Little Bivoli

"No really, this ship is a mess! It's a provisioning ship -- for the military!"

- Marn Hierogryph

Little Bivoli was a Quartermaster-class supply carrier that served as a fringer provisioning ship for the Republic Navy up to 3,963 BBY. It was stolen from its original owners on Ralltiir by the Trandoshan Slyssk, a member of the Raff Syndicate, a pirate organization. It was stolen for the Snivvian black marketeer Marn Heirogryph, companion to the Jedi Padawan Zayne Carrick, the accused perpetrator of the Padawan Massacre of Taris. When the ship left Ralltiir it was contacted by the Republic Navy's Courageous battle group and ordered to join formation as would have been normal for the Little Bivoli being the provisioning ship it was. The fleet jumped to hyperspace for Serroco where it would take part in the Battle of Serroco against the Mandalorians in an ongoing war with them. It was here that the Little Bivoli was destroyed when the Mandalorians bombed Serroco.

Description
The Little Bivoli was a Quartermaster-class supply carrier which served as a provisioning ship. Both sides of the 45–meter–long ship could fold out to reveal dining areas with tables and chairs. The buffets and galley serving these dining areas were located in the middle of the ship. Stores for cargo and quarters for the ship's crew were located above the galley with the cockpit located to the front of the ship on the starboard side. The Aurebesh for "Little Bivoli" could be seen on the sides of the ship above the sections which folded out.

Acquisition
"It's being delivered at Pad 233, right about midnight."

- Marn Hierogryph explaining the arrangements for collecting the Little Bivoli to Zayne Carrick

On Ralltiir, the Snivvian black marketeer Marn Hierogryph and Jedi Padawan Zayne Carrick, the falsely accused perpetrator of the Padawan Massacre of Taris, where four of Zayne's fellow Padawans were killed by their masters, were forced to look for a new ship after their previous Arkanian offshoot companions, Jarael and Camper left on their ship, the Last Resort, to find a cure for Camper's illness on Arkania. After bidding farewell to the Last Resort ' s crew, Carrick met up with Gryph, who told him that he had already found them passage and that they were to go to Pad 223 at midnight to collect it.

Little did Carrick know, Gryph had hired the Trandoshan Slyssk, a member of the Raff Syndicate, a pirate organization, to steal a ship. Slyssk demonstrated his lack of skill at piloting when he delivered the Bivoli to Pad 223 by knocking over several lampposts. After some difficulty in getting Slyssk to emerge he eventually did so but demanded ten times the 9,000 credits that Gryph was to pay him. After a short discussion between the two, Carrick burst out in laughter at the futility of Gryph's argument. Gryph then subtly suggested that Carrick use the Force to coerce Slyssk into standing down. Carrick pulled a damaged lamppost down on top of Slyssk but not before Gryph pulled him out of the way fooling Slyssk into making a life-debt to Gryph.

At this point the previous owners arrived and started shooting at the trio and deciding to drop the matter in favour of saving themselves, Slyssk, Carrick and Gryph piled onto the Bivoli and took off. When they reached orbit they were hailed by Courageous, the Inexpugnable-class flagship of Courageous battle group. They were ordered to merge into formation for a hyperspace jump bound to Serroco given that the Bivoli had often served as a provisioning ship for the Navy throughout the Republic's ongoing conflict with the Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders.

Camp Three
"We've been recognized as the place to be in Camp Three, that's what!"

- Marn Hierogryph to Zayne Carrick



Upon arriving on Serroco with the Republic fleet, the Bivoli continued its role as a provisioning ship. The ship was soon common knowledge at Camp Three for being the best food served there, even more so than the army commissary. One of the more popular dishes was Bivoli tempari cooked by none other than the original thief of the ship, Slyssk. According to Gryph, Trandoshans such as Slyssk weren't known for being good cooks because no-one had ever asked them to. With Gryph being the host at the front, Carrick was relegated to dish-washing and often it seemed, did not do so. At one point Gryph went to see why the supply of clean plates for the buffet was low and found Carrick meditating on the Force to clear his mind due to the stress of being a fugitive hiding among the Republic Navy. Carrick was forced to abandon his meditation when one of the serving droids dropped a tray of food on a soldier's coat. After a brief meeting with Carth Onasi, a lieutenant in the Courageous battle group, Carrick went to find Gryph counting large piles of credits in a room in the ship and stated how he felt they should pull out before the Mandalorians arrived. Gryph responded with the fact that the soldiers were hungry and laden with money making his business as the new manager of Little Bivoli rather successful. It was now that Carrick had his Force vision of the Mandalorians bombing Serroco, what would later be the turning point of the imminent Battle of Serroco, and so he told Gryph that they had to pull out as soon as possible before the Jedi stowed away aboard Carth's ship to reach the commander of the Courageous, Admiral Saul Karath.

Destruction
"Looks like it tried to make a getaway. It was just too late."

- Carth Onasi on the Courageous telling of Little Bivoli's fate

It was not until the following day after lunch, when the Mandalorians arrived, that Gryph started closing up to leave Serroco despite Carrick contacting him and persistently asking him to leave Serroco. Slyssk however revealed that there was not enough fuel left in the Bivoli to even make it into orbit. He explained that he had stolen the ship before the original owners had time to refuel the ship fully. Slyssk and Gryph managed to find another way off the planet before the nuclear bombardment by the Mandalorians.

After the bombardment, the Little Bivoli showed on the Courageous' scanners as being destroyed. The ship was then officially listed to the general public as a ship destroyed in the Battle of Serroco, among other fringer ships, in The Admiral's List: Remember Serroco! Edition.

Owners and operators
The original owners of the Bivoli before it was stolen were not known by anything other than the fact that they operated the Bivoli as a fringer provisioning ship. The only other known owner was Gryph who assumed ownership when Slyssk stole it for him. Slyssk served as the cook for the ship whilst it was in operation on Serroco. During his time on the ship, Carrick cleaned plates for the buffet but would have to serve food when the serving droids malfunctioned.

Behind the scenes
Little Bivoli was first intoduced in Days of Fear, Part 1 and was destroyed at the conclusion of the story arc in Days of Fear, Part 3. Despite Little Bivoli being destroyed at the Battle of Serroco, Gryph and Slyssk managed to escape and are reunited with Carrick soon thereafter. The Little Bivoli was later identified as a Quartermaster-class supply carrier in the Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide which was released in 2008.

Dustin Weaver pencilled Little Bivoli in Days of Fear, Part 1 and Days of Fear, Part 3 whereas Brian Ching pencilled it in Days of Fear, Part 2. John Jackson Miller was the writer for these three issues.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: Days of Fear

Notes and references
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