A brief conflict erupted on the Sorca Retreat when Eternal Rur seized control of a droid during an auction being conducted by the archaeologist doctor Aphra.
The unscrupulous archaeologist Doctor Chelli Lona Aphra, having previously acquired the Rur crystal, arranged an auction at the Sorca Retreat with the intention of making money. Housed within the Rur crystal was an artificial intelligence identifying itself as Eternal Rur, who believed himself to be Rur, the ancient leader of the Ordu Aspectu. Among those in attendance at the auction were Yonak representing the Son-tuul Pride, Sutha from the Hutt Clan, the Cyban Front, the Shadow University, the Dominion of the Ezaraa, Thomas Toov, and Papa Toren, acting as a representative for the Xonti Brothers.
Despite Eternal Rur's ability to possess droids, including a blue Cyban Front droid, Dr. Aphra insisted on proceeding with the auction. Driven by a desire for emancipation from their human master, Dr. Aphra's assassin droids, Triple Zero and Beetee, undermined the auction by informing Darth Vader about the sale of a valuable Jedi relic. Additionally, they secretly installed the Rur crystal into the blue Cyban droid's frame.
The auction's proceedings were further complicated by the arrival of the Xonti Brothers, against whom Aphra's Wookiee companion, Krrsantan, sought retribution for the brutal gladiatorial training he had endured at their hands. They also placed a bid for the Rur crystal, intending to utilize it to power combat androids. Ultimately, the Shadow University emerged as the winning bidder, offering rare artifacts, access to the archives, and the continued use of Dr. Aphra's doctorate title. However, the revitalized Eternal Rur broke free from his containment and pledged vengeance on those who had attempted to purchase him.
Initially, the dean of the Shadow University believed Eternal Rur's assault to be a demonstration, but Dr. Aphra intervened, shielding her and her colleague from the hail of gunfire unleashed by turrets activated by Triple Zero and Beetee. The Ezaraa charged toward Eternal Rur, but many were felled by the turrets and the artificial intelligence's wrath.
Dr. Aphra fled down a corridor, where she encountered the red Cyban Front leader. She lamented her failure to install technopathic controls in the blue droid. However, she noticed that the red Cyban leader was not infected, indicating that someone else was controlling the weapons. Over the comlink, Triple Zero confessed to orchestrating Eternal Rur's rampage and sabotaging the gun controls to gain leverage over Dr. Aphra, instructing her to meet them back in her room.
Yonak made an attempt to subdue Eternal Rur but was outmatched and forced to retreat through several blast doors. He then struck a bargain with Sutha and his subordinates to defeat Rur and seize the crystal for themselves. Simultaneously, Dr. Aphra encountered Black Krrsantan, who persuaded her to use an eye scanner to unlock the weapons vault. Dr. Aphra also consented to assist the Wookiee in hunting down the Xonti Brothers, fulfilling his "life debt" to him.
Dr. Aphra warned the others about the availability of firearms but was tracked down by Eternal Rur. Before Rur could eliminate her, Triple Zero repelled him with a gun turret. Dr. Aphra managed to rejoin the droids in her room just as Darth Vader arrived with stormtroopers and an Imperial Star Destroyer. Shortly after his arrival, Darth Vader used the Force to shatter the red Cyban leader into fragments, causing Dr. Aphra considerable fear.
Triple Zero admitted to informing Lord Vader about the auction but assured Dr. Aphra that he had refrained from mentioning her role in organizing it. Dr. Aphra agreed to emancipate Triple Zero and Beetee by disabling the inhibitor program controlling them, granting the droids control over their formidable arsenal.
Dr. Aphra then aided Black Krrsantan in trapping the Xonti Brothers by sealing the door to their hangar bay, preventing their ship from escaping into hyperspace. To reach the hangar, Dr. Aphra and Krrsantan traversed through the domes. There, they came across the mortally wounded Shadow University dean, who was being used as bait by Yonak and Sutha's forces. With her last breath, the dean implored Dr. Aphra to safeguard the invaluable artifacts aboard the Shadow University's ship.
Distrusting Yonak and Sutha, Aphra and Black Krrsantan pressed on to the Xonti Brother's hangar bay. There, they discovered the Xonti Brothers and Kthoo-Ra attempting to breach the hangar doors using explosives. Given that the hulking Khtoo-Ra possessed greater strength than Black Krrsantan due to his cybernetic enhancements, Dr. Aphra dispatched a servant droid. After the Xonti Brothers destroyed the droid, Dr. Aphra feigned negotiations, offering to betray Black Krrsantan.
At that moment, the servant droid activated an ion pulse, incapacitating Khtoo-Raa and the Xonti Brothers. Black Krrsantan then fatally shot Khtoo Raa and took the unconscious Xonti Brothers into custody. As he boarded their ship, Dr. Aphra considered joining him but remembered her earlier commitment to retrieve the Shadow University's ship. Despite the inherent dangers, Dr. Aphra resolved to do something honorable for once.
Employing her slicing skills, Dr. Aphra redirected several stormtroopers from the lower decks to the dome, where the Son-Tuul Pride and Sutha's forces had gathered. Meanwhile, Eternal Rur eliminated the elderly Thomans Toovs, ending his pursuit of immortality. Rur then pursued Dr. Aphra down a turbolift, where they encountered a group of stormtroopers. Nearby, Lord Vader executed a defiant Ezaraa. One of his stormtroopers informed him of the presence of a lightsaber–wielding droid in the dome.
Lord Vader engaged Eternal Rur in a lightsaber duel. Returning to the dome, Dr. Aphra allied herself with Sutha in an attempt to escape the chaos, but the Hutt was killed by a stray blaster shot. Meanwhile, Yonak sacrificed one of his men to reach a red freighter in the hangar. There, he agreed to travel with Triple Zero and Beetee into space.
Lord Vader gained the advantage over Eternal Rur, severing one of his host body's hands. Still defiant, the artificial intelligence used technopathy to seize control of the gun turrets, killing several stormtroopers and narrowly missing Dr. Aphra. He attempted to take control of Darth Vader's circuits, but the cyborg used the Force to destroy Eternal Rur's droid body and recover the Rur crystal.
Following Eternal Rur's defeat, Dr. Aphra departed in the Shadow Academy ship. She evaded Lord Vader's Star Destroyer and successfully jumped into hyperspace. Lord Vader allowed her to escape, content with having secured the Rur crystal. She returned the artifacts to the Shadow University and Museum of Bar'leth but retained some for her personal collection. Dr. Aphra took a vacation on the planet Zeltros but was hunted down by Dukan's associates, including Tukan, who sought vengeance for the death of their comrade in the Cosmatanic Steppes.
Lord Vader considered the conflict on the Sorca Retreat a victory for the Galactic Empire because the deaths of numerous underworld figures disrupted criminal operations, allowing the Empire to focus on the Rebel Alliance. A satisfied Emperor Palpatine added the Rur crystal to his collection of Jedi artifacts at the Imperial Palace on Coruscant.
Meanwhile, Black Krrsantan repaid his "life debt" to the Xonti Brothers by subjecting them to the same harsh training they had inflicted upon him. Elsewhere, Triple Zero and Beetee assisted Yonak in settling scores with his rivals on Son-tuul.
The Skirmish aboard the Sorca Retreat was first depicted in the 2017 Marvel Comics Star Wars: Doctor Aphra Book III: The Enormous Profit story arc.