In many ways, the scene was exactly what Monica had hoped for Khan, but everything about it was wrong.
Khan had obtained his rightful place among the leadership echelon, seizing authority and political power over the universe. His efforts and struggles finally paid off, but Monica still felt conflicted.
That promotion had also e naturally. Monica knew the Empire well enough to be sure of that. It wasn't authority stolen or forcefully seized due to various circumstances. It wasn't a reaction to Khan's monopoly over new, unique resources and special political status. It was a proper, genuine, and organic award, something Khan should have earned long ago.
However, it came from the wrong side.
The Empire didn't only beat the Global Army to it. The latter didn't even try to secure Khan's loyalty due to reasons most specialists understood.
The Empire was strange but rather straightforward. The Thilku looked dumb and hypocritical but were also honest. They didn't care about differences in species. They had no interest in intricate political schemes. The Empire only wanted strength and acplishments, and Khan had plenty of both.
Meanwhile, the Global Army had countless factions with conflicting interests, hundreds of powerful parties locked in internal battles for authority, and profound financial goals, often reducing every relationship to monetary deals.
That also extended to the Global Army's core leaders. Its higher-ups were divided, pursuing different goals and driven by various beliefs. Even its Generals fell into that category, creating an environment where Khan couldn't rise freely.
On the surface, the various families, the nobles, and the soldiers cooperated for the greater good of humankind, but the reality wasn't even close to that. Everyone was wary of each other, and gaining power meant stepping over certain boundaries or turning into threats. Khan had long bee precisely that for humankind. He was too powerful, too well- connected, and too capable. His status and character made him impossible to suppress, at least directly, but the Global Army had other ways of controlling him.
Nevertheless, that only pushed Khan further away until he reached the breaking point, doing something no other human could do. He left humankind, obtaining anything that should have been rightfully his from a different species.
Only Monica and a few others could have predicted that development, but they felt shocked nonetheless. Overing the differences between species was hard, and the difficulties stood on both sides. No human would feel at ease among aliens, and no aliens could accept humans wholeheartedly.
That problem went beyond simple likeness and usefulness. Specific differences were impossible to ignore, so the political environment resorted to promises. For example, Ambassadors were some of those accepted figures.
However, Khan had pushed things to the extreme. His broad mindset, outcast status, and achievements within a suitable species had given birth to an extremely unlikely oute. For all intents and purposes, he was no longer human. Khan had bee a Thilku in both status and soul.
And no simple Thilku, at that. Lord Rsi basically was the greatest authority from the Empire humankind had ever interacted with, but the alien bowed to Khan, and his following explanation stunned everyone.
Lord Rsi didn't mention Khan's true mission. He wasn't even aware of it, but everything else still surpassed everyone's expectations. Khan was no mere Lord. He was someone with authority similar to the Emperor's Royal Guards. Since the latter had no real political influence, that was no different than being the Emperor's second.
Of course, few people understood that truth, but that didn't detract from the scene's magnitude. Khan had bee a Lord of the Empire. He had switched sides, ruining most of the audience's preparations and plans.
Yet, Monica didn't care about that. She also looked deeper into the scene, piercing it to reach its core. Monica truly saw Khan, spotting the faint sadness in his glowing eyes when he gazed back at her.
Monica's heart tightened, but she still mustered a weak smile. Khan was back home safely, which was no small thing after everything that had happened. Also, the promotion was a good result. Monica had her gripes about it, but everything could be worked out given enough time. Actually, everything was probably going to work out. Being a Lord of the Empire didn't change Khan's blood. He might have formally left the Global Army, but his family still was part of humankind's framework, and it had now produced a Thilku Lord. The Global Army couldn't take that unprecedented achievement lightly.
Most of the audience reached similar confusion but didn't share Monica's happiness. Things had suddenly bee plicated. All the preparations and confidence from before Khan's return had disappeared. Khan had gained his best backer yet, removing any possible leverage from those who sought to rip him off.
The makeshift landing area in the encampment inevitably fell silent. Negotiating with a Thilku Lord was no simple procedure and often required the presence of specialists. However, that same Thilku Lord was also a human with preexisting and broken deals, theoretically creating meeting opportunities.
That internal conflict inevitably forced the weaker parties to stand back and wait. The Global Army had suffered the most from Khan's departure from humankind, but Brigadier General Seyb and Mister Cirvags had to let the nobles go first. Only they had enough authority and countermeasures to test Khan's new stance.
And the nobles planned to do precisely that. Except, Khan had other plans. He finally moved, ignoring the bowing Thilku to approach the human side of the audience. Everyone expected him to address the most important parties first, but he went straight for Brigadier General Seyb.
Khan didn't do anything special. He simply walked, but his presence was breathtaking. Each of his steps seemed to carry the power and will to destroy the world, inevitably affecting the soldiers' nerves.
Brigadier General Seyb didn't dare to bring newbies to Baoway due to the plicated political situation. Still, even experienced soldiers could make mistakes, especially when they couldn't fully understand the issue.
The General had a large group of soldiers at his sides and behind him, and four of them stepped before him, planning to protect him. That was a simple security measure against someone with unclear purposes, but Khan saw something else entirely.
"You dare block my path in my own home?" Khan asked, knowing that the critical point had already arrived.
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