CASSIAN ANDOR had done a lot of horrible things as a member of the Rebel Alliance, all in the name of helping put an end to the Galactic Empire. Rather than tossing him in prison for those crimes, his Alliance commanders had promoted him to the rank of captain and given him even more impossible missions. He sometimes wondered if they secretly wanted him to fail so they could wash their hands of him, but he remained too determined to give in to such wishes.

For his latest assignment, they’d sent him to Kafrene, a pair of gigantic asteroids that spun in tandem through a field of smaller rocks floating in space. Long before, someone had joined them and used them to establish the scummiest trading post in that horrible part of the galaxy. There, Cassian met a spy named Tivik, who supposedly had some explosive news the Alliance needed from Jedha, an ancient place known for worship of the Force.

They met in a dead-end alley. Every bit of Tivik twitched, except for his bad arm, which hung limp at his side. He seemed so nervous that Cassian wondered if he might bolt before he started talking, but once he began, everything spilled out.

“An Imperial pilot—one of the cargo drivers—he defected yesterday,” Tivik reported. “He’s telling people they’re making a weapon. The kyber crystals? That’s what they’re for. He brought a message. He’s got proof.”

Suspicious, Cassian squared off against the man. “What kind of weapon?”

Tivik glanced around, searching for a way out. “Look, I have to go.”

Cassian grabbed him. “What kind of weapon?”

“A planet killer.” Tivik cringed beneath Cassian’s glare. “That’s what he called it.”

Tivik went on to explain that Galen Erso—an old friend of Saw Gerrera’s—had sent the pilot. Tivik was angry about the Alliance and how little it had done to help Saw in his fight.

“Saw’s right! You guys keep talking and stalling and dealing, and we’re on fumes out there! There’s spies everywhere….”

Tivik trailed off as he spotted a pair of stormtroopers entering the alley. They walked toward Cassian and Tivik, demanding to see their scandocs.

Cassian wasn’t about to let anyone take him in. He reached into his pocket, but instead of producing identification, he grabbed his silenced blaster and used it to put a hole straight through each of the stormtroopers.

Tivik recoiled in horror. “No! What have you done?”

A third stormtrooper appeared at the far end of the alley. Rather than charge in to be shot, he called for backup. “Troopers down. Section nine.”

Cassian scanned the alley for a means of escape and spotted some easy handholds he could use to climb out. With Tivik’s damaged arm, though, he’d never make it.

Cassian couldn’t leave him there to be captured. The man would crack for sure, and if he told the Empire what he knew…

Cassian had no choice. He leveled his blaster and shot Tivik dead. The stormtrooper stood there, stunned, and watched the man fall.

Cassian took advantage of that moment to throw himself against the nearest wall and start climbing. He had to move fast, or he’d have to shoot himself, too.