robert J. Sawyer, he created a 10,000-word story outline and two sample chapters, drawing upon A Guide to the Star Wars Universe and Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races as supplementary resources.
However, as the negotiations progressed, the decision was made to utilize completely new alien designs and set the project in a new universe. Sawyer stated that this led to his departure from the project, after which Deborah Chester took over as the author. She went on to publish three novels in the Alien Chronicles series – The Golden One, The Crimson Claw, and The Crystal Eye – in 1998 and 1999.
Robert J. Sawyer's narrative remained unpublished until he shared the outline and two sample chapters for the first novel on his website in 2003.
The Alien Exodus narrative is structured into two distinct parts. The main storyline centered on a Human slave named Cosmo Hender, and his efforts to liberate his people from their Varlian oppressors. The secondary storyline consisted of excerpts taken from The Human Exodus, a record of the origins of the first Humans to arrive in the Star Wars galaxy.
The primary story commences with Cosmo Hender, the leader of the Human slaves residing on the Varlian planet Forhilnor. Forhilnor is populated by slaves of various species, including Humans, Bith, Ithorians, Kubaz, Ortolans, Kitonaks, Twi'leks, Mon Calamari, and Sullustans. The Varlians – colossal insectoids who govern a vast star empire – employ Rodian and Gamorrean henchmen to supervise the slaves. The slaves are being compelled to construct an enormous stone temple, which has already reached a height of one thousand meters. A clandestine council, comprised of the leaders of each slave species, is devising a plan to somehow achieve freedom, despite the fact that their people have been enslaved for at least five generations. The slave council observes that all their people are exhausted, even more than can be attributed to the arduous labor and meager rations.
When Hender is temporarily reassigned from his usual work in the quarries, and away from his pregnant mate Sallee, to serve in the palace of the Varlian governor, Kaxa, he uncovers several crucial pieces of information. Firstly, he learns that the Varlians possess advanced technology and machinery that could easily complete the stone temple without relying on slave labor. Secondly, he overhears discussions about a plague known as the Changa Bloodrot, which nearly decimated the Varlians centuries ago (an event they interpreted as divine punishment for failing to enslave the primitive Wookiees). Most importantly, after the governor's daughter Delba teaches him how to read, he discovers a book called The Human Exodus, which recounts the origin of Humanity in the galaxy. The narrative of Humankind's escape from a previous group of oppressors inspires him.
Upon returning to his people, Hender initiates a plan to liberate the slaves. Hender creates the impression that several slaves who died from overwork actually succumbed to Changa Bloodrot. Among all the species on Forhilnor, only the Rodians would be immune to this plague – a realization that prompts the Rodians to launch their own initiative to acquire a sample of the Bloodrot and spread it among the Varlians. Simultaneously, Hender and three other slave leaders (Ridbrek the Mon Calamari, Ugerat the Kubaz, and Galarax the Bith) implement their own scheme, poisoning the water supply within the palace.
Governor Kaxa recognizes that a plague outbreak could jeopardize his plan to seize control of the Imperial throne. He orders that his plan be executed swiftly. It is revealed that the temple was merely a means of keeping the slaves occupied, while a crystal in the palace drained their Force energy. Kaxa intends to utilize this energy to physically relocate the Forhilnor system towards the center of the Empire, where he plans to seize power using his slaves as a ready-made army. The movement of the planet triggers earthquakes on Forhilnor. When Hender rescues another slave from the rubble, it becomes apparent that Hender has somehow developed the ability to tap into the Force, granting him telekinetic abilities. The other slaves give him the nickname "Skywalker" because of his ability to levitate.
Eventually, a disease appears to spread to the Varlians within the palace, causing the Varlian larvae to continue to grow without entering the pupal stage of their life cycle. Observant readers would recognize these giant Varlian larvae, who are petulant and selfish as only an overgrown child could be, as Hutts (who in Legends continuity originated on Varl, settling Nal Hutta only after a cataclysm destroyed the atmosphere of their homeworld). The Varlians believe this to be a mutation of Changa Bloodrot. Convinced that the slaves are infected, a panicked Governor Kaxa orders them to board a fleet of ships and leave the planet.
The Rodians turn against their Varlian masters and attack the palace with what they believe to be Changa Bloodrot serum. When the Rodian serum proves ineffective, Kaxa realizes that he has been tricked, and that the slaves themselves were never infected. Furthermore, Hender and the other slaves managed to steal the Force crystal from the palace. Kaxa dispatches a fleet of Gamorrean warships to pursue the escaping slave fleet. However, the slaves manage to escape by flying their ships into the Bloodstars, a nearby star cluster. To clear a path for their escape, Hender uses the Force to move the Bloodstars aside. Although the strain of using the Force to move the Bloodstars mortally wounds Hender, aging him forty years, the former slaves continue on to their destination – the garden world of Corellia. On his deathbed, Hender appoints Ridbrek as his successor. The story concludes with Sallee holding her infant son Freedom, vowing to record the tale of the Skywalker for future generations.
The Human Exodus begins on Earth, in the 25th century. The three central characters – computer hacker Dale Hender, space pilot Antonia Corelli, and her lover Paxton Solo – are leaders of an underground movement resisting the computers that have seized control of Earth's society. Hender discovers that the computers intend to forcibly administer drugs to the people of Earth in order to control their emotions. They also learn that the computers plan to eliminate the identities and family connections of the Humans under their control by replacing their names with serial numbers (Hender is slated to become the first of the THX series, THX-0001).
Unable to prevent the computers' plans, the underground decides to secretly convert a comet-mining ship called the Oort Raider into a colony ship, transporting five thousand Humans on a multigenerational voyage to Alpha Centauri. After a close call with the computers' forces on Earth, the Oort Raider escapes the solar system. Their lengthy journey is disrupted when they pass through a "cosmic whirlpool" leading to another solar system in another galaxy. To their astonishment, the wormhole serves not only as a bridge to another galaxy, but also to another time, billions of years in the past.
The Humans discover a habitable planet and land. On this new world, they encounter another ship that had arrived to investigate the wormhole. This ship turns out to be a Rodian-crewed slave transport, carrying a cargo of Biths. The Rodians intend to enslave the Humans as well. When the Humans discover this, they attempt to free the Biths, only to be interrupted by a group of Gamorrean slavers, followed by a group of Varlians. The militarily superior Varlians seize control of the situation, taking all of the Humans and Bith as slaves to Forhilnor, and hiring the Rodians and Gamorreans to oversee the slaves. As the slaves are led away, Paxton Solo and Dale Hender reflect on what could have been their new home. In honor of Antonia Corelli, who was killed by the Rodians, they agree that the planet should be named Corellia. They also pledge that one day Humanity will return to Corellia and establish a free society there.