Diu vivunt in Imperium! Vivat Imperator!

6 months later | Unknown systems

Again nothing, 98 systems and nothing every time. Finding Earth is more challenging than I thought it would be. I took astronomy, of course, but for travel among the stars, my knowledge needed to be improved, and the onboard ship needed to know the coordinates. Only the approximate location and that's a lot of stars. That's how I've been flying for almost six months now. Although there was still plenty of fuel and a chance to find a lot, I was already quite depressed. Of course, I could lie in stasis and stay there for hundreds of years, but for some reason, it seemed that everything would go wrong without me. So I sat at the surveillance systems and processed information. And so I flew day after day until, at one point, the system told me that it had found a system that matched the location of objects and the type of planets, which I remembered perfectly.

After entering the system found, I had a real "attack" of joy, yes, exactly an "attack" because the scan showed that it really was a solar system! But I was a little concerned about the lack of signals; by them, I could tell the age of the planet, and if there were none, then there was no such technology yet, or it was in a very early stage, which is very doubtful since the sensors on the ship were first class. Having given the order for a cautious approach to the planet and to enter orbit, I transferred to the production bay.

It wasn't much, just a factory stuffed inside, but it was fine for my tasks. And the task at hand had to do with my stupidity and haste. When I was getting ready to fly, I missed such a thing as information-gathering machines. I had spiders then, so I didn't think of anything else. But now I was faced with the fact that I had nothing to gather information from, so I wanted to create low-cost scout bots. They were to go to all sides of the system and find out everything they could, from resources to the objects' size. After giving my orders and downloading my blueprint, I returned to the "deckhouse" as the report came in for the moon's orbit.

Twelve hours later, Earth's orbit.

Well, you don't have to hide and can do whatever you want. Intelligence says it's 8 A.D. on Earth, which means Antiquity is in full bloom, and I have a dilemma. When I flew here, I was counting on contact with a society that was already at least somewhat developed. I could have helped with technology and defeated the Reapers if it was Massa. Still, instead, it's a planet with a slave society and the pinnacle of technology, the dome. So I have it in my head that I can build whatever state I want. At least the same Imperium, only without scientific degradation. In two thousand years, I can, with my technology, build and prepare for war, and if I can still win, I can start ruling the universe. Okay. I'm getting carried away. I must figure out my plans and start acting to make a difference.

I decided to start with a thorough reconnaissance and collection of data. I decided to use the most developed and powerful state in Europe at the time, namely the Roman Empire, to unite the Earth. And while I could find someone to be my representative, as in the case of the cats, I needed the language. I would have to catch a separate person who spoke Latin for him, and I didn't need the other dialects of the Empire. The bots can handle it while I take a nap.

Four days later | Earth orbit

The hunt for "language" was successful; the bots picked up a Roman officer on the battlefield. I got the necessary knowledge from him, so I now knew Latin. But I had yet to find the man for the plans. I just hadn't seen a suitable candidate. But I had a plan. I would find one of the better legates in the Roman army and induce him to serve me. Fortunately, I can do this discreetly, and later I will elevate this Legate until he can take the Emperor's place. To make this happen, I must replace the Senate with platforms and perhaps the military top brass. It remains to glorify the Legate in battles or seize power by force. In any case, after the Legate becomes Emperor, I will make a "miracle" in the temple of Mars, and here the Legate is already marked by the Gods. Both the army and the people will follow him. And it will be easy to capture the lands with my help. And after the capture, I will come as a God. By showing a few miracles, we can assure the locals and nominate the Legate as the leader on my behalf. It's a good plan, and I've got it all in my hands. Yes, I think I will.

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Author's Note

I apologize for omitting some scenes and names. I do not know the names of the people and their years of life in a particular interval, so I will replace them with inserts and positions. The following will describe the story in excerpts.

Endnote

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A suitable legate I found in Germany, or rather on the border with Germany. His legion was fighting the Germans and could retreat to other positions until a messenger brought reinforcements. He stayed with a detachment to cover the retreating troops and himself to retreat later. Still, they were cut off from their own and surrounded. Then they were all massacred, and the Legate caught an arrow and was taken for dead. He was badly wounded and had a couple of hours to live - the arrow was smeared with some nasty stuff. It wasn't hard to heal him, and then there was a talk along the lines of, "I am the Great One God, and I wish you to lead Rome and lead it to victory as a true warrior." In fact, it was different, but the gist was the same. The Legate was good; he cared for his soldiers, was not known for bad deeds, and was always honest. By the way, his legion remained, finished with reinforcements of the Germans and was waiting for the commander. And was very happy when he came out to them alive. His name was chanted, and it was said that the gods had marked him. And later, there was a return to Rome with triumph and honours. By the time he came, I had already replaced some of the senators on platforms.

Within a year, all the senators were in control, and the Legate's fame and support were growing like yeast. He became one of the most influential men in Rome. He enjoyed popular support, running several brilliant campaigns and winning fame.

Six months later.

Octavian Augustus is assassinated in the senate building while speaking. After the funeral, the Senate unanimously elects Maximilian Theros (the Legate's name) as the new Emperor. The army and people greet the news with unbelievable enthusiasm. A miracle happens during the Emperor's visit to the temple of Mars; God speaks to the new Emperor and gives him the strength to conquer the lands to the end of the world and gives him unseen armour and a sword and shield that grew from the ground.

Ten years later.

Great Day! Rome's steel legions reached the Ocean and conquered all of Asia, India, Alexander's former Empire, the violent Northerners, and the lands of Africa. Over the whole Earth, the Roman Eagle spread its wings. But there was no time to be afraid, for the campaigns beyond the Great Seas were being prepared, from whence the Emperor would bring victory, and no other way!

Fifty years later.

Incredible and sad news. The Great Emperor has died. He ruled Rome for a long time and went to the Gods undefeated.

One Month Later

The coming of the One God and the return of the Great Emperor. It turns out that all this time, the Romans were led to victory by God in the body of a mortal. He also said that there was only one God, and that was him, and all the other gods were inventions of priests and charlatans. This was a terrible blow to ordinary people, but the miracles shown by the New God are inexplicable and beautiful!

Ten years later.

Rome conquered the world. Legions met in different parts of the world, just as predicted by God the Emperor, who has ruled our Empire for ten years. It turns out that some miracles can be learned, for, in fact, they are mechanisms! How little we know in contrast to him! Even the greatest philosophers are children compared to him! And now that the whole world belongs to Rome and God the Emperor, he has decided to exalt it and lead mortals to the stars, where his legions will conquer hundreds of worlds and peoples for his glory!

The Great God - Emperor of the One Empire

It was difficult, but the plan worked out well. The Legate fulfilled his role and my instructions. I decided to keep him, as I have no such fanatical subject. Although every inhabitant knows what rules the world and whose soldiers march on the planet, it's just a belief in my powers, just like God. On the other hand, the Legate was fanatically devoted. I created his life, and for that, he was willing to kill himself on command. So I began to trust him more and more; if anything, I could rely on him. But back to the plan. I simulated the death of the Legate by transferring his consciousness to the platform. I later took his place as Emperor, coming into the world as God. I'll train people after conquering America and the rest of the land. In a couple of generations, they will be able to adapt to modern society and go to conquer the stars. And the interesting thing is that when I told them about the devices I own, but not all of them, there were immediately societies, orders, etc., eulogizing mechanisms. I am still determining how long they will last, but it's funny. Anyway, I've completed my plan, and now it's time to think about conquering the stars. I've got two thousand years to do that... But in the meantime, we'll build our own Empire with legions and wretched worlds!