Prison siege at Sunspot

During the Galactic Civil War, the Rebel Alliance operated a highly confidential detention center known as Sunspot Prison. This orbital prison, circling a star, was protected by a network of turbolasers. It housed a variety of individuals, including war criminals, Imperial intelligence officers, contract soldiers, and at least a couple of Moffs. The prison's location resulted in constant exposure to sunlight and heat.

Following the Battle of Vrogas Vas, Princess Leia Organa, Luke Skywalker, and Han Solo, all rebel operatives, apprehended Darth Vader's secret accomplice, Dr. Chelli Lona Aphra, a droid and weapons expert. Together with Aphra's estranged associate Sana Starros, Organa and a contingent of rebel soldiers ferried Aphra to Sunspot Prison aboard the Volt Cobra. The uncooperative Aphra resisted Alliance interrogations for several weeks.

Concurrently, former rebel intelligence agent Eneb Ray, accompanied by a squad of droids including IG-RM bodyguard and enforcer droids, journeyed to the isolated Sunspot Prison. A survivor of the disastrous Arrth-Eno Mission, Ray was convinced that the Rebel Alliance lacked the necessary brutality to triumph in the war against the Galactic Empire. His scheme was to eliminate the Imperial captives within the orbital facility and persuade his former intelligence superior, Organa, to embrace harsher strategies.

To evade Sunspot Prison's sophisticated detection systems, Ray and his droid forces disembarked some distance from the space station. Ray, masked and suited for space, directed his droids toward the station. Despite the intense heat, Ray and the majority of his droids managed to secure themselves to the prison's outer shell using grappling lasers. One droid was lost to the burning star, but the rest successfully breached the station.

While a diversionary attack was launched against Q Sector, Ray and his main force seized control of the prison's command center, taking the chief warden and the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO as hostages. Organa, Starros, and the rebel forces under their command successfully repelled the droid invaders in Q Sector. However, Ray contacted Organa via comlink, announcing his takeover of the prison. After the warden dismissed him as a fool, Ray struck him with his sidearm. Ray "assured" Organa that his intention was not to liberate the prisoners, but to demonstrate that they were beyond redemption.

Organa and Starros prevented two IG-RM droids from executing prisoners in cellblock seven, but were unable to prevent the deaths of several inmates. When Organa reiterated her opposition to the intruder's plan, Ray argued that war held no nobility. While Starros was somewhat swayed by Ray's perspective, she remained loyal to Organa. In an attempt to challenge Organa's convictions, Ray released 17 Imperial prisoners, including the notorious Kolar Ludd.

Despite Organa and Starros managing to restrain the prisoners, including Ludd, a Gamorrean, and a Zabrak, Ray sealed the prisoners within sector nine and deactivated the sun shield. The prisoners were incinerated by the intense solar radiation. When Organa protested, Ray criticized her for believing herself superior to the prisoners. He declared that he had embraced his identity as a killer. When Organa inquired about his identity, Ray responded that he had witnessed the true nature of their adversary.

Organa and Starros later rescued Aphra from being shot by one of Ray's IG-RM droids. Despite the animosity between Starros and Aphra, the three women agreed to set aside their differences to defeat the "lunatic." Starros attempted to transmit a distress signal from K block, but was thwarted by one of Ray's IG-RM droids, now in control of the prison's automated systems. Starros was then attacked by an IG-RM. The technologically adept Aphra attempted to reprogram the droid, but Organa destroyed it.

Following some debate, Organa devised a plan to search the cell blocks for prisoners to save and proceed towards the docking bay to facilitate their escape. Meanwhile, in the control room, C-3PO cautioned R2-D2 against any rash actions, as C-3PO's arms had only recently been reattached. Elsewhere, Ray killed a prisoner in the maximum-security cell 17 who claimed to have killed three Jedi. Before departing, Ray informed the prisoner that the Emperor was a Sith Lord.

Ray then entered cell 18 before using the prison's automated systems to expose the Imperial prisoners to the void of space, resulting in numerous deaths. Contacting Organa via comlink, Ray reveled in his murderous actions, asserting that he was a true combatant of the Alliance. In the control room, R2-D2 propelled the hesitant C-3PO into one of Ray's droid subordinates, causing the latter to unlock the blast doors to the command center.

Following a firefight, Organa and her allies, aided by one of Aphra's reprogrammed IG-RM droids, successfully stormed the command room. After reuniting with C-3PO and R2-D2, Organa confronted Ray's droid lieutenant at gunpoint, demanding to know his master's identity. The droid refused to reveal his master's identity, but claimed that his master was attempting to "teach her the lesson she had once taught him."

While Aphra and Starros argued about the former's betrayal of the latter, Han Solo and Luke Skywalker arrived aboard the Millennium Falcon. The two had returned from delivering nerfs to the planet Ibaar in an attempt to compensate for the Alliance funds that Solo had lost during a game of sabacc on an unidentified planet. However, Ray ambushed the two men in the docking bay and restrained them.

When Organa, Starros, and Aphra arrived in the hangar, they confronted Ray, who offered Organa the chance to demonstrate how she could secure victory in the Galactic Civil War if she embraced his ruthless methods. Ray threatened to execute her friends if she refused to execute the Imperial prisoner Aphra. While Organa refused to compromise her moral principles, Starros sought to settle her long-standing feud with her estranged friend once and for all.

Ray then removed his mask, informing Organa that he was a product of her actions and that she had been responsible for sending him down this path. Despite Ray's scarred and disfigured face, Organa recognized him as the former spy who had vanished during the disastrous Arrth-Eno mission. Taking pity on him, Organa offered to assist him, but Ray countered that she was the one in need of his assistance. He then reiterated his demand to execute Aphra.

Unable to reason with Ray, Organa instructed R2-D2 to activate an ion pulse, which disabled the station's gravitational systems. While Organa battled Ray, Starros attacked Aphra. Ray gained the advantage over Organa and began to choke her. Starros shoved Aphra into Ray, preventing him from killing Organa. The three women then attacked Ray and subdued him.

Following Ray's capture, Rebel Alliance forces entered Sunspot Prison and evacuated the remaining prisoners. The bodies of the deceased were placed in body bags. The prison warden credited Organa with saving the lives of some of the prisoners, but Organa felt that too many lives, including those of guards and prisoners, had been lost that day.

Meanwhile, Aphra escaped in an escape pod with the tacit approval of Organa and Starros. The rebels then evacuated the prison in their ships. Ray was also taken into rebel custody. Organa offered him medical care, but he refused her offers of assistance. While being transported aboard a rebel ship, Ray used an unlocking device disguised as a dental implant to escape rebel custody.

Several days later, the Task Force 99 elite stormtroopers Cav, Kreel, and Misty arrived at the abandoned Sunspot Prison in search of Ludd. However, they discovered that the rebels had already evacuated the facility. Under Kreel's command, they proceeded on a new mission to eliminate rebels.

The prison siege at Sunspot was first depicted, albeit unnamed, in the sixteenth edition of the 2015 comic book series Star Wars. The issue was authored by Jason Aaron, illustrated by [Leinil Francis Yu](/article/leinil_francis_yu], and published by Marvel Comics on February 17, 2016. The event was subsequently identified in the 2023 reference publication Star Wars: Timelines.