Chapter Text
The Resistance forces sent a few ships to escort the Ishtar back to Earth. T’pol would accompany them, as a familiar face to bestow the news upon the Terran people. The former Regent of Vulcan broadcast the events on INS, to reach as many imperial citizens as possible. There was shock and grief among the humans, in particular. There was no heir, and their way forward was unclear since the Terran Empire seemed to be disbanded. T’pol tried to use her influence to urge democratic elections, reminding the humans that democracy used to serve the people of Earth quite well. She stayed on Earth for months, trying to create a new government for them, but the planet split into many factions, unable to arrive at a consensus on how to proceed.
The Terrans were at a loss, and a period of unrest raged for a while as they figured out how to move on without the empire. An Earth First movement rose quickly, and the divided planet became isolated from the rest of the galaxy. At first, they blamed the other worlds for leaving them weakened and alone after the losses received trying to reclaim the Klingon homeworld. They no longer had large fleets of warp-capable ships, and interstellar travel had to be rationed. Some of the authoritarian regulations enacted by Sato II became commonplace, and those in control began to believe in human superiority, as they forgot about the value that Hoshi had placed on the diversity of the people that made up the Terran Empire. They isolated themselves and began to remove aliens from Earth, and eventually halted all trade and communication with the outer worlds.
While Earth was trying to find its new way in the universe, the leaders of the other remnants of the Terran Empire returned to their home worlds, to put a halt to the civil rights violations and other decrees that had been enacted by authority of the empire. While they took some time to heal from the destruction and trauma of being under an authoritarian regime, they also worked toward forging alliances and new forms of government.
T’pol returned to Vulcan and encouraged her own people to form a government with checks and balances to make sure that no single person would hold the kind of power that the empire had granted to its generations of dictators. No longer weary and worn down by the careful sneakiness that had been required for so many years, T’pol felt optimistic, and found a renewed enthusiasm for leading others.
Kalas and Eryn returned to Andor and began to establish a new form of government there that focused on a partnership between the Aenar and and the Andorians, making sure that both of the subraces had an equal representation and opportunities going forward.
By the time Kreg got back to Q’onos, he had a message from his wife that she and the rest of their family were heading back to their home on the Noggran estate. After a brief but joyful reunion, he was called back into action. Back in First City, the High Council had called Kreg in front of them to ask him to come out of retirement. As Chancellor, Grelda had the honor of bestowing the new rank of Admiral of the Klingon Fleet upon him, which Kreg gratefully took, pledging to restore the honor and dignity of the position.
Lana, now more connected to her mother’s people than ever before, remained on Q’onos. Although she still cooperated with the High Council on many things, she felt an obligation to work more directly with the people themselves and found a new line of work in local government. Her daily interactions with citizens gave her new insights, which she shared with Grelda. In the end, those insights created new policies that began to unravel the gender role expectations that had become pervasive in Klingon culture. The inclusive culture that arose from those changes benefited all Klingons.
Glissa continued to travel around the quadrants, leaving the details of how the Tellarites were going to adjust to post-Terran life to others on her homeworld—knowing there would be healthy debate as part of the process. As the Tellarites created their new systems, Glissa travelled to visit her colleagues from the resistance, and was pleased to find that all of them were experiencing similar results. New laws were being written on multiple worlds, to protect everyone from the atrocities that came to pass under Sato II.
During the three years following the death of Sato II, Vulcan, Andor, Tellar, Denobula, Orion and Q’onos formed a new entity. The United Coalition of Planets. Every member world contributed to the success of the others with open trade, and shared scientific advancements. Laws were written to not only protect differences, but to embrace and respect them. Variety was to be celebrated in the Coalition. They banded together to make sure that the sorts of things that occurred under the thumb of Sato II would never happen again.