The Abominor, were destroyed or at least weakened to a level where they won’t be able to resurge in mass throughout the Galaxy. Who knows what type of fail safes or other measures that they had. This was something that was on Daimon’s mind as he oversaw the cleanup operation of the rest of Velon-3. Obviously, he was sure that completely wiping them out was impossible since the galaxy was massive and they could have another secret base hidden somewhere on another planet.
Even so it was confirmed that they would not be able to make a return for thousands of years. Without their core AI cortex and with them constantly on the run, it would take them too long before they made a comeback.
With this in mind, Daimon was at least glad that he could tell the people of the Imperium that the threat was now gone and they could continue without worrying about the Abominor anymore.
A few weeks had passed and Velon-3 was cleared of all Abominor battle droids and all that remained was their infrastructure and other creations. Daimon made sure to collect a few of these deactivated Abominor droids for research back in the Imperium. Of course, the other empires did the same as they didn’t want to just let the Imperium have this advantage.
But now, another difficult battle was about to happen. Gathered within the Hall of Reclamation, aboard the orbital station Triarch Spire above Velon-3, the empires of the victorious Coalition met once again—not as comrades in arms, but as stakeholders eyeing the spoils of war.
Elara sat at the apex of the council chamber, flanked by the banners of the Imperium and backed by several Ascendants and diplomatic aides. She wore a white dress embroidered with gold engravings, which really outlined her blue skin. Across from her sat the representatives of the Stellar Sovereignty Alliance, their expressions one of eagerness for the negotiations. These representatives were chosen to represent the thousands of politicians from each of their own empires.
Supreme Commander Marrek presided over the council, now wearing the ceremonial Concordat silver trimmed in cobalt blue. "The war is over," he declared, "But the task of peace is just beginning. There are five hundred liberated worlds—of which, three hundred were secured and maintained solely by Imperial forces."
"Indeed," Elara replied. "Secured, maintained, and rehabilitated by Imperium fleets and logistics. Shall we begin by affirming the basic principle? The Imperium maintains rightful claim over what it bled for." This was a half lie, as the Imperium only landed official ground troops on about 180 of these 300 worlds while the others were taken over by Imperial Droid Battle Fleets. Daimon already told her that they had identified that that 150 of these worlds were critical to the Imperium while the others were up for negotiation.
High Oracle Seraphine leaned forward, her eyes narrowing beneath her hood. "The Dominion recognized valor, Lady Elara. But surely, you would not argue that victory alone entitles permanent sovereignty over so many sectors. The Divine teachings caution against hoarding power."
Elara tilted her head. "The Imperium does not follow your Divine teaching or whatever it is. Trying to apply your own religion to us will only result in a religious battle, one you surely won’t win." Murmurs broke out among the chamber as everybody remembered seeing the holo recordings of High Pontifex Malis Kaevor, his Doctrine corps, and his legion, the Equinoxis Ascendant.
King Zal’Torak of Rylothis, draped in his bronze regalia, grunted. "Let’s not pretend. We’ve all been watching the same reports. The Imperium did the heavy lifting. But that doesn’t mean you get to plant flags over half the region."
"I see," Elara said calmly. "So, you propose we divide the spoils evenly—between empires that nearly collapsed before we arrived?"
Zal’Torak’s lip curled as he was about to retort, but before he could speak, Technarch Nysar cut in. "The Varraxian Technocracy does not contest the Imperium’s claim over operationally controlled sectors. However, we propose that technological assets—such as Abominor research sites, foundry infrastructure, and code-mines—be jointly managed under a neutral council."
"A neutral council?" Elara scoffed at the suggestion. "And who would chair it? A rotating seat? Or a technocratic one?" Nysar’s silence was answer enough. Seeing this silence, Elara pressed onward, standing up and pacing slowly around the central holomap that displayed the glowing starfields of the region.
"We can bicker over asteroids and orbital relics. Or we can acknowledge that stability is achieved not through fairness—but through force, discipline, and stewardship. The Imperium has all three and more."
Councilor Yllaris from the Free Stars stood up next, her voiced filled with caution rather than accusations. "With respect, Lady Elara, if the Imperium claims three hundred worlds, what become of the smaller states? Refugee worlds? Trade routes? Independent worlds hoping for reconstruction under neutral oversight of all present here?"
"They will be protected Councilor. All neutral parties and civilians freed from the Abominor are to be given Imperial aid—under the condition that they do not harbor instability or threaten the reconstruction. If they do such a thing, then we will act accordingly."
From the seats behind the central table, Daimon watched the meeting in silence. The delegates could not see his face, but they knew he was there—a reminder that what Elara was speaking was in line with what he wanted. She didn’t need to invoke his name as his silence was just as effective.
Supreme Commander Marrek cleared his throat, attempting to grab everyone’s attention from the current tense atmosphere. "Let us focus on specifics. We have twenty-eight foundry worlds, nine AI research stations, and nearly two hundred worlds rich in raw materials. Perhaps we could do a resource allocation treaty..."
"No," Elara interrupted.
"The Imperium is willing to relinquish control over 80 worlds; however, the other 220 worlds are non-negotiable. This should satisfy your greed and any security concerns you may have." Elara explained as the screen shifted to show a number of border worlds which changed to white dots on the map creating a buffer zone between the 220 soon to be Imperial worlds and the rest of the Coalition empires.
Looking at the map, the representatives all silently came to the conclusion that while this was not the best deal, it still gave them a buffer zone between Imperium controlled space and their space. For the Imperium, this was still within what Daimon wanted. While the Coalition members were thinking short term, Daimon was thinking long term. His intention was never to conquer the Unknown Regions in one go, no that would disrupt a few things which included the rise of the Chiss.
He wanted them to be able to develop on their own and see what they can achieve, with a little bit of intervention from him of course. The future was already heading in an alternate direction from that of the cannon and Daimon wanted to be involved in most if not all of the major wars and other events. The creation of the Sith Order was just the start, eventually he would fight then subjugate the Mandalorians, participate in the Great Hyperspace War, then watch the Sith rebuild themselves, and so on. All of these would lead him to when Anakin was born and then he would have a lot of fun messing with those events, if they even happened.
King Zal’Torak looked at the map and then back at Elara. "And if we don’t accept this deal?" he asked. He was the only one willing to voice this out loud and the other representatives silently thanked him for his very blunt way of asking things.
However, the reaction from Elara was not what they expected. She smiled at his words before responding, "Then you can send your fleets to occupy them yourself."
Hearing her response, Zal’Torak laughed. "I thought so," he said, and settled back into his seat, arms crossed. "Then I propose we move on to the next item."
Sometimes, the only way to negotiate with a major power was to simply recognize where power lived. The Imperium’s threat was implicit. Elara’s friendly smile doubled as the warning label they all needed to see. Supreme Commander Marrek, who had spent the entire war’s end haunted by visions of what a galaxy under the new Imperium might look like, took a long breath.
"If the other representatives concur with the buffer arrangement, then the matter of territory is closed. Let us proceed with the question of reconstruction—both economic and political." Elara sat again, straightening her dress. "The Imperium will send an economic advisory delegation to each independent world," she replied. "We have centuries of experience uplifting recently liberated populations. It will not be forced—local governance will always remain paramount."
"What about freedom?" Councilor Yllaris pressed. "We fought this war to ensure our children grow without warlords above them or emperors telling them which color to bleed."
Elara spread her hands out in front of her, "Freedom is a matter of perspective, Councilor. To some, it is lack of want. To others, it is lack of fear. The Imperium guarantees a bit of both, as long as your citizens do not invite disaster onto themselves." She paused for a moment before continuing. "Do not mistake order for tyranny, or persuasion for the promise of chains. If your peoples thrive, our interests and yours will align more than you imagine."
Across the table, Technarch Nysar spoke up. "Then we are agreed. Your arrangement preserves the balance of power and allows for neutral zones. We propose joint scientific oversight on the Abominor relics, however... many curiosities remain." Elara smiled, for this was already within the terms Daimon had stated: let them have their fun.
She nodded, "Within reason. Our teams will cooperate, and our results will be shared equally."
Supreme Commander Marrek clapped his hands together. "Then let us move on from this matter." The meeting itself was only just the beginning and the longer it went on the more discussions that occurred between the parties gathered. At one point, Daimon even fell asleep in his chair, bored of these long talks which were being dictated by Elara.