"Trading Scars," a brief narrative penned by Samantha Wallschlaeger, appeared on the developer's blog for Star Wars: The Old Republic on August 17, 2017. This story functions as an introduction to the Flashpoint: Crisis on Umbara.
Two Umbaran commandos, Nira and Veesh, are tasked with guarding a cargo of Adegan crystals. They ride a hover train that traverses the perilous landscape connecting Umbaran urban centers. To alleviate the tedium of the journey, they share anecdotes of prior journeys and conflicts encountered on earlier protection assignments. This sharing of stories greatly disturbs the new commando accompanying them, who is undertaking their first protection mission. Suddenly, the train comes under assault from Republic insurgents seeking to seize the Adegan crystals for their own purposes.