The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

Chapter 2739 A One-Day Dynasty (Part 1)
2739. A One-Day Dynasty (Part 1)
Thanks to Thrawn's warning, the Imperial Intelligence Service quickly launched an operation.

Intelligence Director Aisani Isard was already conducting high-pressure operations within the inner circle, monitoring the various inner circle nobles. Now, having obtained Thrawn's assessment through Lieutenant General Woolf-Ularen, she decisively mobilized the intelligence department's resources to begin suppressing the rebellion.

In reality, whether Thrawn's judgment was correct or not was unimportant to her. If it was correct, then the rebellion could be quelled; if it was wrong, then it could be used as a deterrent to the core nobles. In any case, Thrawn could be pushed out as a scapegoat when the time came; such a non-human being would surely attract a lot of attention.

The most powerful force the intelligence agency currently possesses on Coruscant is its unit composed entirely of clone veterans. These soldiers are all Kamino clone soldiers who participated in the Clone Wars; however, because the Kamino gene bank was later captured by the Independent System Confederation, they developed gene-targeting weapons and were therefore unusable as a force on the front lines.

Furthermore, due to the accelerated aging of clones, these soldiers are generally around 40 to 50 years old, and have already passed their peak age.

Regardless, the quality of the Kamino clone soldiers is extremely high. They are trained in various combat skills from a young age, and compared to ordinary soldiers, they are overwhelmingly superior in terms of both physical fitness and combat experience.

Therefore, as previously suggested by Aisani Isaad and approved by Palpatine, the Galactic Empire recalled 300 million previously retired Kamino clone soldiers and established a secondary agency under the Imperial Intelligence Bureau—the Imperial Homeland Defense Agency, or IDA for short.

The Director of the Imperial Homeland Defense Bureau is none other than Imperial Marshal Rufon Digorinus!
Marshal Lu Fang's previous attempt to push for the rotation of the First Star System's forces was actually aimed at gaining control of the IDA and the outer space defenses of Coruscant, thereby making himself the true military master of Coruscant.

As Thrawn said, although his actions indirectly contributed to the rebellion, he himself had nothing to do with it.

Rufán-Digorinus was well aware that all his power and status came from His Majesty the Emperor, so he had no reason to rebel. Therefore, when Thrán approached him, realizing this was a great opportunity to gain favor with the Emperor, Rufán-Digorinus immediately took action.

He immediately mobilized IDA soldiers to suppress the rebellion in the affected areas.

The IDA's clone soldiers no longer wear the white polymer alloy armor standard issue for Imperial Stormtroopers; their uniforms are now made of ordinary gray material. Because they are considered a security force under the intelligence department, they are not expected to face the hail of bullets on the front lines, so their precious budget is naturally not allocated to them.

Despite their rudimentary equipment, these soldiers were far more effective than the Imperial stormtroopers composed of ordinary civilians. Furthermore, these clone soldiers, having previously lived in extreme poverty after their retirement, with many unable to even care for themselves, were naturally grateful to the Empire for their re-call.

They had all thought that the invention of gene-targeted weapons had reduced them to worthless trash, but now they were able to return to the center of the empire, receive a stable income and housing, and no longer have to worry about making a living. For them, this was already an immense blessing.

The IDA soldiers, their morale high, immediately split into several groups and quickly traveled by transport plane to the areas where the riots had occurred to suppress them.

In fact, IDA's clone soldiers were overwhelmingly powerful against such a rabble as gangsters. These 'gray-clad soldiers' moved on the battlefield like ghosts. They were extremely accurate with their marks and coordinated well. Often, a five-man team could suppress an entire building controlled by the rebels.

Moreover, the clone soldiers remained as cold-blooded and ruthless as ever. They didn't even care about the lives of civilians; any cost was acceptable as long as the mission was accomplished. This ruthless and efficient style terrified the rebels, and the resistance in the streets and alleys quickly crumbled under the advance of the gray-clad army.

At the same time, Marshal Rufon Digorinus also began to mobilize another powerful force of his—the 20 Imperial Class II Star Destroyers within the atmosphere of Coruscant!

He used his influence in the parliament to forcefully transfer this fleet from the First Star System Army, citing the insufficient strength of the capital region's defense fleet. This led to a very sharp conflict between him and the First Star System Army's Imperial Marshal Oswald Tesick, even resulting in a public confrontation at a high-level meeting.

These 20 Imperial Class II Star Destroyers were Rufon Digorinus's prized possessions. His original goal was to establish his own sphere of influence in the heart of the Empire, so he certainly wouldn't entrust these warships to the capital region's defense fleet. By sheer chance, they became the Galactic Empire's loyalists' trump card for a desperate counterattack!

The movements of the capital region defense fleet are highly suspicious. Faced with the rebellions that are erupting on Coruscant, they, who should have been tasked with suppressing and quelling the uprisings, have remained inactive and have not taken any action whatsoever.

No, it wouldn't be accurate to say they didn't take any action at all. They blocked the shipping lanes around Coruscant, but this action... it's hard to say whether it was helping the Empire stabilize the situation or helping the rebels block Imperial reinforcements.

After a brief conversation with Thrawn, Marshal Rufon Digorinus handed over the 18 Imperial Class II Star Destroyers to Thrawn's command, while he himself went to the headquarters of the Imperial Intelligence Service.

Why 18? Because there were two more Star Destroyers, the same two that accompanied Palpatine to Marshal Demetrius Zarin's weapons testing grounds!

Marshal Lu Fang believed that the core of this rebellion lay in the political aspects, while the military aspects should be left to Solon to worry about.

What he needed to discuss with Aisani-Isad was how to maximize their gains after the rebellion was quelled.

Thrall did not disappoint him. He immediately identified the key to the entire rebellion as the life or death of Emperor Palpatine. However, the priority of whether the emperor was still alive was lower than whether the news would reach Coruscant.

Therefore, he immediately contacted the two Star Destroyers guarding the Emperor in the name of Marshal Rufon-Digorinus, demanding that they immediately activate electromagnetic interference to cut off communications between the weapons testing range and Coruscant.

The captains of the two Star Destroyers were initially reluctant, but they quickly realized they couldn't contact the Emperor, and with Marshal Rufong personally issuing the order, they carried it out.

As electronic interference unfolded, Demetrius Zarin, who had successfully ambushed Palpatine, was utterly astonished and furious to discover that news of his capture of Palpatine could not be transmitted back to Coruscant!
This puzzled him greatly, because logically, the two escorting star destroyers had no reason to do this. They hadn't received any information and should have tried to verify it before reacting. Even if communications were blocked, they should at least have sent a shuttle over.

However, without receiving any information, they cut off all communication! This was an act of utter disregard for the emperor's life!
Such decisiveness and ruthlessness are completely unlike the style of the Imperial Navy!
Field Admiral Demetrius Zarin was forced to send his TIE-Defender fighter squadron to attack the two Star Destroyers. Although the TIE-Defenders quickly destroyed the Star Destroyers' air wing, it would take time to sink them.

But Marshal Zarin is desperately short of time! He must get the news of Palpatine's capture back to Coruscant before the Imperial reinforcements arrive, in order to seize control of public opinion. But communications are blocked, and his breakout attempt is thwarted; every delay is eroding his strategic advantage.

He knew that the operation on Coruscant had already begun. According to the plan, the senators and inner circle nobles involved in the rebellion should immediately convene the Imperial Diet, then force Palpatine to publicly abdicate and cede the throne to him. Only then would the rebellion be considered a success. Marshal Zarin wasn't stupid; he naturally knew that he and his inner circle nobles alone could not possibly control the entire empire. Therefore, holding Palpatine in his grasp and controlling the empire through him was the only option.

But now, he has indeed captured Palpatine, yet no one else knows it!
……

Meanwhile, the uprising on Coruscant is suffering a devastating blow.

Thrawn's strategy of cutting off communications by region was remarkably effective. The rebels' local communication networks remained operational, allowing them to continue their planned uprisings at target locations, attempting to seize key facilities. However, they were also deprived of instructions from the rebel leadership, thus proceeding only according to the original plan.

As a result, the rebels were left to fight individually and become isolated. What's worse, they were completely unaware of this!
Under the attack of the IDA Grey Army, the rebel forces collapsed one after another.

Meanwhile, Thrawn, who had already boarded an Imperial Class II Star Destroyer and begun establishing his own command system, was directing the operation from a holographic war map.

He was currently observing the riots on the surface of Coruscant. The hologram clearly marked the areas where communications were disrupted, and a large amount of frontline combat intelligence was pouring in. However, this chaotic intelligence was quickly dissected and pieced together by Thrawn, revealing the clearest possible picture.

Thrawn pointed heavily at an area and said, "This is the rebels' command center on Coruscant!"

The adjutant standing nearby looked around and asked in confusion, "Isn't this the financial district? Why did the rebels set up their command post here?"

Thron gave a cold smile and said calmly, "It wasn't that they set up their command post here, but rather that someone here participated in and organized this rebellion."

"Wasn't the rebellion led by Marshal Zhalin?"

“Zarin can’t launch a rebellion on his own. He needs to find allies from all sides, such as someone who can defeat His Majesty the Emperor, someone who can control the fleet, someone who can influence the Council, and also allies among the core nobles…” Thron said, “And this person will be in charge of the rebellion on Coruscant while Zarin is stationed abroad.”

He pointed heavily towards the financial district and said, "The mercenaries in this area are tightening their defenses, unlike the rebels in other areas who are still charging forward and believe they have victory in their grasp. This means they are receiving information that the progress in Palpatine's direction is not being reported back, and the situation may be getting out of control."

The adjutant glanced at the incredibly chaotic information and data on the hologram, along with a large amount of video and communications, which marked the movement directions of the various rebel combat squads. Even though Thrawn had pointed out that the rebels in this area were tightening their defenses, the simultaneous movement of hundreds of combat squads made it impossible for him to discern their operational objectives.

He scratched his head, his tone incredulous, "How...how did you figure that out?"

Solon didn't answer. He simply patted his adjutant on the shoulder and said, "Alright, leave this matter to Marshal Lu Fang and IDA. We should go and rescue His Majesty the Emperor."

"And how did you know His Majesty the Emperor needed to be rescued?" the adjutant still couldn't understand. "Or rather, how did you connect the riots on Coruscant with His Majesty the Emperor's side?"

“The sole purpose of launching a rebellion on Coruscant is to seize the supreme power of the Empire, so the objective is clear. Furthermore, if His Majesty could handle this rebellion, he would have already killed the rebels and appeared in person. But…” Thrawn glanced at the time, “It’s been almost two hours, and he’s still nowhere to be found.”

"Let's go!" Soron said calmly, looking out the window.

……

At this time, the Imperial Parliament Building.

A team consisting of dozens of imperial councilors, as well as many core nobles, military generals, and high-ranking officials, stormed into the place and announced that they would immediately convene a parliament.

Their reason was that His Majesty the Emperor had something important to announce.

The current Speaker of the Imperial Council is Mas-Ameda, Palpatine's former deputy when he served as Speaker of the Galactic Republic. He is also a very rare high-ranking official of a non-human race within the Imperial power center.

At that moment, Mas-Ameda had already been seized by soldiers and forcibly pushed into the meeting hall. With an explosive rifle pointed at his forehead, he had no choice but to announce the order to convene an emergency meeting to all the councilors.

Imperial councilors arrived at the venue one after another. Those who were unable to attend participated remotely, their holographic projections appearing on their anti-gravity platforms.

The parliament building became lively again. Since Palpatine began to forcefully suppress the inner circle of nobles, the Imperial Diet had not held a plenary session for a long time.

Not to mention this was supposedly an emergency meeting!
Many people speculated that His Majesty the Emperor was going to dissolve the council... After all, there had been some signs before, and everyone was mentally prepared.

However, once most of the parliamentary representatives had arrived, Mas-Ameda glanced at the soldiers behind him, momentarily at a loss for words. The members of parliament, nobles, and high-ranking officials who had demanded the convening of the assembly also stood there, their faces ashen, fiddling with their communicators, seemingly very busy.

But...didn't they say His Majesty the Emperor had something important to announce?

Where is His Majesty the Emperor?
(End of this chapter)