Lothal Planet, Ghost Squad's secret base.
The atmosphere here was heavy and oppressive, as though even breathing was weighed down by blocks of lead. The members of Ghost Squad gathered around the holographic tactical display, their faces filled with grief, fury, and even fear.
The Lasat Zeb Orellios breathed heavily, as if he were about to spew fire; Sabine Wren kept wiping down her blaster pistol; Ezra Bridger clenched his fists, his whole body trembling with rage; Hera Syndulla lowered her head in silence.
Meanwhile, Ghost Squad's leader, Kanan Jarrus, stared at the holographic star map. Twenty-three crimson markers stood out starkly, representing twenty-three Rebel Alliance bases that had been destroyed.
From what he knew, this massive assault—along with the fall of twenty-three bases and the subsequent arrests that followed the trail—had resulted in at least two hundred thousand Rebel Alliance members being captured or killed!
Kanan Jarrus did not know who the enemy commander was, but he could clearly sense the inescapable net that person had laid.
Ghost Squad had now formally merged into the Rebel Alliance, something that had happened after the Yavin Declaration. Following the spirit of leader Padmé Amidala, they had begun consolidating the forces within the rebel movement, using a more precise organizational structure to fight the Galactic Empire.
However, although the Yavin Declaration clearly identified the Galactic Empire as their foremost enemy and called for uniting all forces that could be united, that did not mean the Rebel Alliance had truly become allies with the Kingdom of Dawn. The relationship between the two sides was more a complex one of mutual opposition and mutual exploitation.
In other words, on planets where the people were severely oppressed or where liberal thought ran particularly strong, the Rebel Alliance was still stirring up uprisings against the Kingdom