The Sith Empire had reluctantly begun pulling all of their forces out of Taris after the skirmish between Sith Troopers and Veldari Imperial forces. The galaxy at large saw this as another end to the conflict, while the Sith saw it as another Imperial intervention into their affairs.
The Republic, on the other hand, viewed the Imperium's intervention with a mixture of relief and unease. Relief, because the Sith withdrawal meant that countless Republic citizens on Taris would no longer be subject to the brutalities of Sith occupation. Unease, because the Imperium's ability to dictate terms to the Sith Empire reminded everyone of just how much power Daimon and his Imperium wielded.
In the Senate Chamber on Coruscant, the topic dominated discussion for several days. Some senators praised the Imperium's intervention, calling it a long-overdue check on Sith aggression. Others expressed concern that the Republic had become a bystander in its own conflicts, with the Imperium stepping in to resolve issues that the Republic itself should have been capable of handling.
Supreme Chancellor Janarus listened to the debates with a tired expression. He had received a private communication from the Imperial diplomatic envoy several hours before the news became public, informing him of the Imperium's actions and the terms imposed on the Sith. The communication had been polite, professional, and entirely one-sided. The Imperium had not asked for the Republic's input. They had simply informed the Republic of what had been decided.
It was, Janarus thought, an uncomfortable reminder of the new political reality. The Imperium did not need the Republic's permission to act, and they certainly did not need the Republic's approval. They acted according to their own interests and their own moral framework, and the rest of the galaxy was expected to adjust accordingly.
In the Jedi Temple, the Council convened to discuss the matter as well. Master Orath, who had returned to Coruscant two days after the extraction, gave his report in person. He described the engagement in detail, the speed of the Imperial response, the conduct of the Aurifex Legates, and the skill of the Balance Keepers.
"They moved like they had been training for this exact scenario," Orath said. "There was no hesitation, no confusion. They knew their roles, and they executed them perfectly."
"And the Balance Keepers?" Master Sate Tann asked. "What was your impression of them?" she asked this because for all her time spent in the order, she knew that the Balance Keepers were holding back with their join training between the two sides. She wanted to know what new abilities, if any, the Balance Keepers use.
"Well, as you know Master Tann, they are not like us. They do not fight like us, and they do not think like us. But as we have learned during our join training sessions over this millennia, they are not Sith either. The Twi'lek who saved my life used the Force as an extension of her blade. What I mean by that is, when she fought with her blade, she used the Force between attacks so smoothly that I couldn't even tell when she used them before I lost focus. Her style of fighting was rather aggressive, but it was not driven by anger or fear. It was simply efficient."
The Council exchanged glances. The Balance Keepers had been a topic of quiet discussion among the Jedi for some time now. While they occasionally worked together, and their general doctrine was understood, firsthand accounts of their combat capabilities against the Sith were rare. The Jedi wanted to use this knowledge to see how the Balance Keepers fight and defeat the Sith and try to apply those techniques for themselves just in a more Jedi like way.
Meanwhile, this sped up the Sith's plans as they had now freed some of their forces up and they would get the resources that they would be losing from Taris from the Imperium. So, they didn't lose much, but it did demoralize their forces as they were forces to leave by the Imperium.
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A week after the Taris announcement
Daimon woke up for another day in his new life. The first thing he did was brush his teeth and wash his face before heading to his office. He had taken a bath the day before so he didn't need to take one this morning and just headed for his office.
As the automatic doors opened, he walked in and sat down at his office desk.
Upon sitting down, a holographic display flickered to life in front of him, projecting the day's schedule and a list of pending matters that required his attention.
The first item was a report from the Ministry of Expansion regarding the colonization efforts in the recently surveyed sectors along the Outer Rim. Three new worlds had been deemed suitable for terraforming, and the initial waves of Veldari settlers were already preparing to deploy.
The second item was more interesting. A request from the High Priestess of the Temple of Daimon on Veldari, asking for his presence at an upcoming ceremony marking yet another year of the Imperium under his rule. The ceremony was expected to draw worshippers from across the Imperium, and the High Priestess felt it would be appropriate for the Emperor himself to make an appearance, even a brief one.
Daimon considered this for a moment. He had attended such ceremonies before, though sparingly. He generally preferred to let the religion centered around him operate on its own momentum, intervening only when doctrinal matters required clarification or when the priesthood overstepped in ways that needed correction.
The third item was a status report from the Aurifex Legate command structure regarding the engagement on Taris. The report was brief, formal, and praised the conduct of the units involved. Daimon skimmed it and approved a commendation for the Twi'lek Balance Keeper who had engaged the Sith Lord. Her name was Vey'la Sutr, and according to her file, she had been with the Balance Keepers for nearly three centuries.
The fourth item caused him to pause briefly. It was a flagged communication from the deep-space monitoring network along the galactic north. The automated systems had detected an anomalous hyperspace signature passing through one of the corridors that bordered Imperial-claimed space, in a region that had historically been considered uncharted. The signature did not match any known Imperial, Republic, Sith, or other design profile.
Daimon leaned forward, expanding the holographic display to bring up the full sensor logs. The signature was faint, partial, and had been picked up by only two of the monitoring stations in that sector. Whatever had passed through had been moving fast, and had clearly not intended to be detected.
He tapped a finger against the edge of his desk, thinking. The Chiss were the obvious candidate. He had been planning his expedition into the Unknown Regions for some time now, and a stray Chiss scout straying just close enough to be detected would not be unusual. But the signature did not quite match what he had projected for Chiss drive technology either.
Something else, then. Or perhaps something newer. The Chiss were not a stagnant people, and he had not been able to study their technology closely. For that, he relied on his memories from his previous life.
He marked the report for further analysis and forwarded it to the Imperial Intelligence Bureau, with instructions to expand monitoring coverage in that sector and to flag any additional signatures of similar nature for immediate review. If something was probing the edges of Imperial space, he wanted to know about it before it became a problem.
The fifth item was a routine economic report regarding trade volumes between the Imperium and several neutral systems along the Hydian Way. Daimon glanced at the figures, noted that everything was proceeding within expected parameters, and approved the report without further comment.
The sixth item was a request from one of the regional governors on a frontier world, asking for additional infrastructure funding to expand a recently completed spaceport. Daimon reviewed the proposal, made a small adjustment to the requested figure, and approved it.
By the time he had worked through the rest of the morning's items, several hours had passed. He leaned back in his chair, relaxing with his eyes closed for a moment. One of the maids who had arrived a few hours ago had been quietly standing behind him. Upon seeing him lean back, she walked up and placed her hands on his shoulder, giving him a message.
This caused him to relax even more and almost fall asleep. But he was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Sir you have your visit to the Balance Keeper temple coming up soon."
Hearing this, Daimon reluctantly stood up and walked to the door, with the maid following him.
Once outside the office, Daimon was met by his usual escort of Imperial Guards. They fell into formation around him as he walked through the polished corridors of the palace. The maid who had been giving him a massage moments before remained a respectful step behind, ready to attend to whatever he might need.
The Balance Keeper temple was located on the outskirts of the capital city, situated on a hill that overlooked one of the larger reflective lakes that dotted Veldari's surface. It was the largest temple in the Imperium as well as the oldest, and it served as the central training facility for all Balance Keepers who would eventually be deployed across Imperial space. It was the size of a large city and houses hundreds of thousands of Balance Keepers all at once.
The transport ride from the palace to the temple took only a few minutes. Daimon spent the journey reviewing additional reports on his datapad, occasionally glancing out the window at the city below. Veldari had grown considerably since he had first established it as the capital. What had once been a small planetary settlement was now a sprawling metropolis, with towers of crystalline architecture reaching toward the sky and gardens that had been growing between the buildings for centuries, some over a millennium.
When the transport arrived at the temple, Daimon was greeted by Hierarch Veshara, an elderly Mirialan woman who had led the Balance Keepers for the better part of two centuries. She bowed deeply as he stepped out of the transport.
"Emperor Daimon. The temple is honored by your visit."
"Hierarch Veshara," Daimon replied, returning the bow with a slight inclination of his head. "I trust everything has been prepared?"
"Of course, my lord. The trainees are assembled in the main hall, and Master Vey'la has returned from her assignment as you requested."
Daimon nodded and gestured for her to lead the way. The two of them, followed by the guards and the maid, walked through the temple's outer gardens and into the main building. The architecture inside was austere but elegant, with stone walls that had been polished smoothly by centuries of careful maintenance.
Faint Force resonances hummed through the walls, the result of generations of Balance Keepers meditating and training within these halls. The temple was alive with the Force in a way that few other places in the galaxy were.
The main hall was a vast circular chamber with a high domed ceiling. Sunlight streamed in through stained crystal panels set into the upper walls, casting patterns of colored light across the polished stone floor. Several hundred trainees stood in formation, arranged by rank and discipline, their postures perfect and their attention fully focused on the entrance as Daimon walked in.
The moment he crossed the threshold, every Balance Keeper in the room dropped to one knee in unison. The movement was so synchronized that it produced a single sound, a soft rustle of robes and the quiet impact of armored knees against stone.
"Rise," Daimon said.
They rose as one just as they had got down.
Daimon walked toward the raised dais at the center of the room, with Hierarch Veshara at his side. He stopped before he reached it, however, and turned instead toward the section where the senior Balance Keepers stood. His eyes found Vey'la Sutr immediately.
The Twi'lek stepped forward without needing to be summoned, crossing the distance between her position and his. When she reached him, she dropped to one knee.
"My lord."
"Stand, Master Vey'la."
She rose, allowing his perception to extend just enough to measure of her presence in the Force. It was steady, disciplined, and quiet. Centuries of training had refined her into something that resembled a still pool of water: deep, clear, and undisturbed.
"Your conduct on Taris was exemplary," Daimon said. "You upheld the principles of the Balance Keepers, and you protected those who could not protect themselves. The report I received from Master Orath of the Jedi Order spoke very highly of you."
"I served as I was trained to serve, my lord," Vey'la replied without any trace of pride or humility. It was simply a statement of fact.
"That is precisely why I am commending you," Daimon said. "Many serve as they are trained. Few have the chance to serve well enough to be remembered for it."
He raised a hand, and one of the attendants stepped forward carrying a small ceremonial case. Inside it rested a sigil of polished obsidian inlaid with veins of silver, the mark of a Master who had distinguished themselves in direct service to the Imperium.
"By my authority, you are elevated to the rank of Emperor's Warden. You will continue your duties as a Balance Keeper, but you will also serve as a dedicated protector of me and an enforcer of justice within the Imperium. Through your unwavering loyalty and your leadership, you will ensure that my will, alongside the laws of the Imperium, are enforced."
A wave of surprise passed through the assembled Balance Keepers. The rank of Emperor's Warden was one of the few highest positions one could achieve. It gave one the authority to launch investigations into people and corporations who were suspected to be in violation of Imperial law. It also gave one power to use local police forces in investigations. All of which were granted by the authority of the Emperor.
"I accept the rank, my lord, and the responsibilities that come with it."
"Good." Daimon handed her the sigil himself. "You will receive your formal duties through the Hierarch in due course."
Vey'la bowed once more and stepped back into formation. Daimon turned then to the assembled trainees. "You have all chosen a difficult path," he began. "You are not Jedi. You are not Sith. You are not soldiers, though you fight. You are not priests, though you serve. You are something the galaxy has not seen before, and something it has not yet learned to understand."
Daimon continued his speech which lasted several minutes. It was designed to encourage these young Initiates who were still in training. It was a speech that he gave thousands of times which made the Balance Keepers out to be exactly what it is they are.
A unique entity that exists with a higher understanding of the Force compared to any other known Force Order or faction out there. With this they carried a tremendous weight on their shoulders and would need the mental capacity to do just that.