They set out two days after Madris first ‘suggested’ the trip. It probably wasn’t a bad turnaround time, but Regina kind of missed the days when she could just up and leave whenever she had something to take care of. Still, she needed to make sure the burgeoning Imperial government wouldn’t collapse without her there to oversee them, and it felt polite to give Kiara and the others at least a little bit of warning.
Not that she would be out of contact or anything. With some drones staying in Cera, Regina was only physically absent. That made it a lot easier.
They were taking Winged Drone Mounts to travel, which made the trip go a lot faster than it otherwise would, too. Madris probably had her own means of traveling quickly, but she’d accepted the offer of a flying mount, anyway. And Regina wasn’t sure if she wasn’t taking along whatever member of her party had been responsible for the ‘quick travel’ shown when they’d first met. She was accompanied by one of her party members, though, the same companion who Regina had seen with her during the war in Nerlia.
His level was still too high for her to see.
Armin niz’as Ulaven, a Shadow of the Blade, according to the System. Regina wondered if there was a reason Madris was taking him out of the city when the dark elf envoys had arrived. The last name the System gave him clearly indicated he was part of her house, and Regina could only assume it was fully valid. She knew the System didn’t even show elves’ last names, generally, although they signified very different things in their culture. Well, Armin was also clearly a rogue of some sort, and high level, so he could come in useful.
They arrived in the city in the afternoon, and first had to make their way through swarms of Winged Drones lining their path. Regina could have moved them all out of the way, of course, but she decided to let the sapient drone commanders indulge their protective impulses. Max accompanied her as well, obviously, along with several other sapient drones, but he clearly wasn’t the only one not exactly happy about her visiting a war zone.
Well, sucks to be him, she decided. She wasn’t going to squander an opportunity to learn and increase her power just out of paranoia. This city, especially the places where they would go, was swarming with her drones and she had dedicated bodyguards, while the gnomes had decisively lost. Visiting the city was a good political move, anyway.
They couldn’t get right to whatever Madris had planned. Well, she supposed they could, but Regina wanted to at least talk to the commanders currently based here. She was also planning on showing herself to the gnomes. There was a lot of misinformation about her floating around out here, she was sure, and showing she wasn’t some kind of uncivilized monster couldn’t hurt.
It was annoying, though. She took a tour around the central part of the city, making sure to surround herself with people of several races to make a point. Madris was at least useful as a new face in that regard. There was a bit of pomp and circumstance, but it was obviously constrained by the situation. That was probably just as well.
Regina insisted on giving a short speech. She hadn’t had much time to prepare, so she wasn’t going to get overly elaborate with it, but she didn’t want to pass up the chance.
“I am sure many of you didn’t expect to see me here, or at all,” she said, gazing out over the crowd filling the square in the city center. She didn’t like how large a percentage of it was her soldiers, including drones. She could hardly bar them from coming here, but she wanted to address the gnomes. At least there were some of them present. The braver ones, probably.
“You have heard many lies about me. I do not expect you to simply take me at my word, but I hope you can see that I am not what I have been made out to be. The official account laid out by the Gnomish Confederation’s current rulers leaves quite a few holes, don’t you think? Why would we have attacked you, when we were so vastly outnumbered at the time? Why the gnomes, and not the humans or elves? We certainly had more reason to fear and dislike the Delvers — and yet, we have managed to forge a strong alliance despite it,” she nodded at some Delvers in the front of the crowd. “A fact I appreciate deeply. I am not just a Hive Queen, after all. I am also the only remaining soul of this world’s time before it was plunged into the dark ages after the Cataclysm. You must have heard many things about why I have set about forging an empire. I assure you, it is not greed or lust for conquest. If I wanted to, I could do much worse. Do you not think the knowledge of the Ancients I possess could be turned to harm? We knew how to split particles far smaller than the eye could see and release power enough to incinerate entire cities. We reached space, built imaginary worlds to walk through, eradicated plagues, and more. Using magic, using the Hive I control, I could replicate almost all these feats. And I intend to do so, not just by myself, but with you, the people of this age. I intend to spread knowledge, not terror.
The Empire is not afraid of the Gnomish Confederation of the East, far from it. Your defeat is only a matter of time, but it is assured. If anything, I sympathize with you. Your lives have been disrupted and put in danger out of the blind greed, ambition and hate of a few. The current Historical regime that has seized control of your state does not have your best interests at heart, far from it. They do not even manage to benefit themselves. They are walking headlong into ruin and taking your people, the gnomes of this nation, with it. They spread lies and commit reprehensible crimes like murders barely veiled as just executions purely to cling to their shaky power, but their actions have already doomed them.”
She went on for a bit longer in that vein. It was a delicate balance. She couldn’t exactly absolve the gnomes for the war and the death and destruction it had caused her people. On the other hand, she had to at least largely make it seem it was the fault of their current regime — which, after all, it was — if she wanted to accomplish her goals, and reduce any likelihood of revolts. She could only try to poke holes into the story the official propaganda had told them and try to tread on the resentment and desires the gnomes would have already. But Regina was painfully aware that one short speech wasn’t much set against all the other information sources they had. That was one reason she tried to focus on what they could observe themselves.
Finally, Regina stepped back from the makeshift podium. The drones and Delvers present cheered the end of her speech. The gnomes largely stood silently. She had to hope that it was a contemplative silence.
How did I do? she silently asked Madris as she stepped away.
I’ve seen better, the dark elf replied, then paused a moment. For your level of experience and preparation, it was quite good, however.
Ah, thanks. I don’t suppose speechwriting and rhetoric is part of what you wanted to teach me here.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
I wouldn’t even try. Being a critic is easy, but I never tried to master those skills myself.
Oh, really? Regina affected a slight sarcastic drawl in her mental voice. I wouldn’t have guessed, you’re always the soul of diplomacy. There was that time we first met and almost started a fight …
Enough, Madris interrupted, but she seemed amused. You’ll find out what I was planning to teach you right away.
After the speech, Regina had nothing else planned. She could take the time to spend talking or training with Madris.
Unsurprisingly, considering her earlier comment, her psychic mentor took the chance while they walked through the city to talk about other psychics and what Regina could expect, and what she should be careful of.
We’ve already alluded to differences in focus and talent, Madris told her. That’s often important information to know, but some skills are nearly universal, and some everyone will have at least basic competence in. Such as shielding your mind. Mental attacks are a bit of a different beast, but we’ll get to that later. The main specializations would be communication, enhancement, sensing, empathy, reading, illusions and subterfuge … and, of course, mind control.
Which I assume is a problem? Regina asked. Madris had placed a bit of emphasis on it. She could see why, of course.
It’s certainly something that would make everyone very cautious, and using mind control too indiscriminately might make them decide to neutralize someone. Madris paused and gave her a look. Your psychic link with your Hive drones is already uncomfortably close. If it wasn’t an innate feature of your species and they weren’t effectively consenting from birth …
Regina resisted the urge to wrap her arms more tightly around her, conscious of the eyes still on them. She did not like having that pointed out. But Madris had a point. Her Hive Queen abilities weren’t exactly morally squeaky clean. She could literally take control of her drones, after all. She’d even done it before to sapient drones.
Wait, she said, considering the way her teacher had worded that. You were talking about specializations that people can have. You don’t think that’s mine?
I think there’s a good chance it’s one of your talents, Madris said calmly.
Regina chewed on her lip. Despite the potential power, it wasn’t exactly a prospect that filled her with joy. But she wouldn’t gain anything from trying to deny the possibility, either. What about the other psychics you know? She asked, redirecting the conversation.
Regina felt the equivalent of a knock on her mental walls and opened them a bit wider, before she sensed Madris pushing information at her. She stumbled a bit as she received and tried to digest it. This might not be the first time she’d done this, but it took some getting used to, and would be overwhelming if there was too much information. Luckily, Madris had restricted herself to basic information about each person. Besides giving her an idea of what they looked like, she’d also included a sense of their ‘psychic signature’, so Regina would recognize them if she encountered them.
There were more than she’d expected, almost two dozen, but then she supposed Madris had been around long enough to meet a lot of people. They all seemed strong, but she would only have included those psychics, not any random hedge mage with a little bit of psychic talent. None of them had any focus on mind control, and only a few on reading minds or emotions. Surprisingly — or perhaps unsurprisingly, if she really thought about the implications — a lot of them seemed to be focused on communications and sensing minds, especially more wide-scale applications. That said, they would all have some basic skill and familiarity in the other areas of psychic ability, and sometimes quite a bit more than that. Not a single one of them focused entirely on one discipline.
“Thank you,” Regina said. She tilted her head slightly. You want us to talk to the gnomes Neralt and his people have found?
It was a good guess considering they were approaching a converted prison where some of the gnomish POWs were kept. She also wouldn’t have been surprised that Madris was informed even if she hadn’t told her about their plans herself.
“I think it’s best if we see a variety of people today,” Madris answered with a slight smile. “Some eager to cooperate, some … less so.”
Regina nodded seriously. She trusted Madris to be responsible about this.
As they reached the building, Madris paused. Regina could tell she was using her psychic senses, maybe searching for something. She didn’t give any indication of her goal, though, just leading Regina into the areas where prisoners were housed. A few guards jumped to attention as they passed, but none dared to stop them. Max peeled off to talk to one for a moment.
“I realize you have already looked at the emotional currents of larger groups of people, to get a feel of their general emotional state and readiness,” Madris said as they came to a stop in the middle of the corridor, seemingly ignoring the cells lining it on either side. The bars were enchanted and the prisoners stripped of any weapons or potentially dangerous objects, but they were occupied. “However, you mostly focus on reading individuals, is that right?”
“It is,” Regina confirmed.
“We will need to broaden your perspective. So far, you’re flipping between a wide-scale and a close and personal view, but you need to develop a good middle ground. It is entirely possible to get a decent read of several people at once, and still act with consideration and forethought.”
“I can try,” Regina said doubtfully. She started to focus on the gnomes around them, trying to get a read on their emotions and the surface of their minds while still paying attention to Madris. It wasn’t easy.
“Good, but you need more than a try. Remember that people will often put up rudimentary mental defenses, of a sort, even without knowing you’re a psychic. They’ll exercise their self-control, try to control their emotional expression and focus their thoughts, as well as suppressing memories. Now, how many gnomes here are thinking about opportunities for escape?” Madris paused for a while, then added, “Also, remember to control your own affect.”
Regina struggled. Being reminded of her own expression just made her focus slip off the people she’d been trying to concentrate on, attempting to not just go through them one after the other but look at them as a whole. As soon as her teacher interrupted her concentration, the grasp she was starting to have on it faltered and she instinctively drew back. She sighed and turned to look fully at Madris. “This isn’t very didactic.”
“I don’t remember telling you to stop trying. Are you going to give up that easily?”
Regina ignored the question for the moment. “Also, why aren’t we talking mentally?”
“Why would I need to?”
Regina resisted the urge to facepalm and glanced at the gnomes around them again. “Because everyone can hear us? I don’t exactly want them all to learn what I’m doing.”
Madris looked at her and smiled. “Ah, but do you think we’re speaking Global right now?”
Regina opened her mouth to respond and then stopped. This time, she did groan. “What … how?” Madris had been speaking another language for this entire conversation, the dark elves’ ancestral tongue — how the hell had she not noticed?
Now that she focused on it, she noticed where her teacher’s mind was still closer to her than usual. She’d missed exactly what was happening … which was clearly part of Madris’ lesson as well.
“I have been speaking in my native tongue,” Madris said, and this time, Regina both recognized the language and how Madris was subtly feeding her input to buttress her understanding of the language. It was a very subtle, passive application.
“I know … at least I do now,” Regina responded. It took an effort to answer in the same language, but she was pleased that she managed.
“Well, then get back to the lesson, won’t you, my glorious empress?”
Regina closed her eyes for a moment as she turned back to look at the gnomes. “This isn’t the only test you’re going to give me today, is it?”
Her mentor grinned. “Oh, Regina, we’ve barely even started.”
Figures. But Regina marshaled her mind to stop complaining and start trying again. She was determined to at least make good progress.