Skirmish on Kavan

Driven by the intent to eliminate Jacen for his alliance with Lumiya and the potential danger it posed to her son, Mara Jade Skywalker tracked him to Kavan. Once there, Mara skillfully used her connection to the Force to draw Jacen into a tunnel. Upon entering, Jacen issued empty threats. Abruptly, Mara burst forth, delivering a forceful kick to Jacen's knee. Briefly incapacitated, Jacen retaliated by activating his lightsaber, slicing away at the tunnel walls. Mara evaded the lightsaber's strike by dropping to the ground, then sprinted deeper into the tunnel. She strategically led Jacen into a section with a low ceiling, restricting his lightsaber movements. Mara then devised a trap, placing a rusted plate on the floor and using the Force to support a brick archway. This would alert her to his proximity when he stepped on the bricks. Impatiently, Jacen hurried across the plate, triggering Mara's trap. Now fully aware of his location, she employed the Force to collapse the walls, sealing off his escape routes. Jacen found himself trapped beneath the falling mortar and rubble. As the dust cleared, Mara spotted Jacen's hand protruding from the debris. She also noticed his bloodied face, but refrained from reaching for his hand, recognizing it as a Sith tactic she herself had employed. Instead, she drew her blaster and fired.

Although wounded, Jacen was far from defeated. He unleashed a powerful Force Wave to deflect the blaster shot, sending rubble scattering in all directions. Mara was caught in the blast and slammed against a wall. Jacen quickly regained his footing, knowing that Mara would relentlessly pursue him until he was truly dead. It was at that moment that he realized Mara was destined to be his Sith sacrifice. Her death at his hands was necessary for his complete transformation.

Despite suffering a deep head wound, Mara charged at him, wielding both her shoto and vibroblade. She lunged, slashing him across the cheekbone and chin. Jacen responded with a Force Push, sending Mara crashing into a wall, but she continued her attack. Jacen understood that he needed space to maneuver and that Mara was gradually cornering him. He fired his dart gun, launching four projectiles, all of which Mara deflected with her lightsaber. He then used the Force to hurl debris at Mara, but she repeatedly dodged until she was close enough to leap onto Jacen's back. They tumbled to the ground, and she plunged her vibroblade into his chin. Jacen swung his saber wildly, unable to land a solid blow in such close quarters. He was rapidly losing blood, stamina, and strength, realizing that he couldn't win in this confined space. Mara countered each of Jacen's thrusts with her shoto.

They grappled, both utilizing the Force extensively, but Jacen eventually managed to Force Push her away. Jacen attempted to Force jolt her spine, but she deflected the attack. Mara tried to pull his lightsaber away from him, but Jacen held onto it tightly. Mara lunged at Jacen, but he Force pushed her into a pillar. Jacen retreated, falling into a deep crevice. He felt intense pain as his lightsaber was flung away. He struggled to get up, giving Mara just enough time to recover and attack again, plunging her shoto beneath his collarbone. Jacen was overwhelmed by pain, but he managed to summon his lightsaber. However, he was too slow to prevent Mara from crashing into him and pinning him down. Mara prepared to kill Jacen with her vibroblade, but Jacen grabbed her hair and pulled her head close to his lightsaber, disrupting her attack. She fought back, hacking at him with her shoto, but Jacen blocked each strike with his weakening Force powers. Her vibroblade grazed his neck, but he was focused on finding one of his extra poison darts. Using all her strength, she jerked back, leaving him with a handful of hair. Mara arched back, preparing to strike Jacen with her vibroblade and shoto, but Jacen realized that her only thought was protecting Ben. Jacen stared into Mara's eyes and created an illusion of Ben's face over his own to distract her, giving him the opportunity to inject a poison dart into her leg.

Mara gasped and looked down at her leg as the pain intensified. Her weapons fell from her grasp as she convulsed, struggling to comprehend what had happened. She realized she had been poisoned, and the truth dawned on her. Jacen confessed his allegiance to the Sith and declared that it was his destiny to become a Sith Lord, one who could bring order to the galaxy. Mara accused Jacen of being like Palpatine, equally cruel, manipulative, and dangerous. With her final words, she asserted that Luke would defeat him and end his evil plans. Finally, she succumbed to a slow and painless death. Mara Jade Skywalker and Jacen Solo were effectively dead, and Darth Caedus was fully realized.

Many Jedi, including her sister-in-law Leia and niece Jaina, felt Mara's death through the Force. Even Jacen experienced remorse for his actions. With her remaining Force strength, the dying Jedi Master reached out to her husband and son, expressing her love and saying goodbye. Luke was deeply affected by his wife's death and ultimately killed the Dark Lady Lumiya in retaliation, believing her to be responsible for Mara's demise.

Luke later discovered his "mistake" and came to believe that Alema Rar was behind Mara's death. Ultimately, however, Ben's investigation into his mother's death revealed that Jacen was the one who killed her. This led the Jedi Council to further turn against the former Jedi Knight, sanctioning Jaina Solo's mission to destroy him, which proved successful.

Lumiya, while not directly responsible, was indeed the reason behind Mara's death. It was through her apprentice, Mara's own nephew, that her former rival during their time as the Emperor's Hands had died. Her revenge was complete.

Jacen Solo, now Darth Caedus, and Mandalore Boba Fett later rationalized the former's killing of Mara as justified self-defense, given that she had initiated the attack.