Chapter 1

A long time ago, Obatala was known as “The Jewel of the Mid Rim,” or at least, that’s what the records indicate. Nowadays, you might as well move it a few parsecs over into the outer rim with the rest of the backwater worlds. Before the Clone Wars, Obatala was peaceful and prosperous, but due to its close proximity to a trio of systems strategically important to the Separatists, it became one of the bloodiest battlegrounds of the war. Its major cities now lie in ruins, and the mines that once fed its booming economy lay dormant. After the Clone Wars, Planetary Governor Everest Mons was allowed to keep his position in the new Galactic Empire, and he petitioned endlessly for Imperial aid to help restore Obatala to its former glory.

“For three years Obatala and many other Mid Rim worlds saw brutal combat and endless destruction, and for fourteen more years I have watched many of those worlds decay into nothing.” Governor Mons pleaded to the Imperial Senate. “It is time we rebuild the Mid Rim, and restore the faith the people once had in the Empire.”

Everest Mons was right of course. Many worlds in the Mid Rim needed Imperial aid to rebuild, and since that aid has been so hard to come by, people were losing faith in the Empire. As a result of this loss of faith, it seemed like a new rebel cell was popping up every other week. It made logical sense to take the planet that had fallen the furthest from grace, and transform it back into the jewel it once was. And naturally, someone had to lead such an ambitious project.

But why did that someone have to be me? Callum Draevik thought to himself. I graduated top of my class and was taken under the wing of a Grand Moff, only to be appointed Moff of a world that died long ago.

The comm on the other side of Draevik’s room rang. Draevik answered without hesitation and a hologram of the Iridescent’s Captain appeared in front of him.

“Moff Draevik, we’ll be coming out of hyperspace shortly.”

“Good. I’ll be up on the bridge shortly. In the meantime, prepare my shuttle as planned. It’s time to let them know that the Empire is here.”

The Captain nodded and his image disappeared. The Imperial Star Destroyer had become a symbol of the Empire over the years, making it the perfect backdrop for Moff Draevik’s arrival. He had been planning this moment for the entire trip from Coruscant. The Iridescent would maintain position over the city, and his shuttle would be escorted to the ground by an entire squadron of TIE fighters. When the ramp of his shuttle dropped, a squadron of stormtroopers would line either side of the ramp, and Draevik would make his entrance. The TIE fighters and stormtroopers, of course, would act as more symbols of the Empire, further reminding the residents that the Empire had arrived to restore order and prosperity to their desolated planet.

Enough daydreaming, time to get to work.

Draevik rose from his chair and made his way to the door of his office, and when he opened it, he found a pair of stormtroopers, fully clad in their white armor, waiting for him. He had asked for two sergeants to be sent to his office shortly before arriving in the system. Although his plan only required one squad of stormtroopers, it never hurt to have backup on these backwater worlds. He straightened his posture.

“Sergeants, ready your men and wait for me at my shuttle. I want both squads ready for anything.” He pointed to the trooper to his left. “Your squadron will be designated squad one and will exit the shuttle first upon arrival and line either side of the ramp. Squad two will serve as backup and will remain inside of the shuttle. I do not expect there to be any trouble, but you never know. Now, let’s go. We have an entrance to make.” Draevik turned on his heel to his right, signaling the end of his commands, and began making his way to the bridge.

“Right away sir.” The two men responded before marching off in the opposite direction towards the main hangar.

Draevik arrived on the bridge just as the Iridescent exited hyperspace. He had wanted to see Obatala in all of its “glory” and to meet with the captain before departing. As the ship reverted back to real space, the forward viewport was filled by a surprisingly lush green and blue world. The way Governor Mons spoke of it, you would’ve expected to see something more akin to Tatooine. Instead, Obatala shared more resemblance with a planet like Naboo or Kashyyk. A man in an Imperial Naval Officer’s uniform approached.

“Welcome to the bridge, Moff Draevik,” Captain Briar started, his voice commanding the attention of both Draevik and the ship’s command crew. “The planet’s capital currently lies near the center of the continent directly in front of us, but it wasn’t always that way. Apparently, this entire continent was once covered in one massive city, with the capital buildings being located on the northwestern coast. The city may not have been quite as massive as Coruscant, but still, it’s shocking to see what it looks like now.”

Draevik spent a moment analyzing the view before him. There was little to no evidence of there ever being a city of such a size. Aside from the center, the continent was covered in a thick forest. He took a closer look at the northwestern corner of the continent and noticed a pattern indicating a series of large craters that are now covered by forest.

“Intriguing.” Draevik clasped his hands behind his back. “If that is indeed the case, then how is it that the continent became almost completely engulfed in trees? Forests as dense as the one before us don’t just pop up from nowhere. Trees of that size would take decades to grow.”

Captain Briar’s expression shifted to a more puzzled look. “True. I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s almost like the city scape mentioned in the briefing never existed at all. Perhaps you can ask the governor when you meet with him.”

“I’ll have to add that to my list of questions for him.” Moff Draevik turned his back to the viewport and looked over the command crew. “Continue our approach as planned. Signal me once we are in position.”

“Of course, Moff.” Captain Briar bowed his head in compliance as the Moff made his leave. He then shifted his attention to his command crew and started dishing out orders. “Helmsman, bring us directly over the city. Sensor team, keep an eye out for any unusual activity. I don’t want any surprises today.”

As the doors to the bridge closed behind him, Draevik pulled a datapad out of a small pouch on his belt. He scrolled down to the list of questions he had planned to ask Governor Mons and added a new line reminding him to inquire about the forests that have engulfed not just the main continent, but every continent. He put the datapad back and made his way to the turbo lift where a TIE pilot, wing commander Dobbs, was waiting. Typically, a Star Destroyer’s wing commander would be on the bridge with the rest of the command crew in order to more effectively coordinate the ship’s complement of fighters. However, Commander Dobbs preferred to take a more direct approach. As Draevik approached, he snapped to attention.

“Moff Draevik, sir.”

“At ease, commander. Is your squadron ready? We’re making our approach now.”

Commander Dobbs lowered his salute and allowed himself to relax. “Yes, and we ran the simulation one final time before dropping out of hyperspace. We’re ready to put on a show.”

“Excellent, although I’m not sure a simulation was necessary for a short fly-over.”

The commander’s expression darkened. “That may be true, but all the pilots assigned to the Iridescent are… well, green, sir. For most of these pilots, this will be their first mission outside of the simulators.”

The Moff lifted an eyebrow in surprise. He had noticed earlier that much of the command crew on the bridge were also very young. It wasn’t unheard of for the Empire to test young recruits via trial by fire, but Draevik had hoped that a mission as critical as the rebuilding of Obatala and by extension, the stabilizing of the Mid Rim, would’ve afforded him the very best. Or at least, pilots, soldiers, and crew with even the slightest amount of experience. Then again, this was Draevik’s first assignment as a Moff as well. When the turbo lift finally arrived, they both stepped inside, and Commander Dobbs keyed for the main hangar.

“I was unaware that the pilots assigned to the Iridescent were so… inexperienced. You did well to have them spend time in the simulators. Will you be flying with them today?”

“Yes, I’ll be leading your fighter escort. Although I do have a great deal of faith in these pilots, I want to ensure we don’t embarrass ourselves out there.”

“I’m glad to hear it.” Draevik responded.

The turbo lift came to a halt, indicating that they had arrived at the main hangar. The door opened and the two men stepped out. The main hangar, located on the ventral side of the Star Destroyer, was usually littered with different vehicles and ships being worked on and meticulously maintained. Today, however, the floor of the hangar was unusually clear aside from a Lambda-class shuttle, four Sentinel-class landing craft, and six TIE bombers. Draevik turned to face Commander Dobbs.

“I’ll leave you to your preparations, Commander Dobbs. When you return, I want you to exercise the Iridescent’s full complement of fighters and bombers. Only so much can be learned from a simulator.”

The commander nodded, knowing all too well what the Moff meant. It was obvious that he had seen his fair share of engagements over the years. “Of course, Moff Draevik.” He replied before turning to make his way to the TIE fighter launch bay.

“One more thing, commander.”

The pilot stopped in his tracks and turned back to face the Moff.

“I would like you to reconsider how you command our fighters. I admire that you like to fly with them, but I’d rather not risk losing one of the few seasoned veterans we have on this ship. I will of course respect whichever decision you make, but I’m sure Captain Briar would feel better as well if you were to lead from the bridge of the Iridescent rather than the cockpit of an unshielded and lightly armored starfighter.”

“I’ll take that into consideration, Moff. Thank you.” The pilot once again turned his back to the Moff and continued making his way to the launch bay.

Draevik knew Dobbs wouldn’t be interested in commanding his pilots from one of the command pits in the bridge of a Star Destroyer, but he thought it was worth a shot at the very least. Afterall, Dobbs was the only experienced pilot on the Iridescent, and you can’t train and command pilots if you’re dead. Draevik heard his comlink go off in his belt pouch.

“This is Captain Briar, we’ve entered the atmosphere. Shuttle and fighter launch in five minutes.”

“Acknowledged.” Draevik replied.

The Moff made his way to the Lambda-class shuttle, where the two sergeants from earlier were briefing their squads and preparing for departure. He drew one last sharp breath before walking up the ramp and taking his seat. In five minutes his shuttle would be in the air, and a few minutes after that he would be making his first appearance as an Imperial Moff.