Nightswan's campaign

Prelude

In the years leading up to the Battle of Yavin, the Empire faced a multitude of rebel groups, including the Free Ryloth Movement, Berch Teller's rebel cell, the Spectres of Lothal, Phoenix Cell, and Saw Gerrera's Partisans. Another rebel leader was the smuggling "consultant" Nevil Cygni, previously employed at the Kanauer Corporation's mining operations within the Thrugii asteroid belt. Adopting the alias "Nightswan," Cygni viewed the Empire as a corrupt tyranny that needed to be overthrown and replaced by a new system grounded in justice, mercy, and freedom.

During the Imperial Era, Cygni had become part of a group that had splintered from the Mining Guild, seeking to exploit the growing instability in the Empire's metal markets, which was negatively impacting small businesses, especially shipbuilders. Nightswan joined, hoping they could divert enough resources from the Imperial Navy's demand to aid these businesses. However, Nightswan departed upon discovering that the group was simply reselling stolen metals to the Empire through the black market. This prompted Nightswan to assist ordinary citizens harmed by the Empire without recourse. To finance these endeavors, Nightswan began advertising his services as a consultant for various criminal organizations, including Angel's Culoss pirates, descendants of Q'anah's Marauders.

While Nightswan primarily focused on aiding innocents, he occasionally assisted emerging insurgent groups. Nightswan's "consultancy" involved instigating protests and unrest, such as the Circle Bay mayor's office protest. These activities attracted the attention of the Imperial Security Bureau, which assigned Colonel Wullf Yularen to investigate Nightswan. While working as a "consultant," Nightswan considered rejoining the Mining Guild. However, the Mining Guild had learned of the splinter group and alerted Imperial authorities. Around that time, Nightswan heard rumors of a secret Imperial project consuming vast quantities of doonium, iridium, and other metals, which turned out to be the classified Death Star project. Nightswan utilized Driller MarDapp's Higher Skies Advocacy Group and Yinchom Dojo instructor Juahir Madras to spy on Imperial officials in the galactic capital Coruscant.

Two years prior to the Batonn insurgency, Nightswan learned from a friend who had worked in the Thrugii asteroid belt about a blue-skin non-human collaborating with Jedi Generals during the Clone Wars. This alien was the aspiring Imperial Navy officer Thrawn, who, along with his aide-de-camp Eli Vanto, took an interest in Nightswan's activities.

History

Raid on the Dromedar

Eighteen months after Senior Lieutenant Thrawn and Ensign Vanto graduated from the Royal Imperial Academy, Nevil Cygni and the Culoss pirates seized the freighter Dromedar, which was transporting tibanna gas. Cygni had infiltrated the Dromedar by masquerading as a new crew member. They confined the ten-member crew in a cage within their pirate ship's aft-starboard cargo bay and began transporting the tibanna to Uba in the Barsa sector. The Imperial Gozanti-class cruiser Blood Crow encountered the Dromedar. Cygni pretended to be a Dromedar crew member, claiming pirates had kidnapped his crew. Thrawn convinced his commanding officer Captain Rik Virgilio to allow him, Vanto, and three Imperial technicians to remain aboard the Dromedar with the crew.

While investigating the freighter's cargo, Thrawn discovered Cygni and his companions were the actual pirates. Cygni imprisoned the Imperials with the original crew on the pirate ship. Cygni and his followers left aboard the Dromedar with the smuggled tibanna but arranged for the prisoners to be transferred to a drop zone. Distrusting Angel, Cygni ensured Thrawn's buzz droid was left behind. This benefited Thrawn, who used the buzz droids to free the prisoners. After escaping, the Imperials and Dromedar crew overpowered their captors. Thrawn defeated the remaining pirates by using a second buzz droid to expose the ship's entrance chamber and amidships section to the vacuum of Space.

Despite defeating Cygni's pirates and rescuing the Dromedar's crew, Thrawn was suspended for failing to prevent the tibanna gas theft. While Thrawn and Vanto waited on Ansion, they assisted Admiral Plor Wiskovis in interrogating three surviving pirates. Playing "good cop," Thrawn convinced the pirates to reveal Cygni and Angel's tibanna smuggling destination in exchange for protection from Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin. Exploiting the pirates' lineage as descendants of Q'anah's Marauders, Thrawn played on their fears of Tarkin. While the pirates deliberated, Thrawn used his knowledge of Sy Bisti to deduce that Angel and Cygni had taken the Dromedar and its tibanna cargo to Uba. Accepting Thrawn's offer, the pirates falsely claimed Angel and Cygni had gone to Cartherston on Keitum.

Knowing the pirates were lying, Thrawn proceeded to set a trap for Angel and Cygni. Acting on this information, Admiral Wiskovis dispatched forces to both Uba and Cartherston to recover the tibanna and pursue the pirates. Despite their efforts, Cygni evaded the Imperial cordon around Uba. While Imperial forces captured the other pirates, twelve of the twenty recovered cylinders were empty. Thrawn and Vanto discussed their findings with ISB Colonel Yularen, who was shocked that Cygni had seemingly extracted tibanna from the cylinders. Thrawn was subsequently cleared by an Imperial military court martial and promoted to Captain of the Arquitens-class light cruiser Thunder Wasp.

Iridium smuggling

Following the Dromedar raid, a couple of ISB analysts speculated that Nightswan had settled down with a single organization. Colonel Yularen rightfully theorized that Nightswan and Cygni were one and the same. Later, Nightswan orchestrated a plan to purchase Vulture droid parts from a Rodian merchant, using funds from smuggling iridium on Paklarn. Nightswan hired local smugglers to transport the stolen iridium from the mines to an old underwater transport. From there, the iridium would be formed into small discs, hidden inside grist mollusk shells, and transported via fishing boats. Despite Nightswan's instructions to disperse the mollusk meat, the smugglers dumped it all in one place, attracting numerous makorr predators.

The smugglers' tardiness allowed Captain Thrawn, Ensign Vanto, and Commander Alfren Cheno to track and apprehend them. After questioning a smuggler, Thrawn deduced that Nightswan's scheme had failed due to the smugglers' lateness. Thrawn had been monitoring Nightswan's activities for the past year, using his regular Coruscant trips to visit Colonel Yularen and share intelligence on their Nightswan investigations.

Trouble on Umbara

Nightswan then instigated an uprising on Umbara, a former Separatist world and major doonium exporter. Nightswan staged the uprising to prompt Imperial control of Umbara's mining and refinery sector, reasoning it was easier to bribe Imperial inspectors than the Umbarans. Additionally, Nightswan's operatives established a ground-based transmitter on an Umbara moon, controlling 400 Vulture droids. The uprising led to the deployment of Imperial Navy forces under Admiral Carlou Gendling.

Captain Thrawn's Thunder Wasp was part of the Imperial pacification force sent to Umbara. The Vulture droids inflicted significant casualties. However, Thrawn studied their attack pattern and deduced they were controlled by a ground-based transmitter. He convinced Commander Cheno and other Imperial commanders to bombard the moon. While this neutralized the Vulture droids, Admiral Gendling was angered that Cheno and Thrawn had usurped his command. Cheno took responsibility for Thrawn to protect the Chiss officer's career, allowing Thrawn to continue his Nightswan investigation.

The Coruscant spy ring

Nightswan's operatives on Nubia later instigated a protest at the Circle Bay mayor's office. They orchestrated the dismissal of the kitchen staff and replaced them with their own people. This led Colonel Yularen and Captain Thrawn to deduce that Nightswan planned to target Imperial officials on Coruscant using dojos. Nightswan's spy ring was uncovered by Arihnda Pryce, a Lothalite emigrant and former senatorial staffer. She befriended Driller MarDapp and Juahir Madras.

Driller headed the Higher Skies Advocacy Group, which covertly gathered intelligence on Imperial mining and industrial operations using bodyguards working for Imperial officials. Nightswan hoped to uncover the secret Death Star project. These bodyguards were recruited by Juahir, a martial arts instructor at the Togorian H'sishi's Yinchom Dojo. Madras blackmailed and "indoctrinated" bodyguards about the "evils" of the Empire, tasking them with spying on their Imperial employers but forbidding assassinations. The intelligence was stored on Higher Skies' computer database and passed to Nightswan. Driller and Madras convinced an unsuspecting Pryce to work for Higher Skies and train at Yinchom Dojo.

As part of their investigation, Yularen, Thrawn, and Vanto visited Yinchom Dojo under the guise of verifying credentials. Pryce, who had met Thrawn after the Dromedar Incident, informed Thrawn that she worked for Higher Skies. Thrawn engaged in a martial arts demonstration with dojo H'sishi to assess her feelings towards the Empire. While Thrawn found H'sishi innocent, he suspected Madras and her behavior. Uneasy about Higher Skies' activities, Pryce secretly contacted Thrawn, offering to become a double agent in exchange for immunity. Thrawn accepted and asked her to copy Higher Skies' files.

Pryce's work was complicated when Ottlis Dos, a bodyguard she worked with, revealed he was a double agent for Moff Ghadi, a rival of Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin who despised Thrawn for being an alien. Pryce turned the tables on Ghadi by offering to share Higher Skies' intelligence on Tarkin. After securing an audience with Tarkin, she exposed Higher Skies' espionage and Ghadi's plot to exploit the data. In return for immunity, Pryce convinced Tarkin to appoint her Governor of Lothal and promote Thrawn's friend Eli Vanto.

As a result of Pryce's information, Imperial Security Bureau forces under Colonel Yularen arrested members of Higher Skies and Yinchom Dojo. Yularen personally arrested Madras after her bodyguard Kaniki tried to assassinate Senator Evidorn. While most conspirators were executed, Juahir's punishment was commuted to imprisonment after she cooperated with Yularen. H'sishi was cleared and allowed to leave Coruscant. Pryce's actions dealt a serious blow to Nightswan's intelligence-gathering efforts.

The Cyphar dispute

Meanwhile, Nightswan became involved in the Cyphar Incident. To raise funds, Nightswan helped smugglers on Cyphar smuggle a pre-spice material used to produce scarn. While Nightswan was uncomfortable with smuggling spice, he had no choice since the smugglers were armed. To distract the Cyphari Afe clan and the Cyphar government, the smugglers instigated a land dispute between the Afes and human colonists over a new doonium vein beneath Afe territory. Following Nightswan's advice, the doonium was smuggled offworld hidden in shellfish shells.

Commander Thrawn and Ensign Vanto were dispatched to resolve the Cyphar dispute. Studying shipping records, Thrawn and Vanto linked the dispute to doonium smuggling and increased shellfish exports. Thrawn also deduced Nightswan's involvement. After meeting with colonists' representatives Clay Tanoo and Brigte Polcery and the Afe Chief Joko, Thrawn and Vanto set a trap for the human raiders. Imperial forces captured several raiders, including Tanoo and Polcery. Examining the site, Thrawn discovered the disputed ground contained a pre-spice material used to produce scarn.

To end the land dispute, Thrawn ordered the Thunder Wasp and its TIE fighters to level the disputed land, destroying the scarn and farmland. Despite resolving the dispute, Thrawn's actions antagonized Chief Joko, who objected to the loss of farmland. The Imperial Military was also displeased and court-martialed him. However, Thrawn was cleared due to Grand Moff Tarkin's influence. He was promoted to Commodore while Vanto was promoted to Lieutenant Commander. Thrawn was also made captain of the Imperial Star Destroyer Chimaera, giving him more resources to fight Nightswan's insurgency.

Rescuing Wookiee slaves

Following the disruption of Higher Skies and the Cyphar dispute, Nightswan and his followers focused on freeing Wookiee slaves from the Empire. After the Clone Wars, the Galactic Empire annexed Kashyyyk and enslaved the Wookiee species. The xenophobic Empire exploited the Wookiees' robust physiology for long hours in extreme conditions. Besides harvesting lumber, crops, and mining on Kashyyyk, Wookiee slaves were shipped across the galaxy to work in mines and build the Death Star. Additionally, Wookiees were used as experimental subjects for testing medicines and weapons.

The insurgents ambushed the troop ship Sempre with the frigate Castilus and two squadrons of V-19 Torrent starfighters. After jamming the ship, the insurgents boarded the Sempre and liberated the Wookiee slaves. Commodore Thrawn and Lieutenant Commander Vanto responded to the Sempre's distress call. Examining the ship's interior, Thrawn discovered the Empire was trafficking Wookiee slaves. Meanwhile, the insurgents attacked the space station Lansend Twenty-Six, used to process Wookiees being exported offworld. The insurgents were aided by a saboteur who disabled the long-range comm and starboard-side defense systems before being captured.

With reinforcements from Baklek Base on the way, the Chimaera came to the aid of Landsen Twenty-Six. By that stage, the insurgents had already boarded the station. After establishing contact with Colonel Zenoc, Thrawn ordered the Star Destroyer's turbolasers to bombard the starboard part of the station. Meanwhile, Thrawn's TIE fighters neutralized the insurgent starships, reducing the enemy forces to the crippled frigate and three V-19s. Despite helping foil Nightswan's latest venture, Vanto felt uneasy about the Empire using slaves. Thrawn responded that these slaves were Imperial assets and sought to rationalize slavery.

Batonn sector insurgency

Following Admiral Thrawn's suppression of the uprising on Botajef, Nightswan turned his attention to Batonn, a doonium exporter. Nightswan affiliated with the Batonn insurgents, who opposed Governor Restos and his Imperial overlords. The Batonn insurgents captured the Imperial garrison on Scrim Island. In response, Fleet Admiral Jok Donassius decided to take action against insurgent groups within the Batonn sector including Batonn.

Admiral Thrawn and his Ninety-Sixth Task Force were tasked with recapturing Scrim Island. However, the mission was reassigned to Admiral Durril and his One Oh Third Task Force after Thrawn insisted on studying the siege first. Instead, Thrawn was reassigned to quelling the insurgents on Sammun while Admiral Kinshara's One Twenty-Fifth task force was tasked with dealing with the Denash insurgents. Thrawn tasked Commander Karyn Faro with handling the Sammun insurgents while he and Commander Vanto traveled undercover to Batonn to gather intelligence on Nightswan.

Posing as an arms dealer, Vanto infiltrated Nightswan's base aboard a Nomad starship on Batonn's main continent. Nightswan told Vanto about his plans to overthrow the Empire and regarded Thrawn as an obstacle. Eli and Thrawn escaped Nightswan's ship by staging an explosion. Meanwhile, the Scrim Island insurgents inflicted heavy damage on Admiral Durril's forces, forcing them to retreat. On Sammun, Commander Faro destroyed two enemy ships, captured four others, and seized a considerable amount of ordnance. Elsewhere, Admiral Kinshara encountered little resistance since most of the Denash insurgents had retreated to Batonn.

With Admiral Durril's defeat, Thrawn was tasked with recapturing Scrim Island. Having studied the enemy's tactics, Thrawn used his task force's Imperial light cruisers as decoys to absorb the enemy ion cannons. Though the light cruisers were disabled, this enabled Thrawn to deploy the Chimaera and bombard the insurgents from orbit. The Chimaera's turbolasers generated mini tsunamis that overwhelmed the insurgents' defenses, forcing their surrender. However, other insurgents retreated to the Creekpath Mining and Refining complex near Paeragosto City, setting the stage for a siege.

Last stand on Batonn

Nightswan's forces seized the Creekpath Mining and Refining complex, driving out the mining staff. The Batonn authorities were caught off guard since Governor Restos had requisitioned the Batonn Defense Force to guard his palace. While Nightswan did not want civilians to get involved, many civilians took shelter inside the Creekpath complex, which was defended by a deflector shield generator. Many locals, including Governor Pryce's parents Talmoor and Elainye Pryce, sympathized with the Batonn insurgents due to their grievances with Governor Restos and the Empire.

Forces of the Empire and Batonn's defenses initiated a blockade of the Creekpath complex. Due to her parents being located inside, Governor Pryce persuaded Colonel Yularen to permit her to accompany ISB Agent Gudry on a mission. The objective was to deactivate the shield generator. Simultaneously, Thrawn orchestrated a clandestine meeting with Nightswan, aiming to broker a peaceful resolution to the Creekpath siege. During this encounter, Nightswan admitted his involvement in prior insurgent activities. These included the Dromedar Incident, the Battle over Umbara, Higher Skies, the Cyphar dispute, the attempted liberation of Wookiee slaves, and the Scrim Island siege. Thrawn proposed to secretly transport Nightswan to the safety of the Chiss Ascendancy. However, Nightswan declined to leave his followers at the mercy of Governor Restos. Despite their differing views, Thrawn committed to minimizing harm to civilians.

Subsequently, thirty insurgent vessels emerged from hyperspace, launching an assault on the Imperial light cruisers in orbit around Batonn. Thrawn then deployed TIE fighters, which had been concealed within repair ships. The freighters found themselves caught between the Chimaera and the deployed TIE fighters. In a separate event, Pryce had a disagreement with Gudry and subsequently killed him after he refused to assist her in evacuating her parents. To conceal his murder, Pryce triggered the explosives that Gudry had attached to the insurgents' munitions depot, while ensuring the shield generator remained functional. The resulting explosion devastated a significant portion of the mining complex, resulting in the deaths of all insurgents present, including Nightswan, along with a substantial number of civilians. Observing the explosion from space, the insurgent ships withdrew, thus bringing an end to the Batonn insurgency.

Aftermath

The demise of Nightswan during the Siege of the Creekpath Mining and Refining complex effectively ended his campaign of insurgency against the Galactic Empire. The Empire accepted Pryce's account, which claimed that Gudy had detonated the explosives to avoid capture by the insurgents. Despite the considerable civilian casualties on Batonn, Governor Pryce deemed them acceptable losses, given the complete elimination of insurgents from the Batonn sector. While disturbed by the high number of fatalities, Thrawn reluctantly acknowledged Pryce as his political ally. Thrawn was later promoted by the Emperor to the rank of Grand Admiral and given command of the Seventh Fleet.

Pryce's dissatisfaction with Admiral Kassius Konstantine's efforts against the Phoenix Cell prompted her to request Grand Moff Tarkin to dispatch Thrawn and the Seventh Fleet to the Lothal sector. Despite Nightswan's death, resistance against the Empire persisted. By 2 BBY, Thrawn recognized that the Empire was nearing a galaxy-spanning insurgency. Later that year, various rebel cells, under the leadership of former Senator Mon Mothma, united to form the Alliance to Restore the Republic, which embraced many of Nightswan's ideals. After years of warfare, the Alliance's successor, the New Republic, triumphed over the Empire at the Battle of Jakku in 5 ABY.

Behind the scenes

Nightswan's campaign forms the secondary narrative arc within Timothy Zahn's 2017 novel Thrawn, a Canonical origins story centered on the titular character. Nightswan functions as the novel's primary adversary.