Storm Rising (Part 1)
Beginning on April 1, 8 BBY, intelligence agencies across the Galactic Empire began receiving secret reports of unusual movements by the Kingdom of Dawn fleet...
First was the Rohk System in the Eastern Territory. A powerful force directly threatening Lantilis Planet, the Twelfth Army capital—including the Archangel Titan warship, 200 capital ships, 300 Heavy Cruisers, and more than 1,200 small and medium warships—departed from a temporary spaceport within the system, entered hyperspace lanes, and vanished without a trace.
Then, the entire Rohk System was unexpectedly emptied. Not a single warship remained, and even the spaceports, military installations, and orbital stations had not been dismantled.
If the Galactic Empire sent troops at this time, it could easily occupy Rohe Planet and claim the massive forward base left behind by the Kingdom of Dawn as its own.
However, Seben, governor of the Twelfth Army, could not possibly consider launching an offensive. Looking at the abandoned Rohe Planet, all he could think was—This is a trap!! The words roared through his mind again and again.
And he knew he was far from the only one thinking that way. A consensus had long formed within the Galactic Empire Navy: any offensive would inevitably be met with a brutally fierce counterattack. When fighting the Kingdom of Dawn fleet, the best choice was to do so from within one's own fortified bastions.
Under such circumstances, it was almost impossible... no, completely impossible for Seben to issue orders and get the captains under his command to agree to attack the Kingdom of Dawn proactively!
Not to mention that a considerable portion of his naval officers' and sailors' pay was now being issued in Currency Number Four! Seben knew about it, and he knew it was unacceptable, but he had long since become powerless