Chapter Summaries

Volgograd-Kanidi used the Victory Celebration to launch a brutal crackdown on liberals across the Modell Sector, then expanded it into household searches and a population census. Armed resistance spread despite air attacks, and Kanidi ended the chapter by ordering the entire sector sealed off.

• Volgograd-Kanidi’s loyal soldiers and B-1 battle droids attacked the celebration crowds, killing and arresting thousands across the Modell Sector.
• Authorities sent prisoners to Thonner and screened the families of the dead, injured, and arrested, detaining relatives who failed ideological checks.
• Volgograd-Kanidi ordered household searches and a new census, while soldiers arrested residents for keeping Sixteen-Star Flags or promoting autonomy.
• As millions were arrested, liberals formed armed groups and fought back, prompting Banshee Fighters from Grey Horse-class escort carriers to bombard resistance gatherings.
• Corporations and industrial districts secretly armed and organized the rebels, who used urban terrain to evade air attacks and strike government targets.
• Volgograd-Kanidi ordered the Modell Sector sealed off, halting all starship traffic except for officially authorized vessels.

Volgograd-Kanidi crushed the Modell Sector’s autonomy movement through mass arrests and assassinations, while Tang Xiao’s government planned stricter education and immigration controls. Hari Seldon warned that liberalism could threaten the Duchy of Dawn and asked how the Modell Sector’s uprising differed from future resistance elsewhere.

• Volgograd-Kanidi used the Beast Legion and Darth Lilim’s Ghost Agents to arrest or kill liberals and their backers, leaving the movement suppressed after three days of terror.
• The purge devastated the Modell Sector, and Kanidi reported to Tang Xiao that the unrest had been eliminated and pledged loyalty to the Duchy of Dawn.
• Tang Xiao’s ministers discussed the economic and social costs, and Tang Xiao approved Francis Underwood’s plan to place new immigrants in cities for six months of civic education.
• Hari Seldon argued that liberalism could threaten the Duchy of Dawn, but that the Modell Sector’s disorganized and reckless uprising differed from the pattern he had calculated.

Tang Xiao explained to Hari Seldon and his leaders how liberalism could threaten the Duchy of Dawn, distinguishing the Modell Sector’s power struggle from future ideological conflicts. He ended the meeting by ordering restraint in the next phase of operations and a gradual, secret handling of the political prisoners on Sonell Planet.

• Tang Xiao argued that liberalism lacked a coherent governing theory and that the New Republic’s weak central authority had made it prone to collapse.
• Hari Seldon explained that Modell Sector power brokers had rebelled because they feared the Duchy of Dawn would grow stronger and because Governor Kanidi’s speech had disrupted their autonomy plans.
• Francis Underwood worried that Tang Xiao was grooming Hari Seldon to succeed him as Prime Minister.
• Tang Xiao told Qi Jian that the Rebel Alliance could treat the Duchy of Dawn as an enemy because its ideals differed from theirs.
• Tang Xiao ordered the Modell Sector operations to remain low-key, directed officials to focus on propaganda and education, and ordered them to conceal news of the political prisoners on Sonell Planet while dealing with them gradually.

Rendili Planet intensified its immigration campaign as the Duchy of Dawn transported millions of residents and industrial assets through the reopened Rendili Trade Route. Most people remained willing to leave, though about 60% had not registered, and the Duchy expanded its propaganda to persuade them.

• The Duchy of Dawn broadcast advertisements promising jobs, benefits, education, and healthcare, drawing long lines to Rendili Planet's Immigration Bureau.
• Rendili Planet's blockade, unemployment, and shortages made many residents eager to immigrate after the planet lost the Galactic Republic's support.
• The Immigration Bureau collected applicants' skills and family details so the Duchy of Dawn could prioritize needed workers and arrange their relocation.
• After Tang Xiao and Palpatine made peace and reopened the Rendili Trade Route, daily immigration rose from roughly 1.2–1.5 million people to five to seven million, and industrial facilities could also be transferred.
• Officials estimated that about 60% of residents had not registered, as many feared moving or expected life to improve once others left.
• The Duchy of Dawn increased broadcasts about its history, policies, and Tang Xiao to build support for immigration and prepare residents for life after relocation.

A wary young man traveled through the overcrowded Hammer Port, where passengers were preparing to leave for the Duchy of Dawn. After reacting strongly to a projection of Grand Duke Tang Xiao, he reached the hall where his flight to Annaj Planet was boarding.

• The young man nervously made his way through Hammer Port while soldiers and drones managed the crowds.
• He shuddered when he saw Tang Xiao praised in a projection about the Duchy of Dawn.
• A towering man carrying a boy and a girl on his shoulders joined the young man's route through the spaceport.
• Soldiers diverted able-bodied passengers away from the overcrowded electromagnetic walkway, and the young man and the big man continued on foot.
• After crossing the corridor, the young man reached a hall with a massive spacecraft and saw passengers split toward their boarding gates.

Carl Kestis boarded an immigrant ship after passing security checks despite being undocumented and carrying something he feared would be discovered. As the ship entered hyperspace for Annaj Planet, he lay in his seat uncertain about his future.

• Carl Kestis followed his ticket to the checkpoint on the enormous ship and worried that officials might discover he was undocumented.
• A staff member questioned Carl about his name and mechanical-repair experience, then let him pass after confirming his registration.
• Carl passed a security scan while fearing it would reveal something hidden in his backpack.
• Carl boarded the ship, found Seat 68 in Compartment 06, and used his backpack as a pillow.
• The ship left the atmosphere and entered hyperspace toward Annaj Planet in the Modell Sector.

Willix Blythex celebrated the successful first voyage of the Leviathan-class passenger liner, which he designed to help evacuate civilians, and went home to sleep. As he rested, a covert group watched his residence and prepared to act.

• The Leviathan-class passenger liner lifted off from Rendili Planet, beginning its first official journey to the Annaj system.
• Willix Blythex’s colleagues applauded him for designing an affordable ship that could improve immigration efforts and save civilians during wartime.
• Willix Blythex explained that he had rejected a modular military-conversion design to keep costs low, while reserving interfaces for a possible medical-ship conversion.
• After the liner successfully entered hyperspace, Willix Blythex celebrated with his colleagues, returned home, and fell asleep.
• A covert group watched Willix Blythex’s residence and checked the status of his nearby bodyguards and the surveillance system.

Clone Force 99 prepared a covert operation on Rendili to extract Willix Blythex, exploiting the planet’s busy traffic and weak security. The team took up positions and awaited Hunter’s order to begin.

• Hunter coordinated the teams as they prepared to infiltrate Willix Blythex’s residence and secure their escape routes.
• Crosshair and the other snipers positioned themselves to eliminate the sentries, while Tech’s team prepared to disrupt the network.
• Echo waited with a modified speeder, and Beard’s team secured a nearby landing platform and ship.
• The chapter explained that Clone Force 99 consisted of twenty genetically modified clones whose weakened biochips had allowed them to remain loyal to the Empire while avoiding missions against Jedi.
• Dunn Vesex pulled Clone Force 99 from training at Lila Blythex’s request, and the team began its operation after infiltrating Rendili disguised as civilians.

Clone Force 99 kidnapped Willix Blythex from Rendili, escaped a massive pursuit, and delivered him to their ship. After Tang Xiao learned of the abduction, he ordered Adele Ulan to bring Willix back to the Fourth Civilization, treating the matter as a challenge to his authority.

• Hunter's team abducted Willix Blythex while Crosshair and Tech disabled security, but arriving coworkers discovered the intrusion and alerted the authorities.
• Clone Force 99 fought through police and Rendili Security Forces, used Tech's communications virus and a false target to evade pursuit, and escaped Rendili in hyperspace.
• Tang Xiao reprimanded Madam M over the security failure and asked Adele Ulan about Willix's role at Rendili StarDrive.
• Adele Ulan explained that Willix's kidnapping could slow research but would not prevent the new technologies from being developed.
• Tang Xiao ordered Adele Ulan to recover Willix Blythex to defend the Fourth Civilization's standing against Palpatine.

Tang Xiao decided to restructure the intelligence agencies after repeated security failures and growing pressure on the Military Intelligence Department. He chose Solomon Lane to lead the expanded Intelligence Department and planned to appoint Gabriel Tosh as its deputy minister, leaving the identities of other agency leaders unresolved.

• Tang Xiao reviewed the Intelligence Department's failures, including losing track of Luke Skywalker and allowing Galactic Republic special forces to kidnap Willix Blythex.
• Tang Xiao concluded that the Military Intelligence Department was overburdened, Ni Yongxiao's department had drifted into spice-trade matters, and Helmut Zemo's National Security Bureau was not using its authority effectively.
• Tang Xiao decided to remove Ni Yongxiao and Helmut Zemo from intelligence work, expand the Intelligence Department's authority and resources, and make it report directly to him.
• Tang Xiao planned to place the Internal Affairs Department under the Intelligence Department and divide it into the Internal Affairs Department and the Secret Police.
• Tang Xiao chose Gabriel Tosh as Ghost Academy's dean and Deputy Minister of the Intelligence Department, and selected Solomon Lane as the department's minister.

Tang Xiao recruited Solomon Lane to lead the Duchy of Dawn’s intelligence operations and ordered him to protect the Empire’s internal order. After Lane left, Tang Xiao prepared to meet intelligence founder Margaret Peggy Carter.

• Tang Xiao activated Solomon Lane and judged that his ambition made him suitable to expose corruption within the Duchy of Dawn.
• Solomon Lane agreed to serve Tang Xiao, welcomed the prospect of the Galactic Republic’s collapse, and eagerly accepted the idea of an Empire.
• Tang Xiao used the Dark Side to intimidate Lane and ordered him to lead his most efficient killers and maintain internal order, demanding a report in one week.
• After Lane left, Tang Xiao selected Margaret Peggy Carter to awaken and waited until his Dark Side power had settled before greeting her.

Tang Xiao offered Peggy Carter the position of head of the National Security Bureau and defended his autocratic rule as necessary to the Fourth Civilization’s survival and growth. Carter agreed to serve, prioritizing the nation’s stability, and Tang Xiao sent her to meet her two adjutants.

• Tang Xiao asked Peggy Carter about her plans for leading the National Security Bureau, and she said she needed time to understand the nation.
• Tang Xiao demonstrated his power by withering and reviving a potted plant, prompting Carter to question whether he wanted her to preserve his dictatorship.
• Tang Xiao argued that the Galactic Republic had collapsed because democracy could not hold together its diverse civilizations, and he described the Fourth Civilization as both prosperous and autocratic.
• Carter said she would work to maintain a stable and peaceful nation, while reminding Tang Xiao that its people’s welfare must remain the highest priority.
• Tang Xiao shook Carter’s hand and told her to meet the two adjutants he had arranged for her.

Tang Xiao introduced Peggy Carter to her new adjutant, Shi Aimin, and revealed that General Kalani would serve as her deputy at the National Security Bureau. Carter met both men and was left to work alongside two sharply contrasting partners.

• Tang Xiao took Peggy Carter to the Duchy Palace entrance after soldiers stopped a Thor Mech from entering.
• Tang Xiao introduced Shi Aimin as Carter's adjutant and bodyguard, and Shi eagerly greeted her.
• Tang Xiao explained that General Kalani was inside the Thor Mech and had been appointed Deputy Director of the National Security Bureau.
• A hovercar delivered General Kalani's body, and he introduced himself to Carter as the bureau's Deputy Director.

Tang Xiao appointed Peggy Carter to lead the National Security Bureau alongside Director Kalani and warned her not to put institutions above the state. Reviewing the imprisonment of eight million people after the Modell Sector autonomy incident, Peggy rejected mass execution and committed to punishing them through labor while preventing further unrest.

• Director Kalani transferred his chips from the Thor Mech into a new robot body and agreed to serve as head of the National Security Bureau with Peggy Carter and Shi Aimin.
• Tang Xiao told Peggy to investigate the Modell Sector autonomy incident and warned that he would kill her if she endangered the nation.
• Three days later, Peggy confronted Director Kalani over the imprisonment of nearly eight million people on Sonell Planet and accused Tang Xiao of intending to execute them.
• Director Kalani argued that the prisoners threatened the Duchy and offered to sign an extermination order, while Shi Aimin proposed putting them to work.
• Peggy ordered the prisoners to reclaim farmland through manual labor and vowed to prevent them from causing further trouble without relying solely on terror and slaughter.

Carl Kestis arrived on Annaj Planet as an immigrant and witnessed the wreckage of a Republic battlecruiser and competing accounts of the battle between the Galactic Republic and the Duchy of Dawn. After landing, she followed instructions to temporary accommodations and saw that the city was still under construction.

• Carl Kestis woke aboard an overcrowded passenger liner as it approached Annaj Planet and changed into a clean shirt.
• She spotted Kohl-class Battlecruisers escorting the liner and recognized a destroyed Hunter Class Battlecruiser in the debris field.
• The liner’s announcement praised the Duchy of Dawn’s victory over the Galactic Republic, while Carl recalled the Galactic Empire’s conflicting version of the battle.
• Carl felt the Force disturbed by the deaths and suffering in the debris field but resisted its pull toward the Dark Side.
• After landing, Carl followed the crowd to gate D-5 and boarded a passenger hovercraft bound for temporary accommodations.
• Carl saw workers performing primitive construction tasks in the unfinished city despite the presence of robots.

Carl Kestis woke from a terrifying dream and began another day in a temporary labor city in the Duchy of Dawn, where immigrants endured indoctrination and strict routines despite being promised different jobs. He and Ferman discussed the camp’s purpose and Ferman’s sons before boarding a shuttle to work.

• Carl Kestis woke from a nightmare, ignored the Duchy of Dawn’s promotional hologram, and went to the cafeteria for breakfast.
• Carl joined the other workers at the cafeteria and met Ferman, a former Corellia Engineering Company engineer assigned to the same labor camp.
• Ferman told Carl that a riot in the Modell Sector had led the Duchy of Dawn to house new immigrants in temporary cities for two months.
• Carl and Ferman discussed the camp’s indoctrination, and Ferman said his sons had been placed in daycare.
• Carl and Ferman finished breakfast and boarded a passenger Speeder before their ten-minute meal period ended.

Carl Kestis continued his labor and training in the Duchy of Dawn’s immigrant settlement, where he learned about the Charger-class mining frigate and earned an extra food voucher. He ended the day by arranging a meal with Ferman, while remaining wary of revealing his connection to the Force.

• Carl Kestis and Ferman traveled to a construction site, where Carl struggled to assemble modular housing with a temporary team.
• Carl listened as a coworker complained that life in the settlement felt like prison, while Carl reflected on how immigrants built the city before moving on.
• Carl returned home after lunch and studied the Charger-class mining frigate’s maintenance in a professional course.
• Carl completed a thirty-question test with eighty percent accuracy and earned an extra food voucher.
• Carl visited Ferman, and they agreed to go out for a hearty meal before Carl returned home.

Clone Troopers, civilians, and gang members fought the Geth on Faida Planet and recaptured a ruined strongpoint called Big Guy. A Dark Jedi Knight then forced them into a counterattack to find and destroy a nearby Geth signal station, but a large enemy force appeared before they could locate it.

• The Clone Commander’s defenders fought off Geth units and Corpse Puppets, while a V-wing destroyed a Geth Colossus bombarding their position.
• The Clone Commander led soldiers and civilians into Big Guy, set up its defenses, and ordered mines planted in nearby shell craters.
• A Dark Jedi Knight arrived with reinforcements and ordered everyone, including exhausted militia members, to join his counterattack; he killed one who asked to finish eating.
• The Dark Jedi Knight led Clone Troopers and two TX-130 Saber tanks more than two kilometers through enemy territory toward the wreckage of a Geth Colossus.
• The Dark Jedi Knight searched for a Geth signal station, destroyed a wrecked Geth while sensing for it, and then spotted countless Geth lights illuminating the darkness.

Gillard-Perine’s forces fought to hold Faida Planet against the Geth, whose ambush captured Dark Jedi Knight Kriget and devastated the defenders. The chapter ended with Gillard-Perine directing a strengthened defense as the Geth intensified their assault.

• Geth ambushers overwhelmed the defenders, killed or scattered the militiamen and gang members, and captured Dark Jedi Knight Kriget after disabling him with explosive plasma fire.
• A Weequay Dark Jedi sensed Kriget’s suffering, while a human Dark Jedi Knight ordered him taken away to meditate and asked Gillard-Perine for his plans.
• Gillard-Perine had organized Faida Planet’s defenses around Chynesti City, mobilizing clone troopers and local forces while Wullf Yularen’s fleet contested the Geth in space.
• Lieutenant General Henderson’s rear warning line intercepted Geth raiding fleets attempting to bypass Faida Planet and attack the surrounding worlds.
• Gillard-Perine’s flexible defenses and coordinated fire support had held the Geth for nearly a year, and reinforcements brought his force to 400,000 clone troopers and more than 15 million regular soldiers.

Gerrard Peren rose through the Imperial military after repeatedly stopping the Geth offensive on Faida Planet and attracting Dunn Vesex's support. Six months after the Galactic Empire's founding, Dunn placed him in command of the Faida Defense Front Army.

• Gerrard Peren held the Faida Planet line and organized the blockade zone, slowing the Geth advance and earning Dunn Vesex's favor.
• After Wullf Yularen and his officers were purged, the leaderless Imperial fleet faltered, but Gerrard Peren's expanded militia again halted the Geth assault.
• Dunn Vesex brought Gerrard Peren's forces under his authority, gaining political advantage over Wilhuff Tarkin and consolidating control of the Northern Territory.
• Gerrard Peren was promoted to Rear Admiral and appointed deputy commander of the Faida Defense Front Army.
• After Admiral Henderson suffered repeated defeats, Dunn Vesex demoted him and appointed Gerrard Peren lieutenant general and Grand Commander of the Faida Defense Front Army.