The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

2815. The Pursuit of the Fugitive (Part 1)

The Semir's Cummings led his army to capture Choal, the capital of the planet Jabim, but the city was already a ghost town—the treasury had been emptied, the resources had been taken away, and all the officials, military leaders, and civilians had vanished without a trace.

Afterwards, King Otto Stratus of Jabim declared the establishment of a government-in-exile in the swamp, vowing to fight the Kingdom of Dawn to the bitter end.

All the remaining troops on Jabim were dispersed and waged guerrilla warfare across the planet. The planet suffers from torrential rains year after year, and is covered in rainforests and swamps. Even the gastropod Semirthians, while able to move freely in the swamps, are not truly adapted to such torrential weather.

The native inhabitants of Jabim have lived in this environment for thousands of years, and traveling in torrential rain is as simple as eating. Some experienced warriors can even determine the location of the Dawn Kingdom's army by the frequency of the raindrops falling—because the raindrops are blocked by the soldiers, and the sound is naturally different.

The Jabim harassment was almost ubiquitous, with attacks occurring everywhere. And the Semirs? Perhaps they were like armored vehicles when launching a frontal assault, but that was on the main battlefield. Once they entered the complex terrain of rainforests or hills, their lack of agility became utterly exposed.

On the main battlefield, the Semirs, equipped with heavy weapons and individual shields, were invincible, making the Jabim cry out in despair. However, in the rainforest, a sudden attack from the shadows could easily take the life of a Semir who was slow to turn.

This persistent guerrilla warfare and harassment caused immense trouble for the Semirth people. Within a month, more than 3000 Semirth soldiers were killed by the guerrillas!

Although the Samirs had an army of a million, the loss of 3000 men was negligible. However, this inexplicable loss put the entire army on high alert, and morale continued to plummet.

Furthermore, the chaotic situation in the Eastern Territory, coupled with the large-scale military standoff between the Kingdom of Dawn and the Galactic Empire, made it impossible to blockade the planet Jabim. Weapons and equipment from the Rebel Alliance, and even reinforcements from the Galactic Empire, were continuously being smuggled into the planet.

Later, when Lin Nan received General Griffith's order to advance the fleet to the planet Bonta, he spun off half of the fleet to the planet Jabim.

On the one hand, it was to stabilize logistics, and on the other hand, it was also to blockade the planet as much as possible, reduce the supply of materials to Jabim, and thus alleviate the pressure on the Semirs.

Now that the main fleet of the Twelfth Army has suffered heavy losses on the planet Salukami, it's time to deal with them.

However, it was clear that continuing the fleet blockade was impractical. The fleet in the eastern region had also suffered heavy losses after the battle of Sarukami and urgently needed repairs and maintenance. Wasting precious fleet resources on Jabim, a planet that was both smelly and stubborn, was simply not worthwhile.

……

The Eastern Sector of the Dawn Kingdom, the temporary capital planet of Losar.

A Nemoidean foreleg-class shuttle landed at the planetary administrative center. The hatch opened, and a super tactical robot with many extra decorations stepped out, along with a burly man carrying a shield on his back.

The two were none other than General Karani, the deputy director of the National Security Bureau of the Dawn Kingdom and a super tactical robot, and Shi Aimin.

General Kalani remained the same as before, but Shi Aimin, after years of experience in the National Security Bureau, had a more resolute yet sharper look in his eyes.

Acting Governor Lin Nan came out to greet him and said happily, "General Karani, it's wonderful that you could come in person. We are currently in a state of chaos due to the insurgents in the Eastern Sector. After the fleet was damaged, we are even having difficulty ensuring normal logistical transportation."

As General Karani walked toward the administrative center, he said, "Bringing in the company's power is a short-sighted approach, but I understand you, after all, it's to cripple the main force of the Galactic Empire's Twelfth Army. So our problem now is how to solve the problem."

Upon entering the conference room, General Kalani said, "So my current plan is to divide the area into safe zones and cut off transportation in sequence. This way, we can pinpoint the insurgents' supply bases and then target and eliminate them. We can't guarantee who won't rise up against us, but we can ensure that even if they do, they'll only have sticks and stones in their hands."

He continued, "The Serai Special Forces have arrived with me, and the Serai people will fully cooperate in this operation to suppress the insurgents."

……

Meanwhile, another Nemoidean foreleg-class shuttle flew directly into the surface of Jabim, into the military base established by the Dawn Kingdom's Semirth expeditionary force.

The hatch opened, and six people stepped out, along with a huge Inchori man with dark green scales!
The leader was dressed in a brown robe and wore a silver-white mask; she was clearly a priestess.

Following the priestess out was the Sky Squad.

Behind her were Xiao Yan, who had a ponytail and was both heroic and beautiful; Zhang Xucheng, who had grown into a handsome young man; Kleist, who looked lazy and didn't even want to walk, and was sitting in an anti-gravity car; and Talia, an Elu person with a calm temperament and a touch of eeriness, who was also the captain of the Sky Squad.

And then there's Karina, the only Force-sensitive Injori!

Then there's Karina's nominal husband, Shen Yuanhao, the only ordinary person in the team who also acts as her caregiver.

The entire Sky Squad is mobilized, with only one objective—to capture Otto Stratus!
Only by capturing the king, who has now become the Dawn Kingdom's irreconcilable enemy, can the rebellion on Jabim be quelled. Only then can the Kingdom establish a foothold on Jabim, making it a transit point for transportation and industry, thus supporting the Dawn Kingdom's fleet in the next phase of its offensive operations.

Whether attacking Chalos IV, heavily fortified by the Twelfth Army, or Lantilis, the capital of the Twelfth Army, Jabim was an indispensable transit point. For this strategic objective, the Supreme Command of the Dawn Kingdom finally made a drastic decision, committing the entire Sky Squad to the mission!

Cummings, the commander-in-chief of the million-strong Semir Expeditionary Force and a combat hero, was waiting. He went straight to the point: "Otto-Stratos has built tens of thousands of underground bases on the planet. This should have started during the Clone Wars, in order to fight against the Galactic Republic. These bases store a large amount of weapons and supplies, so that its guerrillas can be replenished at any time."

“What if we cut off his command network?” Kleist asked.

“It’s no use. Their command network node is Otto-Stratos itself. They’ve also laid underground fiber optic cables, which are as interconnected as their military bases, like a spider web.” Cummings sighed. “Actually, that’s the most troublesome part. Jabim is a fortress built entirely for guerrilla warfare. Even orbital bombardment can hardly eliminate those bases that are dozens or hundreds of meters underground.”

“Where was Otto Stratus last seen?” Talia asked. “Taran City. There’s a mountain range north of the city, and I suspect there are at least three underground bases there,” Cummings said.

Talia nodded and said to her teammates, "Then let's begin! Priestess, we'll definitely pass this exam with a perfect score, don't worry."

……

Jabim, Taran Mountains, underground base.

“Here, and here too.” Otto Stratus gestured on a waterproof map. “These are the spaceports where the Semirs will receive the airdropped supplies tomorrow and the day after. Spaceport A carries weapons and ammunition, and Spaceport B carries food and medicine. We’ll feign an attack on the weapons ship, and then actually gather 800 warriors here at the food ship. Don’t linger in battle; burn the food.”

His command has now abandoned advanced technologies such as holographic maps and hyperspace communication, instead relying on very primitive paper maps, wired telephones, and even animals for communication. This guerrilla warfare tactic has left the Semirthians, accustomed to advanced equipment, completely bewildered. They can't even track communications, signals, or electromagnetic waves!
However, such operations require commanders with exceptional command abilities, mid-level officers with excellent tactical coordination, and rank-and-file soldiers with iron discipline and combat prowess. Fortunately, Otto Stratus and his elite troops possessed all of these qualities.

The staff officers began discussing the operation and drafting a plan, which was quickly distributed to the subordinate combat units. At the start of the operation, the combat units in different directions could not even communicate with each other, but thanks to strict discipline and excellent skills, they were always able to arrive at the battlefield on time and launch their attacks.

“We’re being watched!” a deep voice suddenly said.

He was a bald man wearing a black robe, with a blood-red mark on his forehead bearing the Jedi Order symbol with two crosses.

Without a doubt, this is a Blood Warrior!

After several years of underground development, under Mace Windu's leadership, the Blood Knights have gradually become an incredibly powerful diagonal organization, and their organizational structure has become more ritualistic. Now, short robes, shaved heads, and the crossed-out Jedi Order insignia have become the defining characteristics of the Blood Knights.

The Blood Warriors have allied with some of the more radical members of the Rebel Alliance, including Borsk-Felia. However, they remain elusive, and many are completely unaware of their existence.

However, right now, there is a Blood Warrior right next to Otto Stratus!

"Master Modole." Otto Stratus was startled, but quickly recovered and waved his hand, saying, "Cease all operations immediately! Move out of here!"

The blood warrior named Mordorai said, "Be careful! The Kingdom of Dawn has also sent Force-sensitive individuals! They are investigating!"

Meanwhile, the people inside the command center had already made rapid preparations for the transfer, destroying classified documents, packing up important items, and quickly evacuating in less than an hour, leaving behind only an empty hall without any clues.

However, even after they changed bases, the lingering feeling did not disappear.

"No! They're still locking onto us." Mordolai was starting to sense something was wrong. He looked around, his blood-red lightsaber already in his hand.

Without hesitation, Otto Stratus issued another transfer order.

but……

"No! No! No! No!" Modolai roared, grabbing at non-existent hair on his head. "They're watching us! No!"

“This is not right! Our relocation base has a very simple and efficient process, and we don’t use any electronic devices! How did they lock onto us!” Otto Stratus felt a chill run down his spine.

……

On the ground of the Taran Mountains, dozens of engineering robots were chiseling through hard rock. Meanwhile, Zhang Xucheng stretched out his arms, listening to the sounds of nature. Through his Force, sounds near and far converged in his mind; he could almost sense the details within tens of kilometers around him!
"In that direction! And there's a Dark Jedi Knight there! He's very powerful!" Zhang Xucheng pointed directly to the west.

Blood Knights and Dark Jedi Knights are largely the same; both are former Jedi Order members who use the dark side of the Force. It's no wonder young Zhang Xucheng mistook them, but it's not his fault.

"We've dug a wired communication line," an engineering robot said as it walked by.

Kleist maneuvered the hovercraft over and grabbed a very primitive communication line that had just been dug out.

She closed her eyes, and the Force began to spread along this path, perceiving every detail in its path. She could even hear a phone call coming from the other end: "...Then continue the retreat! Leave the Taran Mountains! Engage them in the primeval jungle!"

Kleist opened her eyes abruptly, a cold smile spreading across her face, and began using the Force to intercept all the electronic signals.

Her Force abilities allow her to influence machinery with the Force, so even though Otto Stratus didn't use electronic devices, she still couldn't escape Kleist's pursuit through mechanical means!
“Finally… they’ve given themselves away… Otto Stratus…” Kleist sneered, turning back to say, “Captain! We’ve located Otto Stratus! They will be retreating in an hour.”

“There’s enough time.” Talia smiled slightly and put her hand on Kleist’s shoulder.

……

Otto Stratus is over there directing the continued evacuation; he must leave this place and get to the next base as soon as possible to continue commanding the operation.

But at that very moment, a strange, melodious song suddenly emanated from those primitive wired telephones! The communications soldier holding the receiver suddenly slumped to the side and collapsed, dead on the spot! (End of Chapter)