Duel on the Vermillion

In 3 ABY, a duel was fought on the Vermillion, the Fortress-Flagship of the criminal syndicate Crimson Dawn, on the planet Jekara between Crimson Dawn leader Lady Qi'ra and the Sith Lord Darth Vader for possession of the carbonite-frozen body of the smuggler Han Solo.

The duel began after an auction, which was won by Jabba Desilijic Tiure and the Hutt Clan, was held by Crimson Dawn for Solo aboard the Vermillion. Vader arrived after the end of the bidding and laid claim to Solo for himself, and Jabba ultimately surrendered his possession of Solo to the Sith Lord. Qi'ra then insisted that whilst Vader and the Galactic Empire were free to take Solo, they would have to pay the one million credits that Jabba had bid for Solo during the auction, which Vader refused. Qi'ra then questioned Vader if the Empire was too poor or too cheap to pay the credits, which caused Vader to draw his lightsaber. Qi'ra drew two swords and the two engaged in a duel.

While not a real threat to the Dark Lord of the Sith, Qi'ra's skills and the fact that she knew Teräs Käsi both were interesting to Vader. Vader was able to overpower Qi'ra. As he prepared to deliver a killing blow to her, however, he sensed the arrival of his son, Luke Skywalker, to Jekara, which allowed Qi'ra to make her escape. Vader then had the carbonite containing Solo taken to his flagship, the Executor whilst he attempted to kill Skywalker, though he failed and Hutt forces led by Bokku, who wanted to reclaim what he felt was the property of the Hutt Clan, launched an Attack on the Executor. The attack resulted in the destruction of the Grand Hutt Council, and the re-capture of Solo by the bounty hunter Boba Fett, who delivered Solo to Jabba on Tatooine.

Text and facts from the “Duel on the Vermillion” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.