The two Sith Lords Darth Tenebrous and his apprentice Darth Plagueis traveled to Bal'demnic with the intention of weaponizing a high concentration of cortosis ore. Members of Subtext Mining, who provided Tenebrous with a mining survey of the heated crystalline caves housing the ore, also provided the Bith Sith Master M-2 Mining Droids to excavate the ore. Unknown to Tenebrous and Plagueis, the mining droids were secretly programmed to ignite the caverns using pockets of lethane gas that were not described in the survey report. Unable to stop the droids from releasing the highly flammable lethane, Tenebrous and Plagueis focused their efforts on escaping the cave and the resulting explosion. The two Sith Lords had managed to make their way towards the grotto where their ship had rested. As Tenebrous was focused on protecting the ship from the explosion, Plagueis seized the opportunity to kill his Master by using the force to crush the Bith under large slabs of stone and rocks, and in turn, severely damage the very starship the two Sith Lords used for their arrival.
Although Plagueis had survived the explosion and was successful in killing Tenebrous, he was stranded on Bal'demnic. What's more, in his effort to kill Tenebrous, Plagueis had suffered injuries to his back from falling debris, resulting in a continuously bleeding wound that would fester and become infected as time went by. The Muun spent the following evening reaching the Kon'meas Spaceport. Despite being famished, lacking proper rest, and in need of medical attention for his injuries, Plagueis was intent on ensuring that no one would learn of his presence on Bal'demnic.
Eventually, Plagueis made his way to the spaceport. After a considerable amount of time searching, he discovered through his comlink that a structurally long freighter, with a registered model number of LS-447-3, was scheduled to depart for Ithor, which was not far away from his homeworld of Muunilist. With the ship going by the name “Woebegone”, Plagueis smuggled himself onboard the freighter using the ship's cargo as cover. He concealed himself inside one of the ship's refrigerated cargo bays, using his three hearts to regulate his blood to combat the low temperatures.
During the jump to hyperspace, Plagueis' presence on the ship was discovered by its crew. Led by Captain Ellin Lah, most of the Woebegone shipmates confronted the Muun who had spoiled some of their cargo of aquatic organisms, with most of them coated in the Sith Lord's blood due to his untreated injuries.
With tensions building between Plagueis and most of the ship's crew members, with the latter outraged that some of their cargo was ruined as well as the Muun refusing to share any details on his identity and why he did not leave Bal'demnic using the same ship he arrived in, Plagueis opted to make a deal with Captain Lah through private negotiations. Plaguies still refused to reveal his identity and his purpose on Bal'demnic, however, he did offer the crew reimbursement for their spoiled cargo as well as additional compensation for a safe passage towards Muunilist. Taking the Muun's offer into consideration, the Torguta Captain chose to converse with her shipmates to make a final decision.
Fearful that the Muun may have been involved in illicit activities on Bal'demnic, the crew resolved to contact the authorities on Bal'demnic to learn whether or not Plagueis was wanted in their sector before taking him to Ithor. When Plagueis learned from Captain Lah of the crew's decision, his warnings for her and the other crew members to reconsider their choice fell on deaf ears and Captain Lah had primed her blaster, for firing. What's more, the Woebegone had already halted its route to Ithor by dropping out of hyperspace. Backed into a corner, the Muun decided to act. Arming himself with his lightsaber, Plagueis fatally struck the Torguta Captain, nearly decapitating her, before making his way to the ship's cabin space where most of the remaining crew were present. When confronted by the now-hostile Muun, the crew immediately armed themselves with their respective blasters.
Oblivious to the Muun's nature as a Dark Lord of the Sith, the crew was vastly outmatched. Plaguies had tossed his lightsaber into a spinning arc to maim crew members Semasalli and Blir', all but removing the former's left shoulder while removing the latter's antenna palps and scalp. The Klatooinian Wandau attempted to finish the Sith Lord by firing his blaster at close range before Plagueis' still-spinning lightsaber returned to him, but Plagueis absorbed his blaster fire and retaliated with Force Lightning, paralyzing the Klatooinian from the waist down. The crew's male Zabraak Maa Kaap moved in on Plagueis with a virbroblade and a series of melees after his own blaster was depleted. Plagueis avoided Maa Kaap's physical attacks and delivered a forceful kick to the Zabrak's thorax which sent him flying across the cabin space, causing Maa Kaap's spine to snap and his arteries to burst. The remaining crew members, Doo Zuto and PePe Rossh, however, managed to physically attack the Muun with teeth and claws after securing a hold on the Sith Lord, but Plagueis was unaffected. Plagueis ended the conflict by removing Pepe Rosh's face and Doo Zuto's snout.
After the onslaught, Plagueis attempted to preserve and study the crew members' midi-chlorians, but to his dismay, was unsuccessful as some of the crew members had died fairly quickly. Wandau, who was fully conscious, had mistakenly accused Plagueis for a rogue Jedi who could have used the force to compel the crew instead of killing them as the Klatooinian had apparently experienced this beforehand. Disgusted by what he perceived as a weak-willed Klatooinian, Plagueis finished him with the force.
With the Woebegone crew all but neutralized, the ship's multi-function droid 11-4D, who acted as medical personnel aboard the ship, immediately came into the service of Darth Plagueis. The droid treated the Sith Lord's injuries, provided him with food and drink, as well as piloted the ship based on the Muun's coordinates to arrive at the Deep Space Demolition and Removal, which was operated by Plagueis' then business partner, Boss Cabra. With the Woebegone crew members either dead or comatose, Plagueis ordered the freighter to be sealed and slagged aboard the Deep Space Demolition, effectively eliminating any witnesses of his presence on Bal'demnic save for the droid, 11-4D, who would continue to serve Plagueis for decades until the Muun's death at the hands of his apprentice.