The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

2814. Tarkin's Decision
Galactic Empire, Inner Circle, Planet Oderon, Headquarters of the Fourth Army.

Beneath the magnificent dome, Wilhelm Tarkin sat quietly on the sofa, motionless. Ancient music, a melody from the Galactic Republic's golden age, played repeatedly in the hall.

He listened to it over and over again, without stopping for a moment. He remained in that position the whole time, motionless, as if he were asleep.

Before him, the glaring red alert in the eastern region on the holographic star map seemed to be flowing with blood, but Wilhoff Tarkin remained unmoved, simply sitting quietly without uttering a word.

He was just listening to music, over and over again.

But in his heart, a flame was burning... the flame of hatred, the flame of revenge!

The flame burned silently, yet it was hotter than a star.

Garosh Tarkin, his eldest son; Gideon Tarkin, his brother… all were buried in this chaotic sector of the Eastern Realm. And now, his fingertips slowly traced the crimson patch on the star map—a place once considered the starting point for the Tarkin family's millennia-long glory, now a graveyard for their bloodline.

The two people he cherished most have now turned to dust. Gideon Tarkin's body couldn't even be recovered—as the flagship was destroyed by the purifying beam, everything inside was vaporized by the ultra-high temperature.

But what did Wilhuff Tarkin gain after paying such a heavy price?

Nothing at all.

Moreover, the Twelfth Army, which he planned to establish as the eternal foundation of the Tarkin family, suffered an extremely strong backlash under the leadership of Governor Serben.

The Tarkin family's influence was completely eradicated in the 12th Army, suffering heavy losses in the process. This was because their investments in the area were all confiscated.

Some peripheral members of the family were even seriously injured in the process. It can be said that Governor Serben did everything he could, except for not actually breaking the rules and killing people, just to take revenge on the Tarkin family!

Wilhoff Tarkin closed his eyes and let out a long breath.

Faced with Governor Thurburn's sharp counterattack, his actions were remarkably restrained. Thurburn demanded the seizure of the 150 Star Destroyers, along with all officers and men of all ranks. Wilhoff Tarkin knew exactly what he was going to do, but he still agreed without hesitation.

Even though this nod meant that hundreds of thousands of naval officers and soldiers of all ranks would lose their future completely under Governor Serben's suppression, Wilhoff Tarkin did not hesitate at all.

He didn't need to get entangled with Serben over such a trivial matter; in his eyes, Serben was already a dead man. With the main fleet severely damaged, morale collapsed, and internal power struggles raging, how long could he expect them to hold off the Kingdom of Dawn?
Serben never imagined that the reason Wilhelm Tarkin was making arrangements for the 12th Army, and even had the tacit approval of the Imperial high command, was because his actions were based on a holistic perspective.

Now, facing the Dawn Kingdom's offensive in the east, the Twelfth Army must work closely with the Fourth Army behind it to hold its ground.

For example, the North was able to hold out for so long because Dunn Wessex commanded four legions and could pool their resources to resist. If Wilhelm Tarkin wanted to replicate this situation, he would have to unite with the Twelfth Army.

However, he was not a philanthropist, so he naturally couldn't just hand over the resources and troops of the Fourth Army to the Twelfth Army for nothing. Therefore, he naturally had to find a way to turn the Twelfth Army into his own.

Governor Serben couldn't possibly think that far ahead. All he was thinking about was whoever dared to touch his territory, he would retaliate against.

Wilhoff-Tarkin gave a cold laugh. "Now that the Kingdom of Dawn is after you, go and deal with them yourself."

Since the plan in the Twelfth Army failed, Wilhuff Tarkin did not hesitate to return to his true base—the Death Star!
Now, the Death Star is his last hope, his only hope. He understands even more clearly that the Death Star is also the last chance His Majesty the Emperor has given him.

The Tarkin family has already lost face in front of His Majesty the Emperor more than once or twice. Even though Wilhuff Tarkin had been in close contact with His Majesty the Emperor when he was still a senator on Naboo, the more he knew Palpatine, the clearer he was that His Majesty's patience was also limited.

His patience depends more on the value of the other party.

And his ultimate value, Wilhoff Tarkin, was... the Death Star.

If the Death Star were to encounter any further problems, Wilhelm Tarkin was absolutely certain that Palpatine's first target would be him!
……

For Governor Serben, he had already gone all out.

Originally, he thought, "Wilhoff Tarkin, you're a favorite of the emperor. If you want to come and share some of the benefits with my 12th Army, then come on over." He did indeed agree with the plan that the 4th and 12th Armies needed to unite to fight the enemy.

The problem is, Gideon Tarkin went too far!

He not only concentrated all his main fleet on Chalos IV, but also remained inactive! Keep in mind that Chalos IV was just an ordinary industrial planet, while the core of the Twelfth Army was Landilis! Landilis!
To Serben, what did this mean? This was blatant humiliation and a complete dismantling of my authority! Did I, the governor, not even deserve a single squadron? Did the mighty planet Lantilis, a transportation hub and economic center, not even need a decent garrison fleet?

This kind of thinking completely erupted after the attack on the planet Lantilis!

Even when his own capital was attacked, resulting in the loss of more than ten capital ships and the deaths of more than 20 men, Gideon Tarkin, who held a large army, remained inactive!

What will Governor Serben think? He'll only have one thought—you're using someone else to do your dirty work.

From that moment on, Serben made up his mind to fight the Tarkin family to the death.

After completely eliminating the Tarkin family remnants from the Twelfth Army, Governor Serben now commands 500 capital ships. 150 of these were previously reinforcements sent from the Fourth Army by Wilhuff Tarkin to guard Chalos IV, and are now under the command of the Twelfth Army.

The other 200 ships were those that had retreated from the Salukami front. Most of these warships were badly damaged and in dire need of repair. It would take at least another six months to restore them to combat capability.

The final 150 or so warships were assembled from other locations, plus those urgently dispatched from the rear by the Galactic Empire after receiving news of the crushing defeat.

After assessing the situation, Governor Serben concluded that the 500-plus warships could still create a two-to-one numerical advantage over the Kingdom of Dawn. Since launching a proactive attack was out of the question, holding the front line would certainly be fine.

He promoted his trusted confidant, Vice Admiral Dolanger, to the position of commander-in-chief, and the Imperial military also gave him face by promoting him to admiral. There was no other way; the situation in the Eastern Frontier had collapsed, and Serben had to give him whatever he wanted. Serben began deploying defenses simultaneously on both Lantilis and Chalos IV, sending the 200 damaged warships to Chalos IV for garrison duty and on-site repairs.

In terms of industrial capacity, leaving the damaged warships on Lantilis would have been a better option. However, Governor Serben was terrified by General Grievous's Purifier carriers, so he sent his most elite fleet—150 Star Destroyers that Wilhoff Tarkin had brought from the Fourth Army—to Lantilis to garrison the planet.

However, it's not necessarily true that these warships were particularly elite; after all, warships are still piloted by people. Governor Serben had reassigned all the elite naval officers and men of the Fourth Army to the logistics department and placed his own men on those warships. It's hard to say how much of their combat capability they still possessed.

Then, to ensure military spending, Governor Serben further reduced intelligence expenditures. He was especially enraged when he discovered that a significant portion of these intelligence funds had been used to bribe the rebels. He reported these expenditures to the Imperial Diet as another major charge against the Tarkin family—secretly colluding with the rebels!
Governor Serben rectified the wrongs and reaffirmed the spirit that the Empire and the rebels were irreconcilable enemies. He resolutely investigated the malpractices within the intelligence department that involved collusion with the rebels, thoroughly rectified military discipline, and strengthened the army's combat effectiveness.

For this reason, he even sent several intelligence officers who had given money to the rebels to military courts.

Now, in Serben's view, any strategy of the Tarkin family must be wrong! The Tarkin family sending money to the rebels is absolutely unacceptable; it is treason and aiding the enemy!

……

Wilhoff Tarkin remained seated on the sofa, listening to music, trying to ease his sorrow. Just then, a communication came in.

There are also notification communications while Wilhoff-Tarkin is thinking; the population in the entire galaxy is not large.

He picked up the communicator and discovered it was from the Queen of the planet Audram—Borja Organa. She wanted to talk to him.

Wilhuff Tarkin scoffed and sent a message agreeing to the request.

Yes, a request.

Now, on the planet Oderan, which is currently garrisoned by the Fourth Army, the planetary queen is so humble, even though Oderan was one of the founding members of the Galactic Republic.

The reason is not only because of the purge of the inner circle by the former head of the Imperial Intelligence Bureau, Aisani Isaad, but also because of another name—Bell Organa!
Bel-Ogana has now fled and become one of the Empire's most wanted criminals, as the Imperial Intelligence Service has confirmed that Bel-Ogana colluded with the rebels.

And Bel Organa is Borja Organa's husband!

To protect himself, Borja Organa had to announce his divorce from Bel Organa and issue a global warrant for Bel Organa's arrest. It was only because Bel Organa was a son-in-law of the Organa family, and Borja was still the family head, that their family and planet were spared from being implicated.

Even so, this put the planet Auderang in an extremely passive position in the imperial political arena.

Therefore, Borja Organa had to be extremely cautious in the face of Wilhelm Tarkin, who was at the height of his power in the imperial political arena. Although, even two or three years earlier, the Organa family would not have given the Tarkin family a second glance.

Borja Organa arrived at Wilhoff Tarkin’s mansion with slow, undisguised trembling steps. She wore a polite smile, but as the queen of the planet, she had to sit on the sofa opposite Wilhoff Tarkin’s desk to talk to him.

This is how subordinates talk to their superiors.

“Your Excellency, I would like to discuss the issue of long-term national debt,” Borja Organa said cautiously. “Your Excellency, many companies and factories on our planet have begun to close down, and the economic situation is extremely dangerous. Moreover, the one trillion rubles of imperial long-term bonds we purchased will mature this year, and I wonder what the Imperial treasury is thinking…”

"The repayment of long-term government bonds will be postponed for two years," Wilhoff-Tarkin said coldly.

This is blatant refusing to pay back debts.

“However, our planet’s economic indicators are all based on the assumption that the Empire will repay its long-term national debt on schedule. The sudden emergence of a one trillion credit point deficit… I fear our planet’s economy will be on the verge of collapse…” Borja Organa said. “We hope the Empire’s finance department can take our current dire economic situation into consideration…”

Before she could finish speaking, Wilhoff-Tarkin interrupted her abruptly, "Considering you? Then who will consider us? Who will consider the Empire?"

Wilhoff-Tarkin stood up, his gaze sharp and brooding like that of an eagle. “The Empire has just suffered a defeat on the Eastern Front. I have no intention of discussing the responsibility for the defeat, but it is obvious that the Empire needs more funds and resources to rebuild our defenses.”

He slammed his hands on the table with a thud, leaned close to Borja Organa, and said slowly, “I lost my son in the East, I lost my brother, Your Majesty. And what have you lost? Credits?”

His voice suddenly turned ferocious; he pounded the table wildly and roared hysterically, "Then I'll give you a trillion credits, okay?! Okay?!!"

The berserk Wilhoff Tarkin completely terrified Borja Organa, who stumbled backward and nearly fell to the ground.

Wilhoff-Tarkin sat up, panting heavily, his knuckles white from the effort, but his gaze suddenly turned as cold as ice. "Your Majesty, while you were arguing with the Empire, did you ever think of your husband?"

“He’s my ex-husband!” Borja Organa had to make this clear. “I have absolutely no relationship with Bel Organa now!”

“Then I hope your next husband will be a hero loyal to the Empire,” Wilhoff-Tarkin said, waving her hand to indicate that she could leave.

Borja Organa dug her fingertips into her palms, drawing blood but remaining oblivious. She straightened her back and stood up, her high heels clicking crisply and firmly on the marble floor.

This was her last vestige of dignity.

……

Meanwhile, on the planet Jabim.

After the Dawn Kingdom launched its offensive with the Semirthian army, the main force of the Jabim planet's army suffered a series of crushing defeats. In over a month of fighting, they were routed by the Semirthians on all four main battlefields. A total of 230 million troops were scattered and completely disorganized.

Later, led by Samirsian war hero Cummings, they captured the planet's capital.

But King Otto Stratus was quick to flee; he left early and began organizing guerrilla warfare. (End of Chapter)