Comet Run Day Battle

The Comet Run Day Battle was a battle between the Tusken Raiders and the farmer Orrin Gault's Settlers' Call Fund group. Believing the businesswoman Annileen Calwell to be a Force-sensitive Airshaper, the Tusken leader A'Yark attempted to kidnap her from her business Dannar's Claim. However, the Tuskens encountered opposition from the local settlers including a disguised Obi-Wan Kenobi.
After sustaining casualties, the Tuskens were forced to retreat after Annileen activated the Settler's Call transmitter. A'Yark and her warriors fled to Hanter's Gorge in an attempt to reach their camp in the Pillars. However, Gault's settlers encircled them and killed numerous Tuskens including A'Yark's youngest son A'Deen. Kenobi convinced A'Yark and the surviving Tuskens to escape. Gault regarded the Comic Run Day Battle as a victory and used it to encourage more settlers to subscribe to his Settlers' Call Fund.
==Prelude==
In the years leading up to the Great Jedi Purge, conflict between settlers and the indigenous Tusken Raiders of Tatooine had led the farmer and entrepreneur Orrin Gault to establish the Settlers' Call Fund, a militia movement which used sirens to warn of Tusken raids and to mobilize reinforcements. In truth, the Fund was a protection racket created by Gault to pay off his debts to the Hutt crime lord Jabba, which he had accrued following a failed investment in moisture vaporators. While several Tusken attacks were genuine, Gault along with his children Mullen, Veeka, and farmhand Zedd Grobbo staged false flag attacks in order to convince more farmers to sign up for the Fund.
===The dewback chase===
The businesswoman and widow Annileen Calwell owned a convenience store called Dannar's Claim in the Pika Oasis. Calwell ran the store with her two adolescent children Kallie and Jabe Calwell. She also bred several dewbacks in a corral. While Kallie was riding a young dewback named Snit, the creature broke out of the corral and took the unwilling Kallie on a ride into the Jundland Wastes, which was the domain of the female Tusken chieftain A'Yark ("Plug Eye").
Annileen pursued Snit and Kallie on her dewback Vilas. During the chase, Annileen managed to jump onto Snit's back and tried to regain control of the unruly Snit. They were joined by a human man named Ben Kenobi, who was riding his eopie Rooh. "Ben" managed to convince Annileen to pass Kallie to him. As the chase continued, Snit tripped over a hole and almost fell on Annileen. "Ben" used his Force powers to suspend the dewback in mid-air, saving Annileen from being crushed to death. Ben, Annileen, and Kallie then escaped the area before a sarlacc devoured Snit.
===The kidnap attempt===
Unknown to the humans, they were being watched by A'Yark. Believing Annileen to be a Force-sensitive Airshaper similar to the Jedi Sharad Hett, A'Yark convened a war council among her clan. She convinced them that they should kidnap Annileen with the goal of using her Force powers. The sole dissenter H'Raak was executed by her son A'Deen.
Proceeding with A'Yark's plan, her clan attacked Dannar's Claim during the Comet Run race while most of the settlers were away. The Tuskens wounded the Rodian Bohmer and killed a Devaronian investor named Jervett. However, they were repelled by several armed settlers including Orrin, Kenobi, and Wyle Ulbreck, who killed several Tusken Raiders with their blasters. Annileen managed to activate the Settlers' Call beacon, which emitted the recorded cry of a krayt dragon, which frightened the Tuskens and summoned several armed settlers.
==The massacre==
After A'Yark and her surviving warriors retreat, Orrin was criticized by Wyle Ulbreck and the surviving Devaronian investors for the alleged failings of his Settlers' Call warning system. Gault disagreed and countered that the Settlers' Call succeeded in scaring the Tuskens and summoning reinforcements. As reinforcements gathered from the surrounding farms and settlements, Orrin rallied the militia for a reprisal attack against the Tuskens. Orrin also received intelligence that the Tuskens were heading towards Hanter's Gorge, which was surrounded by a high canyon. Jabe joined Orrin's posse, much to the distress of his mother Annileen. She and Kenobi followed Orrin's posse in a speeder bike.
A'Yark and her Tusken warriors entered Hanter's Gorge in an attempt to reach the Pillars but were unable to climb the canyon. Knowing that the Tuskens were trapped, Orrin and his posse blocked the Tuskens' escape route from behind while several settlers including Jabe and Veeka fired at the Tuskens from an escarpment above the gorge. Meanwhile, Kenobi and Annileen watched the massacre from the western side of the gorge. Despite the death of her husband Dannar Calwell at the hands of the Tuskens and the earlier attack on Dannar's Claim, Annileen was horrified by what she regards as a one-sided massacre after Kenobi convinces her that the Tuskens are living beings.
Before Annileen and Kenobi can leave the gorge, they were attacked by A'Deen. Before Annileen can shoot A'Deen, the Tusken was killed by a long-distance blaster shot. As she approaches the fallen Tusken, Annileen realized that the fallen warrior is Jabe's age. When they encountered A'Yark and her seven surviving Tusken warriors, Kenobi proposed a diplomatic solution. As a gesture of peace, Ben laid the fallen A'Deen's gaderffii stick on the ground. When A'Yark grieved over her late son, Annileen and Kenobi realized that she is the Tusken boy's mother.
Through dialogue, Kenobi learns that A'Yark was familiar with Sharad Hett, a Jedi Master who had joined a Tusken clan. In return, A'Yark learned that Annileen is not the Force-sensitive Airshaper but that Kenobi had used his own Force powers to save her from being crushed by the dewback in the desert. Kenobi convinced A'Yark that both sides have spilled enough blood today and that the Tuskens should escape while they still can.
==Aftermath==
Following the events of the Comet Run Day Battle, Orrin and his posse celebrated the killing of 48 Tuskens as retribution for earlier Tusken attacks that claimed the lives of his son Varan Gault, Dannar Calwell, and Shmi. He took advantage of the massacre to recruit eight new subscribers for his Settlers' Fund Call. However, Gault was still heavily indebted to Jabba and his vaporator formula was distasteful and unprofitable. Jabba's Gossam enforcer Bojo Boopa later visited the Pika Outpost to warn Gault that he was falling behind on his repayments.
Out of desperation, Gault proceeded with his plan to marry Annileen. Prior to his proposal, he treated her and her children to a brand new JG-8 luxury landspeeder, which was waiting for them at Mos Eisley's Delroix Speeders. While the Calwells were outstation, Orrin surreptitiously copied Annileen's financial records and title deed. Believing that he could pay off the debt by using Annileen's assets as collateral, Orrin also traveled to Mos Eisley to meet with his bankers and Jabba's manager Mosep Binneed. Mosep was upset at Orrin's delayed loan repayment and ordered his minions to torture him.
However, Orrin was freed by Kenobi, who helped him escape Mosep and his henchmen. Mosep agreed to give Orrin another day to pay off his debts. In desperation, Orrin proceeded with his second plan which involved staging a false flag attack against the Ulbreck's farm. For this raid, Orrin enlisted his children and Annileen's son Jabe. However, the raiders were repelled by Kenobi and Jabe is captured by A'Yark. Kenobi used his friendship with A'Yark to secure Jabe's freedom in return for a baby eopie.
With his plans falling apart, Orrin attempted to convince Annileen to marry him in order to gain access to her assets. However, she refused and subsequently learned from Jabe and Kenobi about Orrin's financial trouble and false flag attacks. To conceal his role in the attacks, Orrin claimed that Kenobi has been colluding with the Tuskens and organises a manhunt against the fugitive Jedi. With the help of Annileen who summons Mosep and Jabba's enforcers, Kenobi revealed Orrin's unscrupulous activities to the settlers, who turn against him. Orrin attempted to hunt down and kill Kenobi, Annileen, and A'Yark but was instead crippled after his landspeeder crashed into the gorge. The crippled Orrin was taken prisoner by A'Yark who forced him to operate a moisture vaporator.
==Behind the scenes==
The Comet Run Day Battle first appeared and was named in John Jackson Miller's 2013 Legends novel Kenobi.
==Appearances==
*Kenobi 
==Notes and references==
Category:Battles of Tatooine
Category:Conflicts during the Imperial Period