On an epic journey beyond the borders of the Republic, the Jedi will encounter the most unusual of enemies - and a mortal threat will test their honor and readiness for self-sacrifice... It was conceived as an unprecedented exploration expedition, and ultimately entered the legends of the Republic as a dark page in history Jedi Order. Acclaimed author Timothy Zahn returns to finally tell the gripping story of the amazing but doomed Long Range Flight project. Several years before the Clone Wars, Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth asks the Senate to support an unusually ambitious endeavor. Six masters, twelve knights and fifty thousand men, women and children will board a gigantic ship, equipped with everything necessary for many years of travel, and set off on an expedition to establish contact with intelligent life and colonize yet undiscovered planets beyond the explored expanse of the galaxy. Government bureaucrats are determined to sabotage the expedition before it even begins—but Master C'baoth prevents a high-profile assassination, providing him with the political capital he needs to realize his dream of "Over-Long Flight". At least that's what it looks like from the outside. The famed Jedi Master is unaware that the successful start of the expedition was secretly orchestrated by an unlikely ally - the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, who has his own reasons for wanting the Outrider to set off - and ultimately failed. But Darth Sidious is not the most formidable danger looming over the expedition. On the border of the Unknown Regions, the ship awaits a meeting with the forces of the Chiss Ascendancy, led by a brilliant strategist best known as Thrawn. Even Obi-Wan Kenobi, aboard Outbound Flight with his young Padawan, Anakin Skywalker, is unable to prevent disaster. And a journey that begins as a peaceful Jedi expedition turns into a brutal war for survival in horrific circumstances against incredibly dangerous enemies. Zan's unique blend of espionage, political intrigue and deadly space battles breathes life into the Star Wars legend!