X-Wing Rogue Squadron #8, also known as "The Phantom Affair, Part 4", represents the eighth installment in the Star Wars: X-Wing Rogue Squadron comic book series. Dark Horse Comics published it on May 1, 1996.
The inhabitants of Mrlsst should have understood a long time ago that playing politics is a losing game, particularly after a noble Jedi gave his life so that the Empire would leave their Academy alone. However, in the chaos of war, past lessons are easily disregarded. Over the years, the Academy has become a breeding ground for secrets and schemes, with students and faculty constantly at odds. Now, they are about to receive a harsh reminder, one delivered through violence and destruction. Unfortunately for Wedge and the Rogue Squadron team, this lesson arrives precisely when they land on Mrlsst.
Noss Prisht contemplates the ongoing conflict on Mrlsst, noting that while the planet suffered immense damage, it also revealed the best qualities of its people. President Gyr Keela volunteered his personal transport for medical use; smugglers, students, and professors collaborated, and Rogue Squadron directly confronted Imperial forces.
The Rogues ponder that even though Rorax Falken's lab appeared destroyed, its mass readings remained unchanged. At the base, Dllr Nep, Mirax Terrik who is safe but imprisoned, discuss the Phantom Project with Falken. Falken explains that he was tricked into developing technology that aided in the construction of the Death Star, which made him realize the Empire's lack of principles. Keela, Falken's successor as president of the Mrlsst Trade and Science Academy, thought he could negotiate favorably with the Empire but was unaware that the Phantom Project was a deception and continued its development. Tirrek and Nep begin formulating their escape, and one of Falken's students reveals that the spectral Jedi is actually a hologram controlled by Falken. Stormtroopers, under the command of Loka Hask, attack the lab, firing indiscriminately; Falken is wounded, disrupting the hologram. Groznik (believing the holographic Jedi to be Throm Loro, to whom Groznik had a life debt) becomes enraged and attacks the troopers.
Terrik and Nep, with the help of Falken's students, recover the Pulsar Skate from the Imperials. Terrik reveals that she purloined a datacard that she believes contains Falken's final unreleased musical composition, but it only produces incomprehensible noise. As TIE Fighters approach their ship, they are rescued by Rogue Squadron's X-Wings. The occupants of the Pulsar Skate successfully decipher Falken's stolen datacard, discovering a new project: the gravitic polarization beam, a genuine and functional "planet-slicing" weapon. Wedge Antilles orders the remote activation of the weapon to destroy an Imperial Interdictor cruiser threatening their escape. Hask and Gade Yedan also learn about the weapon's existence, and Hask kills Yedan in order to escape, but Groznik grabs Hask's foot as the weapon is activated. A wormhole opens, engulfing the base and the Star Destroyer.
On the surface of Mrlsst, Keela explains to Antilles that the recent events might save the academy from its internal corruption and conflicts by giving its students and faculty a shared goal: rebuilding. Loro mourns Groznik's death, and Antilles confirms that the Alliance now possesses the gravitic polarization beam, but he insists that it would be best if it is never used. The Mrlssi reflect on how they can no longer avoid politics, but they will still choose the path they believe is right.