In the vast jungle of a forgotten world, a lone soldier still waited for orders that would never come…
Table of Contents
Before the Discovery
Decades before the Galactic Civil War, during the height of the Clone Wars, a clone trooper designated BL-1707 — later known as Able — served under Jedi General Shaak Ti. Like countless others bred on Kamino, he was a soldier of the Grand Army of the Republic, loyal to his Jedi commanders and unwavering in his duty.
But fate had other plans. In 21 BBY, less than a year into the war, Able’s gunship was shot down by Separatist forces over the jungle world of Lubang Minor. Most of his squad perished. The droids were destroyed, but so was any chance of contact. Alone, Able buried his brothers beneath piles of stones, shouldered his blaster, and disappeared into the wilderness.
As the war raged on across the galaxy, Able was forgotten. He never received the transmission for Order 66. He never learned that the Republic he fought for had become the Empire. And he never heard of the Jedi Purge. For over 20 years, he lived off the land, haunted by duty and the ghosts of the war.
The Day the Galaxy Returned
Then came a new war — and with it, new heroes.
Nearly seven months after the destruction of the Death Star, the Rebel Alliance arrived on Lubang Minor. Red Squadron, including a young Luke Skywalker and Commander Arhul Narra, had been dispatched to establish a listening post. But the Imperials had tracked them, and a firefight broke out.
Watching from the treeline in confusion was Able, now grizzled and weathered, still clad in the battered white armor of a Phase I clone. Seeing Imperial stormtroopers — whom he assumed were just upgraded clones — attacking what appeared to be fellow soldiers, he made a fateful choice. He dug up his DC-15A, donned his helmet, and marched into the chaos.
“Able one seven oh seven, reporting for duty.”
The Imperial officer didn’t buy it. He ordered his troops to open fire. Able barely escaped with his life.
Meeting General Skywalker
Wounded and bewildered, Able stumbled upon Luke and Narra hiding in the jungle. Blasters were drawn on both sides — but Narra, a veteran of the Clone Wars, recognized the old armor.
Able recounted his story, shocked to learn that the war had ended, the Jedi were gone, and the Republic had become an Empire. He was crushed — until Luke ignited his lightsaber.
Introduced as “General Skywalker” (a well-intentioned ruse by Narra), Luke symbolized everything Able believed the Jedi to be.
Together, they disguised themselves in stormtrooper armor, infiltrated the Imperial position, and launched a bold counterattack. Able fought with reckless bravery, hurling a thermal detonator into an Imperial dropship and single-handedly holding off enemy fire to allow the Rebels to retreat.
When he was surrounded and capture seemed certain, Luke pulled off a daring maneuver: swooping his X-wing under the jungle canopy and scooping Able up with the front landing skid — a ridiculous and thrilling rescue only Star Wars could deliver.
Life After the Jungle
Back aboard the Rebel flagship Home One, Able finally shaved, got a haircut, and learned the full truth: Luke wasn’t really a general. But Able didn’t care. Luke was a Jedi — that was enough.
He joined Alliance Intelligence, shedding the numbers of his past and simply going by “Able.” Despite his age, he served in multiple missions across the galaxy — from rescuing prisoners on Kalist VI to raiding Imperial convoys, and even helping destroy Bannistar Station, a major refueling hub for the Empire.
But fate wasn’t done with him yet.
The Final Mission
On a seemingly abandoned moon, Able joined Luke, Leia Organa, and other Rebels to investigate a rumored Imperial weapon. Instead, they found Celeste Morne — a Jedi possessed by a Sith spirit and guarded by a horde of monstrous rakghouls.
Able fought valiantly to save Leia, but was tragically transformed by the Sith artifact into one of the creatures he had just battled.
His last act of loyalty would see him follow Morne into the stars — now a mindless shell of the soldier he once was.
A Soldier Out of Time
Able was more than a clone. He was a relic of a forgotten war, a man trapped by loyalty and duty, whose unwavering faith in the Jedi lived long after the Republic fell. His brief partnership with Luke Skywalker wasn’t just a thrilling side story in the Star Wars: Empire comics — it was a moving intersection of two eras, one closing, another just beginning.
And though Luke was not a general — not yet — maybe, just maybe, Able saw the future before anyone else.
“All Jedi were generals in my day. Force of habit.” — Able
