The Emancipator, a CR90 corvette, served the Alliance to Restore the Republic in the initial stages of the Galactic Civil War.
It was originally known as Helot's Shackle, a slave transport operating from Ylesia. Han Solo and Bria Tharen barely escaped the planet and avoided being captured by the ship in orbit.
Tharen later established Red Hand Squadron nine years later as part of the Rebel Alliance. Their mission was to liberate slaves across the galaxy. She devised a complex plan to seize Helot's Shackle and liberate the Exultation-addicted slaves destined for either Kessel or various Imperial pleasure houses. Despite suffering significant casualties and engaging in intense combat, Red Hand Squadron was victorious and captured the vessel. She renamed it Emancipator to commemorate the freeing of the slaves.
The newly commissioned Rebel ship then took part in the Battle of Ylesia, where Bria Tharen liberated all the pilgrims from the spice factories and the t'landa Til [Exultation](/article/exultation].
In a scene from Rebel Dawn, Bria Tharen discusses the renaming of the Emancipator with her commanding officer. The captured corvette is subsequently referred to as Retribution. This appears to be a mistake on the part of the editor or writer, as the Retribution was Bria Tharen's Marauder-class corvette. While the new name of the Helot's Shackle is only mentioned twice (once as Emancipator, once as Retribution), the reference to it as Retribution was most likely an editorial oversight.