Mist Encounter

The narrative unfolds the circumstances of how Mitth'raw'nuruodo, an exiled figure, entered the service of the Imperial forces.

The Imperial Star Destroyer named Strikefast pursued Booster Terrik, a smuggler, into the uncharted territories of the Unknown Regions. In a desperate attempt to evade the pursuing Strikefast via a blind hyperspace jump, Terrik instead stumbled upon a habitable planet situated at the edge of Known Space. With a damaged hyperdrive resulting from the jump, Terrik sought refuge on the planet, concealing himself within a cave (after neutralizing two pursuing TIE fighters). He utilized an "unknown energy signature" to mask his landing site from the pursuing Star Destroyer.

Aboard the Strikefast, Captain Voss Parck, visibly frustrated, received reports regarding the "unknown energy signature." Constrained by standing Navy protocols concerning "Unknown Alien Encounters," he was compelled to dispatch a contingent of soldiers and technicians under the command of Colonel Mosh Barris to investigate, rather than resorting to an orbital bombardment to dislodge the smugglers.

Subsequently, Barris reported that the signature originated from a small encampment, possibly the result of a shipwreck, and undoubtedly of unknown origin, as the team's 3-PO droid was unable to decipher the markings on the more technologically advanced items. As Parck began to instruct him to settle in for the night, they were interrupted by Lieutenant Kraven, who urgently requested the colonel's presence at the crash site of one of the downed TIE fighters.

Upon arrival, Barris discovered that the pilot's body was missing, with the flight suit filled with grasses and berries. Crucially, the pilot's survival pack, blaster, and grenades had also been taken. Presuming the involvement of savage natives, Barris instructed his second-in-command, Major Wyan, to establish a secure perimeter and request reinforcements from the Strikefast, while he had the flight suit and its peculiar contents transported back to camp for further examination.

Shortly thereafter, as Barris and Wyan pondered the contents of the flight suit, a sudden explosion rocked the encampment. As both officers reacted swiftly, attempting to identify the source of the attack, a second explosion obliterated the tent they had just vacated, still without any visual confirmation of attackers. Wyan speculated that the explosions were caused by an overloaded power pack, and that the flight suit incident was a diversionary tactic employed by the smugglers. Barris concurred and relayed the information to Parck, who promptly deployed TIE fighters to scan the area.

However, as the search commenced, one of the TIE fighters crashed. Rushing to the scene, Barris and his men discovered the pilot's body, again missing the survival gear, blaster, and grenades. Barris immediately consulted with Parck, puzzled by their opponent's tactics, until Parck suggested verifying whether the built-in comlinks remained in the dead pilots' flight suits. They soon determined that one was missing, and Parck ordered the deactivation of that comlink's frequency. He then instructed Barris and his team to stand down for the night and await daylight to resume their investigation.

The night proved to be far from peaceful: three sentries perished at the hands of unseen assailants, and two more accidentally shot each other, mistaking their comrades for intruders. By dawn, a sleep-deprived and enraged Barris proposed an orbital bombardment, disregarding standing orders. Parck instructed him to remain calm and conduct his analysis while he dispatched stormtroopers to secure the site and flush out their adversaries.

Abruptly, as they proceeded, all comlinks emitted bursts of static, disrupting communications. Fearing another attack and frustrated with the loss of his men, Barris forcefully ordered the entire encampment to board the landing crafts and return to the Strikefast. Simultaneously, reports surfaced from the stormtroopers that one of their own was missing.

Barris' team complied, and before embarking, the colonel addressed one of the stormtroopers to announce their departure. To his horror, the trooper was instantly vaporized by another explosion, leaving behind only fragments of his armor. Barris then ordered immediate takeoff, fearing a full-scale assault. However, they successfully returned to the Strikefast without further incident.

Once aboard, a disheartened Barris confronted Parck, defending his decision to retreat and anticipating severe reprimand. Parck simply ordered the docking bay to be cleared and instructed Barris to accompany him to the bay control tower. There, they waited in darkness for several hours until a solitary figure cautiously emerged from the transports. Parck then commanded a squad of stormtroopers to apprehend the intruder.

Moments later, the intruder, revealed to be Thrawn, was brought before both officers. He proceeded to explain his exile, his unwavering commitment to defending his people, and his strategy of forcing down stormtroopers to steal their armor and infiltrate the spaceships. Impressed by his ingenuity, Parck proposed to Thrawn that he be presented before the Emperor, where he could prove to be a valuable asset and potentially gain the resources necessary to defend his people. Barris dismissed the idea, asserting that the Emperor would never employ an alien, prompting Parck to guarantee Thrawn's release to any location of his choosing should the Emperor decline. Thrawn accepted, and Parck ordered the ship to return to Coruscant immediately, much to the surprise of Booster Terrik.

Following Walt Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm in 2012, the Expanded Universe underwent a rebrand, becoming known as "Legends". Consequently, both "Mist Encounter" and Thrawn were deemed non-canon, along with the rest of the continuity. However, in 2016, Thrawn was reinstated into canon, and a year later, Zahn authored a book about him. The book's initial two chapters closely mirror "Mist Encounter," preserving the characters and plot with minimal alterations, such as the inclusion of the point-of-view character Eli Vanto and the transformation of the Strikefast from a Victory-class Star Destroyer into a Venator-class Star Destroyer. In 2018, the novel was adapted into a comic; the first issue covered the portions of the novel that corresponded to "Mist Encounter," with artist Luke Ross drawing inspiration from Doug Shuler's original 1995 illustrations of Thrawn and Parck for his depictions.