General Mathland Crovall stepped outside of headquarters to witness the sky, pretending that he could see the fighting in space. It was a sign that the reinforcements for the Empire had finally arrived. The orbit of Uslam was under Imperial control, meaning that a blockade was going to be established. He couldn't stop thinking about the Rebel fighters that were willing to sacrifice their own lives to buy his units time to build up defenses. Hopefully, at least one ship somehow survived the slaughter. "May the force be with you all." he said to the sky as the surviving fighters returned to base.
 
The fighting was only getting started.

General Crovall returned to headquarters and the command center as one of the officer waited for his return. “We got several ships on our sensors. What should we do, sir?” the officer asked.

The general looked at the sensors and realized that the Imperial was planning on doing an orbital bombardment; however, the question was where. Do they realize that the capital is protected by shield? Or are they just going to attack any area with the most rebel activity? He had to make a choice: protect the remaining units in exchange of land or make them stay during the bombardment. After thinking it over, General Crovall requested that everyone was listening him to one of the officers. Then, he started speaking.

“All units, this is General Crovall speaking. I am honored to be fighting against the Empire and their tyrannical rule over our home. That is why many already gave their lives. To end the rule and bring back democracy. Not to our world, but countless planets that are suffering the same conditions as ours. People are scared of fighting back, but I believe that the Rebellion cause will change that. It already did for our world. Now, thousands of us are fighting against Empire.”

The general sighed before saying, “However, we need to realize that we have to make sacrifices for the greater good. That is why I am ordering all units to abandon the Phase Line Bravo and retreat to the capital. The orbits of Uslam are under Empire control now and we have reason to believe that they will conduct an orbital bombardment. We do not know where it will take or how long it will last; however, we are not going to guess. Take anything from the line that you can carry over to the capital. Additional orders will be sent by unconventional means. We also have reason that the Empire is listening to us.”

“Fuck them.” he said, hoping that they are listening, “We would rather die than accept surrender. Hell, they are just going to kill us anyway. As for me, I will make attempts to keep our communications safe from the ears of the Empire. Once the lines are safe, I will come back on to give out new orders. We don’t know how long it will take, but we aren’t giving up. Until then, stay together, survive, and fight back. The force is always with you all.”

General Crovall sat down after finishing his speech to everyone, including the Empire (if they were listening). Before he could even rest for a second, another officer informed him that a bomber squadron and TIEs were spotted on the sensors, heading to another city. He didn’t have the men or resources to provide aid. The general said in a disappointing tone, “Inform the rebel forces of the incoming threat and tell them to evacuate the city with citizens to the capital. That is all we can do for them.”
He really needed a drink, but he needed to approve the SpecForces’ operation. Another officer said to the general, “Ready whenever you are.”

He stood up and nodded before speaking to the commander of the SpecForces. “This is General Crovall. Operation White Terror has been approved. Empire might be listening in. Radio silence until task is done. May the force guide you and your team success.”
General Crovall finally found himself with a little moment of peace to smoke and reflect on the choices that he made in the last ten or fifteen minutes. And he really needed that break.