''You can cease spelling out self-evident matters now. We will keep our people in line, if not, they will be killed. Lanius certainly shares the opinion of the people of his homeworld, who are will be soon facing a controversial liberation by communist forces, I take it. Yet Lanius is a soldier of the Imperium and he is going to follow orders. We will keep our part of the treaty, you can count on it.'' said the Curator.

Paulinus was nervous, but he didn't let it show. The treaty he was about to sign was certainly not a basis for a lasting peace between the Imperium and the Federation. It was a truce. Truce for a few years, maybe a decade, a century at most. What was certain that the Imperium had faced the biggest military catastrophe in its history. Although the amount of men the Federals had wasted to get this far was much larger than the Imperial losses, so was their manpower now, when the Imperium had lost the traditional militaristic worlds of the west along with their forts and naval bases. 

Lanius was definitely going to fight, Paulinus concluded. The Federals would grind his forces into dust until the Warmaster would be forced to leave his home system behind. Then, should he try to reach the Imperium, the Curia would simply eliminate him and whoever follows him.

''Very well, we are ready to sign the treaty on behalf of the Imperium.''