Using a distraction by Luke and Anakin, Jaina rescues Jacen who is still unaware he is part of a larger plot. She fills him in and he tells her has given up on the Force. They escape, and disguised as Duros, they take a transport down to Duro. Leia contacts them and wants them to pick up a few others before leaving. They want her to come as well, but Leia refuses. They argue, but are cut off. The Yuuzhan Vong are attacking!

Jacen finds his dad who is helping refugees hide in an underground tunnel that the Ryn have been digging. In the control room, Jaina assists with the take offs of transport ships. A transmission from the Yuuzhan Vong interrupts the New Republic airwaves and Lah tells everyone to stay put. Any attack or attempts to leave will not be tolerated. Leia tells the ships that they should do whatever they think is best for themselves and those they are transporting. Luke and Mara, along with Anakin launch their ships as well.

The Vong attack in full force bringing various creations down with them, including a giant snake that begins eating an orbital city and any unlucky ship in the area.

Admiral Wuht’s New Republic troops gather together to protect any cities that are salvageable. Luke tries to get the Council to send additional help, but Fey’lya denies the request. The blame again will fall to the Jedi.

The Solo family meets together inside the tunnel and discusses what to do next. Leia tells of a hidden freighter that will hold two thousand refugees. Han goes to check it out with some Ryn while Leia heads back to the administration building with Jacen and Jaina to sabotage whatever she can.

Han finds the buried freighter and he and the Ryn attempt to get it running again.

In the admin building, Jaina, Jacen and Leia catch sight of a large sacrificial pit being dug. Using a distraction, they make their way to the mining laser platform in hopes of using it, but they run into some Vong warriors. Leia pushes the twins through a door into the tunnel system and closes them in. She is attacked and captured. Jacen tells Jaina to warn Mara and Luke while he goes back for their mother.

Nom Anor takes Leia to meet Lah. Leia attempts to stall them so the others will have a chance to save the refugees from being killed. Lah tells her that they plan to destroy Duro’s orbital cities and use the planet as a staging point for attacking the Core Worlds. After the invasion, they will sacrifice all of the Jedi. She is tossed into a cell with Randa who admits to her that he attempted to trade Jacen to save his homeworld. Looking around the cell, Leia realizes that a conduit runs directly into the tunnel system. She tries tapping on the pipe in code, but no one answers. Through the Force, she reaches out to Luke who gets her message and relays it back to Jaina. Luke also realizes that it is not Leia who is in danger, but it is Jacen who stands at a crossroads.

In the battle, Anakin is able to kill the giant snake by launching a proton torpedo and a reactor into its throat.

Jacen is nearing his mother’s location. Still being guided by a voice he doesn’t know, he again has the sensation that the galaxy is on the verge of tipping either to light or to dark. By standing in the middle, he now understands, he is doing nothing to affect it either way.

Still tapping on the conduit, Leia receives a response from Jaina and tells her to go warn Mara and Luke before coming to rescue her. Leia and Randa are taken back into the office and she sees that the sacrifice is beginning. As the Vong prepare to execute Leia, Randa uses his tail to attack the Vong. Leia gets her lightsaber and attempts to help, but she is bound and cannot. Randa is killed, and Leia is captured. Lah begins to torture her.

Jacen fights his way into the room and sees her lying in blood on the floor surrounded by Yuuzhan Vong. The room is almost spinning around him and Jacen now knows that he cannot fight the dark without the light of the Force. The energy he had been suppressing begins to flow from him as he takes his lightsaber and rushes into the crowd killing those he can. He hears the voice pressing him forward and he begins to through objects around the room knocking the warriors about. Lah taunts him and begins to attack, but Jacen flings the massive office desk into him and knocks him out the open window. The remaining Vong are stunned by this. Jaina enters the room with her lightsaber drawn and helps clear the way as Jacen helps Leia to safety.

After saying goodbye to Droma in the refugee freighter, Han and Threepio take the Falcon and head to the tunnel’s exit point to meet his family. As they land, coralskippers begin streaming in. Jacen gets Leia inside and he and Jaina begin medical attention. After Leia is sedated, they man the guns.

Mara and Anakin attack any ships around to draw their fire in attempts to save the last orbital city, which eventually is escorted out of the system. The heroes all get their shots in before finally breaking off the attack and leaving the system as well.

Surrounded by chaos and pain, Mara receives a message through the Force. Their baby will be a boy. They all begin the trip to Coruscant to give the Senate the bad news.

Lah has survived, but is injured. Nom Anor tells him the Jedi that attacked him was Jacen Solo. Nom Anor had hoped to be promoted, but instead was only transferred to another assignment. Using slaves to operating the com unit, Lah sends a message to the New Republic. He tells them to give them all the Jedi and they will be spared. Special reward awaits the one who brings him Jacen Solo alive. After the transmission he takes Leia’s lightsaber and throws it into the burning pit.