The events of the Mission to Darkknell transpired in 1032 BBY, a time when the Sith Lord known as Odion engaged the services of Narsk Ka'hane, a Bothan spy. Odion's directive for Ka'hane was to journey to Darkknell and procure data regarding the advanced warship prototype, the Convergence, a creation of his sibling Daiman. This vessel was under construction at the Black Fang testing grounds, and Odion also wanted it destroyed. Leveraging his Cyricept Personal Concealment System, Mark VI, Ka'hane successfully breached the Black Fang's defenses and transferred the warship's technical schematics to a datapad. Subsequently, he strategically placed baradium thermal charges, intending to detonate them remotely once he had distanced himself from the facility. However, as Ka'hane was departing, he was detected by Kerra Holt, a Jedi Knight who sought to acquire the Mark VI for her own agenda against Daiman. Following a pursuit through Xakrea, Holt managed to subdue Ka'hane. After obliterating Ka'hane's datapad with her lightsaber, she triggered the thermal charges, resulting in the destruction of the Black Fang facility. Holt then unceremoniously deposited Ka'hane in a refuse container, where he was later discovered and apprehended by Daiman's Correctors.
During the era known as the Republic Dark Age, the Grumani sector, situated within the Outer Rim Territories, became a contested zone between several competing Sith Lords. Among these Sith Lords were two brothers, Odion, who styled himself as the Destroyer of the Universe, and Daiman, who considered himself the Creator of the Universe. In the year 1032 BBY, Odion dispatched Narsk Ka'hane, a freelance Bothan spy, to infiltrate Darkknell, the capital of the Daimanate. Narsk's objective was to gather information regarding the Convergence Tactical Assault Vehicle, a versatile warship conceived by the Sith Lord Daiman. He was also provided with a baradium thermal detonator to obliterate the vessel after successfully acquiring sufficient intelligence. For this operation, Narsk was outfitted with a Cyricept Mark VI stealth suit, granting him the ability to become invisible.
Unbeknownst to both Odion and Narsk Ka'hane, a [Jedi Knight](/article/jedi_knight-legends] errant named Kerra Holt was independently conducting a campaign of sabotage targeting Lord Daiman. Kerra was the sole survivor of the disastrous Jedi Operation Influx on the planet Chelloa, an event that claimed the life of her [Master](/article/jedi_master-legends] Vannar Treece. Following the Chelloan affair, Kerra spearheaded multiple attacks on weapons manufacturing facilities across a series of Daimanate-controlled worlds. In several instances, she succeeded in liberating slave laborers and their families. This path eventually led her to Darkknell, the Daimanate capital and the location of the Black Fang testing facility, the central hub of Daiman's military research initiatives. Kerra hoped to impede Daiman's war production efforts by destroying the Black Fang facility. To achieve this, Kerra infiltrated Darkknell disguised as a wandering laborer and secured employment in the capital city of Xakrea as a tutor for the Sullustan girl Tan Tengo.
For a full month, Narsk Ka'hane dedicated his time to observing the Black Fang facility and amassing information on the Convergence vehicle. Each night, he would infiltrate the research facility while utilizing his Cyricept Mark VI stealth suit, which rendered him invisible. During this period, the Bothan meticulously analyzed the traffic patterns surrounding the research facility and carefully noted the positions of the sentries guarding the few entrances to the obsidian structure. Consequently, Narsk identified every access route leading to the Black Fang test facility. Every evening, he would venture to a secluded rooftop nearby to don his Cyricept Mark VI stealth suit. Overconfident in his methods, the Bothan consistently used the same rooftop each night. Unfortunately, this routine proved to be his downfall, as it enabled the Jedi Kerra to monitor his movements. While Narsk's primary goal was to gather intelligence on the vehicle, Kerra's intention was to destroy it.
On the concluding night of his assignment, Narsk successfully acquired intelligence regarding the Convergence's energy shield system. Narsk had been able to spy on the Black Fang facility for the past month with little hindrance because Daiman had stalled the development of the vessel by adding riot-control features to the ship. After narrowly escaping being crushed by the factory's torus, he strategically placed a baradium detonator near the Convergence vehicle and made his escape under the cover of darkness. As he was returning to his rooftop hiding spot, Narsk was pursued by Kerra, whom he initially mistook for one of Daiman's Correctors, Force-sensitive individuals who served as Daiman's loyal enforcers. Narsk attempted to flee into the factory district, but his opponent proved to be faster, leaping across buildings with ease.
Seeking to evade his pursuer, Narsk sought refuge in a refuse disposal area and managed to hitch a ride on a stolen speeder bike. Narsk attempted to flee to Little Duros in his transport. However, Kerra leaped onto the speeder bike from a nearby skybridge and managed to cling on to the vehicle with a six-meter-long chain. Preoccupied with trying to dislodge his pursuer, Narsk crashed the speeder bike into a skybridge. The Bothan spy survived the crash but was bruised and wounded with a sprained right leg. Kerra identified herself as a Jedi to her opponent. Narsk claimed that he was a member of the non-existent Darkknell resistance but Kerra saw through the deception. After uncovering his datapad containing the intelligence he had collected on the Convergence vehicle, Kerra quickly deduced that he was a spy working for Odion.
Fueled by a deep-seated hatred for the Sith and their followers, stemming from the destruction of her childhood and the loss of her parents, Kerra disregarded Narsk's pleas that he was merely a freelancer and not a Sith. She promptly destroyed the datapad and, utilizing Narsk's remote control, detonated the thermal detonator, resulting in the complete destruction of the Black Fang facility. Kerra then compelled the Bothan to remove his stealth suit and unceremoniously dumped him, half-naked, into a nearby refuse container. Kerra then returned to Tengo's home, where she boarded, leaving Narsk to the tender mercies of Daiman's law enforcement agencies. Upon arriving at the Tengo family residence, Kerra explained her absence to Tan's grandfather Gub Tengo by claiming that she had to work a late-shift.
The explosion caused by the baradium thermal detonator obliterated the entire Black Fang facility, along with Daiman's prototype Convergence Tactical Assault Vehicle. The blast also resulted in the deaths of several of Daiman's most dedicated workers, who had volunteered to work the night shift. Narsk Ka'hane was subsequently apprehended by Daiman's enforcers and subjected to interrogation and torture by his Sith interrogators. Lord Daiman himself examined Narsk and, under the duress of torture, Narsk revealed that the "errant" Jedi Knight Kerra was present on Darkknell and had destroyed the Black Fang facility. Utilizing a Force mental probe, Daiman also discovered that Narsk had been working for Odion and that he had been collecting intelligence on the Convergence project. With the "assistance" of Kerra, Narsk managed to escape his prison and returned back to Odionate space.
Following the devastation of the Black Fang facility, Daiman acquired an arxeum, a mobile university, from the Sith Lord Ayanos Bactra, the ruler of a neighboring Sith princedom known as the Bactranate. In exchange, Daiman pledged to recruit students who would receive training in the art of war production. This exchange was scheduled to take place on the desolate world of Gazzari, situated on the border between the Daimanate and the Bactranate. However, this was a ruse orchestrated by Daiman to lure Odion to Gazzari. Daiman had also assembled a mercenary force to attack Odion on Gazzari while his fleet blockaded the planet, cutting of Odion's escape. Following a fierce battle, Daiman and Odion entered a temporary ceasefire to invade the Bactranate, under the orders of their grandmother Vilia Calimondra. Vilia had decided that Ayanos Bactra had outlived his usefulness to the Calimondra family and ordered her family members to eliminate Bactra. The Odion–Daiman sibling rivalry outlasted this temporary truce and eventually culminated in Odion's attempt to destroy the galaxy with an ancient Sith artifact known as the Helm of Ieldis.
The Mission to Darkknell serves as the exposition of John Jackson Miller's 2011 novel Knight Errant, which was linked to his Dark Horse Comics Star Wars: Knight Errant series. The mission is told through the perspectives of the Bothan spy Narsk Ka'hane and the Jedi Knight Kerra Holt.