During the Yuuzhan Vong War, the Yuuzhan Vong empire conquered the planet Wayland where they learned of the presence of a stronghold that belonged to the late Emperor Palpatine. Conducting drilling operations, they discovered the chemical formula for bacta which the Shaper caste analyzed. This led to the creation of a plague weapon designed to target its effect and led to an initiative being conducted by the Shapers to target bacta production. The project was overseen by the Shaper Viith Yalu who intended to cripple the New Republic during the short cease fire at the time. To accomplish this goal, he made use of the mentally disturbed Jedi Bey Gandan as a carrier for the plague and smuggle it to Thyferra.