The starship Cruel Mistress was an Allanar N3 light freighter used by the Trade Spine League on the planet Burnin Konn during the Iron Blockade of the Anoat sector by the Galactic Empire. The vessel tried to leave Burnin Konn during the blockade with a shipment of ore but was shot down by the Imperials and crashed in the territory of the South Sector Sinners criminal gang, the members of which looted the wreck. A young smuggler recovered the cargo of the Cruel Mistress for the gangster Happy Dapp.