Knocking on the door immediately caused both of the sisters to wake up. One was groaning while the other sat up in their bed, rubbing her eyes. The one who groaned just buried her head back under the pillow again.

“Can’t even sleep in peace while being imprisoned.” Mystic Gem complained into the pillow as the knocking persisted.

Little Steppes just sighed at her sister’s usual behavior before refocusing back at the large door. Her ears flicked a bit when another set of knocks came from its wooden frame. Little Steppes momentary looked back at her defiant sister before rolling herself off the bed with a bit of a frown.

Both of them may be related in blood,but they don't share many similarities with each other. They may be sisters, but they may as well be complete strangers in just how little they even knew about one another. The blame to this level of distance is mostly thanks to the fact that one was born with a rare gift of magic, while the other was born as a simple and normal everyday Gazelle. This meant that both of the sisters were immediately separated after their fawn days were over and were swiftly paired with their respective groups and paths. Little Steppes’ group being the largest simply because Gazelles like Mystic are a real rarity within their kind.

Or rather were, thanks to the lost Idol that the Zebra took from them. Or so she was told.

That pretty much persisted for most of their lives, with only a few instances where they would occasionally run into one another.

Little Steppes hated to admit it, but she secretly dislikes this part of the traditions that her tribe practiced.

She would really love to somehow connect with her slightly older sister and finally gain what has been lost in-between them, but thanks to those ancient traditions, such simple natural wishes might as well be out of her grasp.

They just spent way too much of their fawnhood apart from one another to really make a difference now. They are already in their late teens and still mostly treat each other like total strangers.

Little Steppes walked up to the door to grab the door handle, only for her to quickly realize that it was locked from the other side and that they were instructed to just knock back at the door when someone wanted to enter.

She did just that, knocking back against the door to tell the guards on the other side that they were still present within their room.

The lock on the door quickly began to click and turn, forcing Little Steppes to move to the side as the door slowly opened.

Not completely to her surprise it was none other than the captain himself who swiftly greeted her.

“You two come along, the king wishes to see the both of you.” He immediately ordered.

Mystic Gem just groaned, before rolling herself out of the bed. She stood up on all fours, stretching herself a bit like a cat before standing tall. Flicking her tail once, she looked at the captain with an indifferent look.

“So, is it time for us to go, or has he finally decided to have a proper fight instead of just keeping us locked up like caged animals?” She casually questioned, which in turn caused Little Steppes to facehoof.

She may not be stupid, in fact she can be quite clever when the need arises, but sometimes she just has this unhealthy tendency to let her thick headed mind and brash behaviour do the talking for her.

Well, back in the tribe, she certainly had a reason to be this way. She was always considered the best in her group, and the bravest fighter the tribe had seen since the previous generation.

She got that from her father, after all.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

I continued to wait patiently for Bakuss’ return as I continued to play with Penelope’s itty bitty claws. Said baby dragoness was playing with my fingers in return, occasionally putting them into her mouth.

Barely old enough to wear diapers, and already having tiny teeth growing out of her gums big enough to kill a small rodent. I have a newfound respect for Ashika’s and Chambika’s bravery for breast feeding her. Also, just imagine the biological super weapon she would be once she hits puberty. Those poor, poor stallions. I say stallions because I doubt that the rest of her kind are as tame as she is. Because… dragons, duh. Unless this world goes along with the whole “Spyro” approach, in which case good for her, and good for me for more bioweapons of “Epic burns” in the future. Even those professional rappers back home will be powerless to stop me.

Sick burns, brah, sick burns. Oh no wait, those are gay surfers.

All of my mental nonsense was quickly put on hold when I noticed a certain B of the double S returning in the corner of my vision.

I turned my attention to look at him and was pleased to see that he brought the two requested Gazelles with him. Even more so, I was happy to see that nothing has really changed since the last time I saw those two, with the moody one still being moody and with the not moody one being... well, you get the idea.

Yes, I know that they have actual names and that I know them, but still, I like to call them by my personal nicknames simply because it’s shorter, like Susi and Aku for example or even Pene… no wait, they’re not shorter their case.

I just mentally shrug before looking back at them, watching as the guards circle around them as they were herded right to the foot of the throne. Or more like at the foot of the steps leading up to the throne, because my foot is actually resting on the foot of the throne itself.

Confusing? Not at all, it’s just common sense, mind you.

Bakuss gave a quick bow before gesturing a hoof at the two Gazelle sisters. “As requested, I have brought the two prisoners before you.” He announced which in turn caused me to re-engage my Jarl Balgruuf pose in front of him.

“Obviously, that’s why they are here, aren’t they?” I countered with a raised eyebrow.

There was a pause. He blinked a couple of times before finally understanding my meaning and stepping off to the side, leaving the two does alone at the foot of the stairs.

See, I did it correctly this time.

I kept my pose before speaking at the two waiting Gazelles below me. “Well, well, well. Who have we here?” I announced, doing my deepest and best overlord expression I could muster. Not very effective when a certain baby dragon is sitting on your lap and nibbling on the lower part of your shirt with those sharp needles of hers.

In fact… no, wait a minute.

“No nibbling on my shirt. This is the original I am wearing right now; the one I wore when I was warped into this world. Go nibble on something else.” I chided, fully disengaging my pose and abandoning my roleplaying.

I lifted the baby dragon off my lap and placed her back onto the oversized cushion that is decorating the head of her podium. She frowned and crossed her stubby little arms.

I raised an eyebrow at that. Not really sure when she started to do that, but she kinda reminds me a lot of myself whenever I felt displeased or angry about something… when I was a child, of course.

I just placed this new unsuspected development of her onto the backburner and focused back at the two main attractions instead. I did call them over for a very good reason, after all.

I clapped my hands to get started. ”So, now onto the main course of this meal.” I declared, which got everyone full attention almost immediately. ”Let’s just get straight to the point. Little Steppes, was it? I remember you telling me about a certain ‘lost item’ that you and your people think is in the possession of the Zebras, or, more accurately, held here within the city itself. Can you please refresh my memory about it again as I seem to have already forgotten most of its details during that one particular part of our conversation?” I questioned, which in turn caused a certain gem head to look at her other half sharply.

“Wait, does he mean to say that you told him EVERYTHING when he picked you out for questioning? What in the ancestors’ name did you tell him?” She shouted, which caused the guards to tighten their grips on their weapons.

The one getting shouted at retreated back a bit with her ears folded and tail hanging limp. She looked panicked. “I… I just told him what he questioned me about… which… which was nothing too vital and something more personal and broad about the two of us. He even asked me if I knew any good calamari recipes… even though I have no idea what a calamari is.” She responded in earnest.

The moody one continued to glare at her other half for a couple more seconds before looking off to the side with a frown. Not sure what crawled up her ass, but given the situation I had just witnessed today, I really don’t want to know anymore. I just dodged a discrepancy to my morals and I don’t feel like having to see another one taking place.

I am already hopelessly mentally and physically erratic as it is, and I don’t need more chaos into dominating my… What the fuck am I talking about? Of course I need or want more chaos in my life, because chaos is the spice of life in my opinion. It’s just that I prefer the confusing and senseless chaos instead of having one revolving around sex and whatnot.

Again, think of the tiny teeny weeny children.

But I am getting distracted again for no… semi-plausible reason, so it’s better to get my work done as soon as possible so that I can be distracted as much as I want without having the ugly head of responsibility ruining my morning bowl of cornflakes.

It happened once, with the staff being forced to clean up all of those coco bits and milk traces off of the royal table. All because I somehow managed to flood my toilet by clogging it up, and having some random dude shout ot into the dining hall as if it was the prophesied coming of the four horsemen or something.

This is another issue I have with this stupid ass Palace. Need to remind myself to get a bigger toilet bowl for myself and not those Zebra sized embarrassments of nature.

A man of my status does require a lot of room, after all.

I focused back on business with my usual mental rants out of the way.

“So, anyway. About this “item”?” I announced with finger quotations, which in turn caused the not-moody one to perk up again.

“Ah, yes.” She began, rubbing her right cheek. “Well, as I already told you, it’s a very unique and ancient idol in the form of our deity of knowledge and magic. A very important item with a very important ritual attached to it that helped to create Gazelles similar to my sister over here.” She explained before I decided to butt in with a comment.

“So, you mean creating Gazelles as cranky as her?” I snarked, which gave me a glare from the aforementioned doe.

I simply ignored her as I kept my focus on her more workable sister.

She shook her horny head. “No… not at all. I meant, similar to my sister's ability to cast spells thanks to her inborn gem and rune-engraved horns. Their kind are actually called Charbakats in the native Gazelle tongue.” She clarified.

I rubbed my chin in curiosity. This was, of course, a very interesting tale she just laid out for me. For one, it’s something cultural, something to do with whatever pantheon they possess, and most intriguingly, the fact that this item in question has or had a hand in creating more Gazelles with a gem stuck on their heads.

But this still begs the question: how the heck does the moody one even exist when this idol is necessary for creating such spell-flinging catastrophes?

Well, being the king means that questions are always for free with little precautions attached to them. So fire those questions as if there was no tomorrow, Alexander.

It’s good to be the king.

“So wait, how does someone like her,” I pointed a finger at the moody one. “exist if this idol of yours is needed to create these special Gazelles in the first place?” I asked out loud.

To my healthy surprise it was actually the moody one who answered this one.

“The reason why me and some others still get birthed regardless of the idol’s absence and therefore Charkar’s spirit is because the natural gift of magic that still passively persists in some of us. It’s an ancient gift that has been naturally passed down to some of us from generation to generation, from the very first Charbakat of old, the first Charkar blessed with the natural affinity to magic; something where no idol is needed.” She explained.

“Also, such a natural gift is very rare among Gazelles too, which means thanks to the missing idol, only a mere hoofful can ever exist within every generation. Back then, there were far more Charbakat similar to my sister, thanks to the idol’s connection to Charakar and the ritual performed with it.” Little Steppes quickly added.

Well, this obviously caused me a lot of thinking. If their stories are true, it would mean that back in the past, more Gazelles like moody over here were a rather common theme. A more healthy number capable of casting spells and whatnot.

This, of course, would be a bad thing. For one, I would have Voodoos standing right at my doorstep that could or would align themselves to be a threat to my overall realm and the plans of so many eager Zebras. I need to either rethink this strategy of mine, or completely deny my assistance in getting this peace back. But if I did that, then I would most likely kiss goodbye to my chances of somehow making good with these horny fellows and getting this legendary crown of the previous Monkey king back into Zebra hooves that doesn’t result into using force.

Or I could just try and get a more stable source of that Final Fantasy crystal that Liuanda once introduced.

Yes, I eventually managed to figure out what that crystal actually reminded me of. It’s a bloody Final Fantasy 12 thing. Funny how I remembered something from a game I barely played.

Anyway, given all of this, there is certainly a decision to be made now. Either I help these Gazelles and hopefully secure myself some cookie points with the card, or I ignore it and have to find other means of getting my greasy little fingers on that sweet bling. Also, looking a bit deeper into this Nethicite subject will also be a go, regardless of the path I take with the whole Gazelle debacle. Having something that negates and absorbs magic in a world that has magic will certainly be a great advantage, and who knows, perhaps afterwards we could discover a more interesting application where these voodoo fucking crystals can be applied.

Either way, definitely something to place my focus on. Geeze, being a king can be so bloody jarring. I certainly need a vacation when all of this is over.

Oh, wait, I still have a decision to make. This might be a gamble, but you know what they say, “No guts, no glory” or “Success favors the bold”.

With these two phrases dominating my mind, the decision was clear.

I pointed a finger at the closest guard. “You there, could you go get Akunezzar from somewhere? I have a very important question to ask him.” I simply requested without much explanation or clear reason whatsoever.

The guard just nodded before relaxing his stance and heading off towards the front portal of the throne hall to go find the old stud.

I just smiled, leaning back against the back of my throne and resting both of my arms on its golden armrests. Attention of both Gazelles eventually refocused back to me as the entire hall went pretty much silent afterwards. With me occasionally wiggling my toes and letting my mind go wild.

The silence continued to persist for a couple more minutes, with me just patiently tapping my fingers against the armrests while imaging all kinds of different living dinosaurs running amok throughout the throne hall to pass the time, I even added Littlefoot and the rest of the gang for additional child nostalgia.

Penelope, on the other hand, had at some point laid down on her belly and began to nibble consistently on one of the corners of her pillow as a compensation for a lack of “Procrastinating like a BOSS” shirt.

At this point the only sounds that echoed through the halls where either Penelope’s munching or my constant tapping. The silence went even so far that it was starting to become awkward for most. I, of course, didn’t care as I was occupied within my own little world and thoughts at the moment.

I wonder, do they have something similar to dinosaurs in this world? They would certainly make great war mounts, or beasts of burden if that is the case. Another wonderful edge I can give my army in case of any future conflicts. Which, I am positive, will be coming one way or another. It’s clear that the Zebras have a couple of old enemies watching them from afar, which is good, at least then it would give me the perfect excuse to try and add them to our new future empire if they are becoming too much of a back pain to be dealt with.

Sure, there will most likely be some unrest at first towards their new overlords, but that could be easily remedied by just doing the same thing as both the Persian and Mongols did; cultural and religious tolerance. They can continue whatever it is that makes them, them. As long as it doesn’t majorly disturb others, of course.

A little bit of understanding can go a long way, after all.

“So… uh… what now? Was that it?” Little Steppes asked, being the first to break this rather peaceful silence that I honestly wanted to keep this way.

Because of her input, the dinosaurs were all gone, especially since when this movie was almost on the brink of becoming good. Petrie was about to suplex a T-rex. I always knew that the little bugger was the most vicious of the group, with Cera being a whore, and Spike being the most mature minded of the group.

I blinked myself back into reality before looking back down at the curious Gazelle below me. “Nope, just wait. I have sent that guard to search out the local lore master and previous custodian of this place for a reason. Just be patient, I am sure he will return before sunset.” I explained before leaning back against my bronze couch and re-inserting the DVD inside my mental DVD player.

I was about to continue with my fantasy movie when aforementioned guard oh so conveniently and suddenly returned right after I was about to press the mental play button on that cheap 15 euro device.

How the fuck do these Zebras do that? Whenever I try to get comfortable, or am on the brink of becoming comfortable, some random asshat has to return from whatever errands I lazily sent them to. Why can’t these errands take longer, so I can go ahead and procrastinate just a little bit more?

Real life problems, people. Certainly worse than any divorces or world hunger issues in a rather selfish and individualistic way. We certainly can’t help EVERYONE, because that would mean less time for ourselves and more time for someone you don’t even know or have seen before from the other side of the world. Survival of the fittest, that’s the rule of the jungle.

Now, back to business, I can play “The eye of the Tiger” later on my smartphone when all of this is done.

IF this gets done, that is. Though I still need to give Penelo her dinner bottle, too.

But anyway, just as requested, the guard returned with the old Dwemer looking fellow in tow. He seemed tired though, which is understandable, given the fact that he had to host the council all by himself.

Again, it’s good to be the king, having a lot of underlings to do all of the boring work for you. I provide the ideas, plans and visions to them, with them being the ones to execute them all on my behalf.

It’s a perfect system… for me.

The guard gave a quick bow before gesturing over the last living Dwemer. “As requested, I have brought High Shaman Akunezzar to you from the halls. I luckily bumped into him when I was on my way to the council hall.” He announced, which also explained as to how the fuck he managed to grab the old stud so fast.

Again, why is everything so bloody convenient in this place? Even when I bloody don’t want it to be! Something like this would have been really useful at college.

Speaking of which, Aku stepped up afterwards. “As the guard said, here I am. Though as for the reason why is still unknown to me, as all your guard said was that you needed my presence for something.” He announced which just made me cross my legs and lean back.

“Indeed.” I began with a raised finger. “Something regarding a collection of idols, or rather, a collection of certain items that originally belonged to different cultures or species other than the Zebras. Do we have such a collection stored somewhere within the palace?” I questioned, which in turn caused everyone’s attention to fall upon the old stud as he rubbed his bearded chin in thought.

He eventually perked up with an answer. “Well, I do believe that such relics are kept somewhere within the second vault, which is located right under the first one, in case you want to…” He tried to answer, before being promptly cut off by none other than yours truly.

I clapped my hands with satisfaction. “Great, this is all the info I really needed. Off to this secret vault, then.” I enthusiastically declared before pushing myself out of my throne… really slowly… and with a lot of effort.

I grunted out loud, which caused Bakuss to step up with a worried expression. “What is it? Are you alright, Your Highness?” He asked with concern, a feeling that was quickly shared by almost everyone as I continued to struggle a bit to get up.

Except for moody, selfish little ignorant bitch.

I just waved them all off after I managed to stand. “No, no, it’s fine. It’s all fine… just…” I cracked my back. ”… had some difficulties with leaving my rather comfortable position for something that is rather mundane and really not needed right now. Pretty common symptoms for your run of the mill couch potato.” I explained before fixing and pulling up my pajamas with an audible snap at the end.

I grinned my usual grin before grabbing the still munching Penelope from her spot and taking the oversized pillow with her, simply letting it dangle from her stubby little claws and mouth before descending down the stairs.

At least now I have a fluffy shield with me in case of more assassass.

“Anyway, Aku, if you could?” I requested with a gesture which caused the stallion to just nod.

“Uhm… well, yes, of course. I do know the ins and outs of the Palace like the back of my hooves, anyway. Just follow me and I can easily take you to this secondary vault in no time.” He responded before leading the way.

I just followed, leaving a pair of Gazelles and a couple of guards behind who were still a bit lost.

“Yes, that also means you two. This is your idol we are looking for, after all.” I eventually shouted, which in turn caused everybody’s brain to kick start.

Bakuss ordered a few of his guards to keep watch on the two sisters as we all followed Aku through this never-ending confusing maze which are the Palace halls.

“No, stop nibbling on my shirt. I thought that you were chewing on the Pillow. Stop it.” I chided, after I noticed the small drake munching on the left sleeve of my shirt.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Deep down in the underground, just above the easternmost catacombs of the ancient city, began a large network of unnatural tunnels and chambers that went deeper and deeper into the desert’s underworld. One of those chambers was the ruling chamber of a rather large version of the same bug horse that our king has in his custody.

It was female, with a long flowing and wavy orange colored mane and tail, a huge jagged horn and a crown on its black shiny skull. She had a rather slender frame for her size and a set of long, strong insectoid wings on her armored back. What really stood out about her was the fact that she was the only one of her kind that actually had visible pupils for her eyes.

They were amber in color, with the irises slit in the same way as a predator’s.

This creature was proudly sitting on top of a very large podium, overlooking an immense hall filled with countless blue eyes staring up at her from within the darkness.

She wasn’t alone on the podium, though; seated right next to her was creature similar to her status, though smaller and much younger compared to her. In fact, she was pretty much the same size as every other bug within this great hall. Besides her smaller frame, she also had a lack of actual pupils, similar to all the others, with her eyes being the same pupil-less solid blue eyes that the rest of her kind possesses. Though despite these two very obvious differences that were pretty similar towards her kin, her horn was still a lot larger compared to the rest, with a full set of back blown yellow and orange mane crowning her skull instead of just being bald. Her tail was also a lot longer and more luxurious looking than most, with her wings looking just as healthy and strong as the ones being presented by her much bigger kin.

Both of them were royalty, leaders of their kind; the larger one being the queen, while the smaller one being her first born daughter. A princess, so to say. Though it was very clear from just looking at these two monarchs as to whom had the most say in the matter while the other served as nothing more than a trophy to be displayed to the masses.

The younger one just looked down on the ground, depressed, while the larger one laying on her side on top of her throne looked rather annoyed and displeased with the current events.

She always prided herself that her bugs were the most gifted in the arts of stealth, subterfuge, and infiltration. Always kept hidden, operating within the shadows and manipulating the above world to meet their needs. All of that though is now being threatened by some random hairless ape that the Zebras claim to be a direct descendant of the last ruler of Zebrica. A time when her own mother was still a hatching herself.

That weak good for nothing queen.

That’s not even the half of her problems. Ever since she took the throne and began to fully reform the hive from the previous weak methods of her mother two centuries back, more and more of her subjects and drones had deserted the hive and left for the above world. Not just that, but rumors of a conspiracy against her were floating around the air as well, which was just preposterous to the queen.

She brought strength, pride and food to her kind, and the way her kin are repaying her for her services was to abandon the hive and mingle behind her back? Even worse, one of her top agents has gone missing with no obvious clues as to what happened to him or where he was.

She had the infuriating feeling that he too deserted the hive, with all of the vital information and secrets about their operations and location going with him.

She was in a foul enough mood to start personally decapitating some of her officers and advisors just for being unable to get this situation under control, like how they should be. Instead, things are just very slowly but steadily falling apart around her.

She needed a prime target to pin her chain of misfortune on, and the new alleged Monkey King is a prime target for her fury. Too bad that the assassination attempt on the new king failed, otherwise she wouldn’t have to result in executing some of the best assassins in her arsenal.

Overall, she was cranky, and it showed, like, seriously.

“Worthless, worthless, WORTHLESS!” The queen shouted into the grand hall.

“I AM SURROUNDED BY A BUNCH OF WORTHLESS SLUGS THAT CAN’T PROPERLY DO WHATEVER JOB I PERSONALLY EXPECT AND GIVE THEM!” She continued to rant which caused several underlings beneath her to flinch. Only a handful stood strong in front of the queen’s fury.

One of those braver souls was one of her top advisors, a well-respected and influential individual within their nobility. How can someone tell that he was a noble and not some random drone? Simple; he had a full set of mane and a silky long tail to boot. His attire also showed his status.

No mere drone could hope to be born with a mane or even wear any of the fancy gear that the nobility had.

The bug stepped up. “My queen, you know very well that we are doing the best we can. It is just difficult to plug up all the holes when more holes are being made. Furthermore, some of our guards have conspired with the deserters as well, which means that our very ranks are being intercepted, which just makes our task of keeping the hive together even more difficult. I suggest that we…” He tried to continue when the queen had heard enough.

She immediately silenced him by continuing her rant. “I BLOODY KNOW WHAT IT ALL MEANS, CYRUS. IT IS A FULL BLOWN INSURRECTION, THAT’S WHAT IT IS!” She shouted which in turn didn’t do much in intimidating the brave noble.

He simply stayed level headed, not once showing any emotions in front of the queen, which could land him into serious trouble. The queen’s blood and patience were at the boiling point, and he knew it. One wrong word or expression and some of his kin might face a beam of magic directly at whoever she feels fit to decapitate. For the sake of everyone, he needed to let her be and show the respect that she deserves as a queen, even though when he himself had to admit that it was all going to his nerves as well.

The queen went on, even though he was not mentally fully here at this point. “I DON’T CARE HOW YOU ALL DO IT, BUT I WANT ALL OF YOU TO WORK EVEN HARDER IN ORDER TO KEEP EVERYTHING TOGETHER, BOTH DOWN HERE AND ON THE SURFACE, OR I WILL BE FORCED TO DO EVERYTHING MYSELF ONCE MORE!” She leaned forwards from her throne with a deep menacing look. “And you do NOT want me to have to get off my flank and coordinate things myself down here AGAIN, or so help me from the depths of the underworld, I will personally tear you all apart if it ever has to go this far. I have already done everything myself when I first took the throne and made you all what you are today. I can easily erase it all if you all don’t work harder to come up with a solution.” She quietly announced with clenched teeth.

“NOW, ALL OF YOU BEGONE AND DON’T MAKE ME CALL YOU BACK IN HERE AGAIN, OR I WILL ASSURE YOU THAT IT WOULD BE THE LAST ROYAL MEETING THAT WE WILL ALL HAVE HERE. DISMISSED!!!” She finalized before ordering her obsidian guard to file the collection of nobles and others out of her throne room.

With the throne room emptied, the queen’s ire immediately fell on her daughter. “AND YOU!!!” She began which in turn cause the princess to just sigh in acceptance.

She looked up at her mother with a neutral look, which in turn just infuriated the queen even more. Her response was to slap the young princess in the face with a loud and echoing slap.

The princess just gritted her teeth, forcing down a whimper, though her tears betrayed the pain she was feeling, both physically and a bit emotionally as well.

Her mother just snorted as she continued to glare at her daughter. “From ALL the changelings that surround me, it is my very own flesh and blood that has been going against me. Helping those traitorous deserters escape and establish a new life for themselves somewhere up on the surface. How in the undergod’s name can you possibly go against your own mother, your own QUEEN, of all things?” She demanded, which in turn caused the princess too look back up at the queen, rubbing her slightly bleeding cheek.

She kept her neutral gaze as she answered. “I am not going against you, I am just doing what a princess should do. Helping her fellow kin.” She answered.

The queen just huffed before sitting back upright against her throne. “By helping those weaklings abandon the Hive? Is this your method in trying to help your fellow changelings living within the Hive? I beg to differ. From now on, no more of you helping deserters to escape. Your role as the princess is not to help the individuals, but to help the greater cause, making sure that the Hive stays together and strong. Did I make myself clear?” She demanded with a sideways gaze fixed on her daughter.

The princess just nods, not even bothering to look up at her mother this time.

“Then leave. You will be placed under momentary house arrest for your indiscretion, my little daughter. Some of my obsidian guards will take you to your room and keep an eye on you until I feel the need to call for you again.” The queen simply instructed.

The princess, again, just stayed silent as she got up from her position and left for the front portal of the throne room. Two of the queen’s royal obsidian guard immediately followed her, closing the stone double doors leading into the throne room after they exited. The queen was all alone now, with only some of her own guards still present within the room for obvious reasons.

“I might have to double the guard count in both the throne room and in front of my own private chamber if this situation continues to escalate.” The queen thought to herself.

She quickly shook her head. “Nonsense, the issue WILL be resolved soon, otherwise a certain group of changelings will be answering for their continued failures and slacking off. In the end, I might still have to be forced to do things myself just to keep the Hive and my power intact. I have spent way too much planning even before I took the throne for it all too just slowly and steadily wither away… all because some still believe in my mother’s rule. And here I thought that I got rid of those supporters long ago… I guess I must have missed some.” She mumbled to herself.

One thing was clear, though; she will not allow herself to eventually fall back to the weaknesses of her mother and return the Hive to the state that it was before she took the throne from her.

Her death sparked the beginning of a new age after all, and she will be damned if she isn’t able to achieve the goals she had set in her mind. A slow overtake of the above world and an unlimited supply of food for her Hive, with an almost boundless opportunity to expand afterwards.

She shall show to all of the different changeling hives around the world that hers will no longer be considered the weakest by their standard. She will prove them all wrong, and eventually crush them under her hoof and take their hives for herself.

Expand, take, grow, more food and more power. That was her plan ever since the beginning.

Author's Notes:

Just a little warning here. I have been informed by one of my editors that this chapter (at least the first half of it is rather slow. I could have tried and made it a bit more exciting but...couldn't really think of anything that would require a complete overwrite.

Though there is some good exposition later on. Hope you guys like this chapter despite feeling slow. I will make the next allot more interesting though.