"Our unofficial policy towards the Imperium will no doubt start a sort of cold war between us and them, with small skirmishes happening here and there, but no real big conflict happening. While I have no doubt that our Republic Armed Forces will be able to defeat the Veldari Imperium if it ever comes down to a conflict." Chancellor Dearic didn't believe that a new and small empire such as the Veldari Imperium could defeat them in a full-blown war. The Republic had a bigger population than them and a bigger military.
However, not everybody shared this sentiment with the Chancellor. "I wouldn't get complacent Chancellor, from the war, we have seen firsthand the power in the Force that he wields and from what the Jedi Knights and Masters have said, his title as a 'God' isn't so farfetched. Having the power to wipe out fleets and armies at ease will not make war easy at all. You may not know this Chancellor, but Daimon was once a Jedi Master in the Order."
Chancellor Dearic had a surprise expression appear on his face. "Was he? How did he turn out like this then?."
Grandmaster Donasham sighed as if this story was something that was only passed down in the deepest part of Jedi History. It was something that previous Grandmasters wanted to erase but couldn't. "I won't start from the beginning, but basically, he became a Jedi Master at a very young age and from there he climbed the ranks, proved to the High Council at that time that he was going to be a great Jedi. So, after he was granted the rank of Master, his influence started to increase, and he was on the path to eventually becoming the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order. He even created a sort of sub faction within the order called the Warden of Unity. But before that could happen, the events of the Hundred years of darkness began. In the initial attack on the Jedi Temple on Ossus, his close friend, Jedi Master Shrimee was killed by the Dark Jedi.
Daimon ended up killing the Dark Jedi who killed his friend, but then he was upset with the Council as he was warning them of such a thing happening for the longest time. So, he left the Order and then the events after that eventually led up to the creation of the Veldari Imperium, and the rest is history." Grandmaster Donasham left a few things out as he didn't want the Chancellor to know parts of the story.
For Chancellor Dearic, this was his first time hearing his story. Daimon wasn't a very influential person throughout the history of the Republic, so his achievements and whatnot were not recorded by the Republic. "I see, that is an interesting story. I would never have known that he was once a Jedi. But if that's the case, how did he become so strong?"
"Most likely he has used the Dark side to increase his abilities significantly, or he found some ancient artifact that gave him significant power. The possibilities of how he became powerful are endless and nobody really knowns. All we know is that he has caused a lot of problems for the Order, which is why we will start looking to disband the Wardens of Unity which is a subdivision in the order that was created by Daimon."
"And while you do that, the Republic will start to undermine the Imperium and its influence before it gets out of hand. We will probably use those other empires in the unknown regions to stir some trouble as well." Grandmaster Donasham nodded as if the two had come to the same conclusion regarding the Imperium.
Shortly after that, the meeting ended and the two went their separate ways. Chancellor Dearic immediately started to make some phone calls and call more meetings. He needed to speak with a lot of people to get things rolling against the Imperium. He wanted to gather evidence and present it to the people before openly opposing the Imperium. His best bet was the new territories which he knew the Imperium would probably do some horrific things to some of the people there if they didn't conform to Imperium norms.
Grandmaster Donasham was going to start organizing Jedi Knights and Masters to go after the Balance Keepers who secretly took children from Republic controlled space. He would also take steps to try and get rid of the Wardens of Unity who numbered close to 2,000 in the entire order. He didn't know why his predecessors didn't do the same thing he was doing, so he was going to do it himself.
After a few months had passed, the first signs of the cold war were starting to show. The coalition empires had started to form a rivalry with the Imperium, some openly stating their dislike of the Imperium and such. All except the Varraxian Technocracy. They saw partnership with the Imperium as their path towards unimaginable types of technology. They didn't care how powerful the Imperium or Republic was, so long as they could research what they wanted in peace then they wouldn't take sides.
This did draw the attention of the other coalition empires as they would need to all work together against the Imperium in order to cause some type of damage. But since the Varraxian Technocracy is a powerful empire amongst the coalition, they didn't do much besides saying a few bad things about them and the Imperium. Though to Daimon it was all just politics, there was no real direct threat to the Imperium, and if there was, he would act on it.
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On the Republic world of Rendili, 3 members of the Balance Keepers were undercover, walking through the streets with a few children trailing behind them. These children were from the local orphanage, some had a low midi-chlorian count, some had a good amount. But it didn't matter how low the count was, so long as they made it to the Balance Keepers, they could have that number increased.
The one in charge was Guardian Brennok, a veteran in the Balance Keepers who was turning 80 this year. Behind him were Adept Veyra and Adept Nyvara. They were on their way to become Guardians which is a similar rank to Jedi Master' currently they were on the level of a Jedi Knight in terms of rank, yet they were much better since they were in the Balance Keepers.
Behind them were the 8 children who followed close behind, wearing some new clothes that Guardian Brennok had brought for them. It was just a simple shirt and pants followed by a small child sized robe to cover their faces and keep them warm.
However, what they didn't know was the fact that they were being watched by the Jedi Order. The Grandmaster had already implemented the policy of the Jedi Order to stop the Imperium from taking Force-sensitive children Republic controlled space.
Arriving at a transport terminal, Guardian Brennok glanced at the children behind him. Most looked tired, a few still nervous, but they trusted Brennok and the others because of their interactions over the months. Unlike the Jedi Order, the Balance Keepers like to establish a relationship with the children by visiting them regularly before bringing them back to the Order. This is a way to gauge the children's potential.
Veyra offered her hand to one of the younger boys, who clung tightly to her robe.
Just as Brennok turned to signal the arrival of their transport shuttle, eight Jedi emerged from the surrounding crowd and rooftops. They were led by Master Virell Tann, a Zabrak known for her precision in combat and her deep adherence to Jedi law. The other seven were Knights and Masters, all experienced and ready for whatever was about to happen. Each of them stood still watching as Master Virell approached.
Brennok didn't move as he watched this unfolding. Adepts Veyra and Nyvara stepped forward, hands relaxed at their sides in case something pops off.
As she got close, Master Virell raised her voice. "You are in violation of Republic jurisdiction. Return the children to the local authorities and leave this world."
"These children came willingly." responded Brennok. "They were abandoned by your Republic and Jedi Order. We will give them a better life and path than being an orphan or even a member of the Jedi Order."
"You twist the Force into something unnatural." one of the Jedi Knights said, stepping forward. "The Balance Keepers are nothing more than refined heretics that should have been ousted long ago."
Nyvara scanned the number of people in front of her, a faint smile appearing on her face. "And yet you came with eight to our three. What does that say about your confidence in the abilities of the Jedi Order."
Virell grabbed her saber, as she could see that this was not going to be an easy negotiation. And her mission was clear, to halt the Imperium's ability to take Force-sensitives from the Order even if they have to get a little rough. Normally they wouldn't do such a thing, but after the Hundred years of Darkness, things have changed a little and plus they were dealing with other Force Users, a duel between Lightsabers was an expected outcome. "Our mission is the children, so long as you give them to us, you are permitted to leave."
Brennok didn't say anything and watched as Veyra and Nyvara ignited their lightsabers. This caused the Jedi to do the same and initiate their attack. Two Masters went after Brennok, while the rest targeted the Adepts.
Veyra swept her hand outward, calling upon both sides of the Force. She released a Force wave sending two Jedi backwards, slamming into nearby walls, knocking out cold in an instant.
Nyvara spun between the two incoming two Knights, her dual sabers igniting mid-spin. Her strikes were fluid, filled with both aggression and grace. She parried one of the Knight's blades and stepped into his stance, hitting the Knight's temple with the hilt of her saber. The Knight fell unconscious.
Brennok, meanwhile, moved like a mountain. He never ignited his saber, instead using the Force to defend himself. When Virell lunged at him, her strikes were lightning-fast, causing him to raise his palm and catch her blade with his bare hands, something that took a lot of training and concentration. Her expression was filled with shock, as such a technique was rare among Jedi.
He twisted his hand while still holding on to the lightsaber, disarming her, and with a wave of his other hand, immobilizing her in a Force stasis field. She could neither move nor speak.
The remaining Jedi regrouped, but already half their number were incapacitated. The children, who were surprisingly calm, were herded behind Brennok as Veyra and Nyvara advanced on the remaining Jedi.
One of the Jedi Knights tried a desperate leap toward Veyra, who countered the attack, and then dropkicked the Jedi, knocking them out with the sheer force of the hit. The last Jedi standing, a young Mirialan, looked at Brennok and held up her hand in surrender.
"This… isn't how I was told it would go."
Brennok nodded. "At least you're smart."
Brennok turned around and left with the group, leaving the Jedi unconscious as they boarded their transport shuttle. The Jedi were left in defeat as the people came to see them knocked out. A person even recorded the fight and planned to post it to the holo net. This was about to become an embarrassing moment for the Jedi Order as the so-called Protectors of the Republic' were just beat up in a one-sided fight.