Dark Empire

Dark Empire was a series of comic books written by Tom Veitch and illustrated by Cam Kennedy. They were originally released by Dark Horse Comics between December 1991 and October 1992 as a 6-issue bi-monthly series, which were later compiled and sold as trade paperback. The name generally applies to both the original Dark Empire, as well as its two sequels Dark Empire II and Empire's End. All three comic series detailed the resurrection of Emperor Palpatine in cloned bodies.

Publisher's summary
''Six years after the Battle of Endor, the fight for freedom rages on. Darth Vader is dead, but a reborn Empire&mdash;under a mysterious new leader&mdash;strikes back at the struggling Rebel Alliance. Massive World Devastators, more powerful and unstoppable than the Death Star, ravage entire planets, while the ruthless heirs of Jabba the Hutt place a monumental price on the heads of Princess Leia and her husband, Han Solo. Along with Lando, Chewbacca, Artoo, Threepio, and other old allies, Han and Leia struggle to protect the future for their unborn child. But their greatest foe may be their closest friend: Luke Skywalker&hellip;''

Prelude to Dark Empire
Before the Thrawn Crisis, Imperial forces were torn by civil war and harassed by Rebel attacks, who used captured Imperial Star Destroyers to sow further dissension among their ranks, and cherry-picked sectors: some sectors and systems fell peaceably, un-noticed by the Imperials in the chaotic communications and bureaucratic turmoil. Others did not- it was the Imperial forces fighting to the death under Lord Shadowspawn that finally made Luke Skywalker resign his commission as General for the Rebel Alliance. But in the chaos lurked a certain perverse order: some Imperials died, or seemed to (see Sate Pestage for an example of this); still others simply disappeared Coreward and never returned; a possible compromise between the New Republic and the Empire, in which the New Republic would accept Palpatine's last relative, a grandniece named Ederlathh Pallopides, as a constitutional monarch—a plan which failed when the broker, Admiral Betl Oxtroe, died at the hands of a Noghri assassin. The Noghri never said who ordered him to kill the admiral. Around the time of Thrawn, the gradual Coreward-sucking trend had to grown to such magnitude that its effects grew noticeable; why else did Thrawn go to such great lengths to procure the antiquated Katana Fleet, if not because so many Star Destroyers were locked up in fortress systems, or in the Deep Core where Thrawn's writ did not hold? Further, despite the desperate need for war material and funds and regular capital starships of the line, Kuat Drive Yards never seemed to halt construction on the successor to the monster Executor-class Star Destroyers, the Eclipse-class, the prototype of which would be dubbed simply Eclipse. Orders were sometimes given, but they were never obeyed, and the issuers never tried a second time.

It was into this chaos that a number of messages came over the HoloNet to the ministers and Moffs bickering over succession to the throne. The codes were genuine, and extremely high-level; there was no question they had originated with a Grand Admiral, who revealed himself to be a certain Thrawn. Given his status as a war-hero (having notably defeated, among others, Grand Admiral Zaarin's attempted coup), the Imperials rallied behind him. During the Thrawn Crisis, the New Republic was too busy fighting for its life, and Thrawn apparently too busy prosecuting his campaign, to take any notice of these or many other series of troubling anomalies. Thrawn was a genius, however, and close to Palpatine before Palpatine dispatched him to conquer and unify the Unknown Regions. So as to whether Thrawn knew he was being used as a red herring by Palpatine to cover up the evidence of his return and his machinations (similar in scope and complexity to the ones by which he orchestrated the Clone Wars and became Emperor) is ultimately unanswerable.

The Mutiny/The Time of Destruction (10 ABY)
After the Emperor's death, the varied factions of the Empire had regained enough territory from the Republic that a "falling out among thieves" occurred. Tragically, this "Imperial Mutiny" occurred right after what would have been Thrawn's greatest success had he lived past the Battle of Bilbringi (Galactic Civil War): a combined fleet assault of great puissance attacked Coruscant, sweeping the Republic (now reduced to the Rebel Alliance again) out of the capital planet. The mutiny began from talks among the former Imperial Advisors to Palpatine (who had arranged for Sate Pestage, chief among their ranks, to appear to be killed when he refused to yield Palpatine's personal records which might indicate even passingly Palpatine's wishes for the succession, and retire to Byss), it was proposed by a number of Advisors like Ars Dangor that they simply have a secret election of one of their number in the old Galactic Senate on who would succeed Palpatine. The rest of the Advisors would then constitute a new Senate. The Moffs and Grand Moffs of the Imperial coalition agreed to this proposal, but insisted that they be allowed votes, and vote in proportion to the number of inhabited worlds they control. Unsurprisingly, the Advisors declined. And of course, COMPNOR and the Imperial Inquisitors were upset at being left out completely of the deliberations. They expressed their displeasure in various ways, in demands for ideological litmus tests and a number of purges and show trials, respectively.

None of this involved the Imperial Starfleet or Army in the process, who proceeded the demand that they be allowed to appoint a new Grand Admiral and finish off the Rebels. Backed up by regional forces and Moff-assigned fleets, as well as the military forces COMPNOR had built up, the Moffs and Advisors and COMPNOR and the Inquisitorius refused to allow the military any say.

With all this tension, war exploded among multiple factions, including Imperial Intelligence and its equally large and competent adversary, the Imperial Security Bureau (astoundingly, each assassinated the other's operatives and agents routinely, even going so far as to publish hitlists of the other's personnel).

Entire worlds were glassed by orbital bombardment, and Coruscant became the focus, ravaged by multiple forces, all fighting each other and ravaging the civilian populace. The multifarious nature of the conflict earned it as many names: generally, "The Mutiny," or "Rebellion" or "The Galactic Civil War" (ignoring the Rebel Alliance), or even most bizaarely, "The War of Purification" (by COMPNOR). Some merely named it "The Time of Destruction."

The mutual orgies of destruction eventually came to an end when the combatants wearied themselves out, and Palpatine began cleaning up the debris with agents like Lord Cronal, testing the survivors for loyalty and eliminating the incapable or disloyal.

Plot summary
"And now, my young apprentice... Your father is dead. Have you come to join me? Will you take the place that rightfully belongs to you–at my side."

- Palpatine

During the Mutiny, the Rebel Alliance sought to weaken the factions as much as possible by surreptitiously entering systems and battles with captured Star Destroyers broadcasting falsified signals, and provoking attacks by one group against another.

On one of these raids to the Coruscant system, in the Star Destroyer Liberator (formerly the Adjudicator), an Imperial-class Star Destroyer captured at the Battle of Endor and, over a five-year period, repaired and beefed-up for covert missions; its sister ship, the Emancipator (originally the Accuser) would have better luck in its initial missions, destroying the Allegiance in the Battle of Mon Calamari, where it was then devoured by the World Devastator Silencer-7 - they emerged into the Coruscant system, where three Star Destroyers demanded novel and unusual codes for clearance. The codes the Alliance had stolen or bartered with slicers for did not work, and Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian were shot down over the former Imperial City. They should have perished, but in a curious parallel to the opening of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Luke, like his father, managed to successfully land the gargantuan vessel without too many casualties on the surface of Coruscant. For the next several days, Luke and Lando and their forces hid and fought Imperial forces.



When the news reached Han Solo and Leia Organa, they rushed to the rescue along with Wookiee Chewbacca and droid C-3PO. They arrived in the nick of time to rescue Lando and the crew of the Liberator. However, Luke said there was a great disturbance in the force. At that moment, a Force storm comes out of a hyperspace wormhole. Luke told everyone to go but R2 stayed with him. As the Falcon took off, Luke and R2 were sucked by the anomaly.

Later, at the Alliance base on the fifth moon of Da Soocha, code-named Pinnacle base, the Alliance leaders report that the separate Imperial factions have disappeared into the unknown regions of the Galactic Core. Furthermore the initial phase of Operation Shadow Hand has begun: fleets of World Devastators, brainchildren of Umak Leth, machines which destroyed everything in their path, plunging them into vast furnaces which produced weapons and items which could repair or build new World Devastators. The first target selected, for their long and steadfast support of the Rebellion, is the planet Mon Calamari.

The recently rescued Lando and his crew were dispatched aboard the Emancipator to fight a holding action while the main Rebel fleets assembled.



At this time, Luke Skywalker had reached Byss, a Deep Core world enveloped in the power of the dark side. There he met face-to-face with the Emperor reborn; He reveals that for many years, he took to transfering his mind and consciencness to clone bodies to attain immortality. However, the clones were one crucial step from long life; they were more ravaged by the dark side than sustained by the Force. Luckily, Palpatine had numerous clones to laugh in the face of death itself, allowing him to rule indefinitely. The Emperor offers him apprenticeship and the prospect of controlling the enormous fleet of Devastators, as well as the rest of the Imperial fleet. Faced with an impossible situation, and deeply impressed by the power of the Emperor, his charismatic presence, his undoubted genius and deep knowledge of both sides of the Force, Luke acquiesced to becoming his apprentice. At this time, R2-D2 is modified to carry the Master Signal for the World Devastators.

"My father's fate is my own."

- Luke Skywalker

Meanwhile, Lando's attack force began their attack on the Imperial fleet. Though they were able to break through the Star Destroyer defenses, the Devastator Silencer-7 practically gobbled the Emancipator to scrap and launched squadrons of robotic Ties. This forces the crew of the Republic Destroyer to abandon ship.

At Pinnacle base, Leia receive a message from Luke, telling her not to follow him. Han Solo and Leia Organa Solo have gone to Nar Shaddaa, to find transport to the Deep Core. After landing the Falcon in Shrug Ninx's garage, meeting Han's former girlfriend, Salla Zend, Han and Leia went to Han's old living quarters. Along the way, they encounter a woman named Vima-Da-Boda, who gives Leia a lightsaber. Upon arriving at Hand's place, they discover that Boda Fett is alive and that their friend (Mako Spince) betrayed them. Pursued by the hunters, Han and Leia make it to the Starlight Intruder, the ship that's bringing them to the Deep Core. Meanwhile, the Rebels in combat over the planet Mon Calamari receive aid from the Alliance reserves, including the new E-wings. Suddenly, three Devastators fall into the sea because the Master Control computer on Byss was sending improper signals.



After arriving on Byss and missing Fett by a long shot, Leia pilots the Falcon to the Emperor's citadel. After she, C-3PO, Han and Chewbacca got off, Salla and Shrug took the Falcon to a safe place. The four are brought before the Emperor and Luke. Despite trying to fight back, Leia was rendered unconscious and was brought to Palpatine's quarters to be turned. There, she discovers that he holds hostage an even greater treasure: a mysterious and intelligent artifact called the Jedi Holocron, which the Emperor had stolen during the Great Jedi Purge from Ashka Boda. With both the Holocron and Luke Skywalker under his control, the Emperor would appear to reign supreme in the Force. He reveals he plans to overshadow Leia's third child stirring in her womb as his next new body. In anger, Leia toppled Palpatine from his bed and stole the Holocron. She finds Luke, who claims he is free of the dark side, despite his eyes continuing to shine yellow. Meanwhile, Shrug and Salla got control of a Hunter Killer patrol droid to blast Han and Chewie free. After bring joined by Leia, Luke and the droids, the Falcon takes off from Byss. However, Luke reveals that he had cast an illusionary projection of himself to make them believe he had boarded so they would escape.

The real Luke Skywalker then marches into the clone lab during Palpatine's last few moments before the transition. When he reveals his purpose, Palpatine allows his current incarnation to die, hoping to reach one of the clones before Luke destroys them all. Luke proceeds to go on a destructive spree through the lab, hoping to beat Palpatine to the clones. Unfortunatly, he misses one.



The newly resurrected Palpatine scoffs at Luke's attempts to vanquish him. When Luke attempts to subdue Palpatine, the Sith Lord seizes one of the lightsabers he keeps stored in the lab and engages Luke. Despite his valiant efforts, Luke is disarmed and held at bladepoint. Palpatine proceeds to complete Skywalkers turn to the Dark Side, reducing him to an obediant watchdog.

Meanwhile, on Mon Calamari, the Devestators were still invincible. Luckily, Luke managed to install a code into R2's memory banks to shut down the Devastators. Though the great war machines were down, their crew somehow powered up the factories until control was restored. But R2 created a new code to make the Devastators recycle each other.

Unfortunately, this was only half of the Emperor's plan. Great new fleets of the Empire were spreading across the Galactic Core and soon the entire galaxy would fall under the sway of the dark side.



Luke traveled with the Emperor to capture his sister, aboard the recently completed and christened flagship, the Eclipse. Prior to the Eclipse's arrival, the Holocron Leia stole from the Emperor delivered a thousand-year-old prophecy to Leia, which tells of her battle against the young Emperor:

"...A brother and sister born to walk the sky/But reckless brother falls-into dark side's eye!/Jedi sister carries hope for future in her womb/Only SHE can save the Skywalkers from certain doom!/A Jedi-killer wants to tame her/Now the Dark Side lord comes to claim her/She must battle join against this thief/Or the dynasty of ALL the Jedi will come to grief."

- Bodo Baas



As the Eclipse comes out of hyperspace, the Emperor demands to the Alliance for Leia to come to his ship alone, with the holocron; He evens promises to discuss a truce. Despite Han's objections, Leia boarded the Emperor's Eclipse-class Super Star Destroyer. She who appealed to the goodness inside Luke, redeeming him. Outraged, the Emperor fights Luke in a lightsaber battle, ultimately losing his hand.

However, an enraged Palpatine unleashes a titanic Force-storm to utterly obliterate the Rebel Alliance fleet. Using knowledge taught to them, both brother and sister assaulted Palpatine with the Light side of the Force, cutting him off from the Dark side and turning the Force storm upon him. The result was the complete destruction of the Eclipse I and Palpatine (supposedly, though his spirit escaped to fight another day). As Eclipse is destroyed, the twins flee on a shuttle. Onces safely aboard an Alliance cruiser, Luke, his eyes once again green, proclaims:

"The Jedi Knights will rise again."

- Luke Skywalker

Controversies
With the release of the prequels and the revelation that Anakin Skywalker was destined to bring balance to the Force by destroying the Sith, Dark Empire has been criticized for contradicting the prophecy of the Chosen One and Anakin's killing of Palpatine. However, Tom Veitch could hardly have known what George Lucas had planned for the prequels, which were not made for another seven years. It can also be argued that Anakin indirectly killed Palpatine by fathering the Jedi twins who ultimately destroyed him.

Lucas himself actually praised Dark Empire, saying that it was the closest thing to his idea of a sequel trilogy.

Veitch has also been criticized for having many pivotal events occur within a single panel or entirely off-panel, which many fans found to be jarring.

Issues

 * Dark Empire 1: The Destiny of a Jedi
 * Dark Empire 2: Devastator of Worlds
 * Dark Empire 3: The Battle for Calamari
 * Dark Empire 4: Confrontation on the Smugglers' Moon
 * Dark Empire 5: Emperor Reborn
 * Dark Empire 6: The Fate of a Galaxy

Collections

 * Dark Empire