Chapter 14-385: ?lfheim (2/2)
Yes, yes, my base Caster Level hadn’t gone down since Detroit, and my levels of awareness had only gone up.
For instance, I had no problem looking at their Alignment Auras, despite the Astral Wards all of them had up. All of the Elves were true Nines or Tens, even the queen’s son, and that simple access to the power of Valence V’s was a key power that allowed them to be able to command the loyalty of those below them.
Whether they could keep that loyalty in the face of the urgent Leveling of their Vassals would be hard to tell...
“Lady Traveler,” the queen greeted me first, given that we’d met before. They all blinked as Sleipner wheeled away and zipped off without a rider, heading for the forest nearby.
“Queen Huellia,” I acknowledged her, with the honorific adjustment for a Monarch, not a True Queen. “Prince Tistian,” I also inclined my head, and he quickly bowed to acknowledge my attention. I turned my eyes on the others, knowing who they were, but waiting for introductions.
“Lady Traveler, may I introduce Lord Vasilimar, Lord Myaenk, Lady Ilivia, and Lady Pryvoka.” Her tones were quite neutral as she introduced her rival, lesser Monarchs. “And you may know this man by reputation. May I introduce the honorable Master Tolkien?”
The Monarchs all bowed as they were introduced, all of them slightly flushed despite themselves. They could feel the pressure of my Monarch’s Aura... forget that from their queen, mine was overpowering without even trying to bring it to bear.
Master Tolkien also bowed after he was introduced. “Your Ladyship,” he said formally.
I reached over my back, pulled something out, and held it up for him to see. “It is a first printing. You would honor all who will read it with your signature, Master Tolkien.”
His smile lit up as he saw the cover of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey I was holding there. “Ah, a fan!” he said happily. “I would be delighted to do so, Lady Traveler!”
I actually had acquired the complete set of three initial books, long lauded for some of their prescience of the changes after the Shroud (although his elves were much taller than the reality), and it was a good way to break the ice. As for why I had guessed that he would be here... he was a linguist by training, and had basically published all the guides to the Elven language. I gave the world The Human Tongue. How could he not be here?
It also popped a nice hole in my overly mighty demeanor, and let them know I has foibles, too, I does.
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I got to admire more of their artwork and splendor, and the wealth that came with magic item production generating tons of revenue they could use to spend on fripperies. Whatever they wanted to do with their spare time wasn’t my concern, but the room they eventually brought me into was definitely made for business, a round table with plush chairs. Diplomatically, there was no true ‘high chair’, doubtless more a concession to me than to the new Lords who had popped up, who were styling themselves dukes, duchess, countess, and earl, respectively, and down-toning it to Lord and Lady for my sake.
They didn’t want to address me as High Queen Morningdark, after all.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, I know there is a great deal of diplomatic maneuvering we could be indulging in here, and I’m sure you think you have time to do so, but I do not. I have allocated exactly two hours to this meeting, and then any further communication can be through a Jet and Silver contact in the future.” I surveyed them all as I sat down, bringing the casual pleasantries to a sharp end. “There are things to be done out there that only I can do. Being here means they are not getting done, and will not be getting done.
“Furthermore, the things I speak of here will not be secret long, because they are far too important to let remain that way. I can grant you a short head start to act on things, but the world will know what I am speaking of here with you. You do not get an exclusive to what I know.”
Their eyes flashed in disappointment that I wasn’t showing them any favoritism.
“Queen Huellia, you will take the first question. What do you have to ask of me?”
She exhaled softly, but also straightened at the recognition. “We would like to learn of the Elves and elven gods outside of the Shroud.” She paused for a moment thoughtfully. “All of us have seen the video of your meeting with the Goblins, so it is plain you know about this fact, and it is known you have had similar meetings with the dwarves and the gnomes. We would like this information as well.”
I nodded slowly. “The basic information is, in fact, very similar. The fact is that racial gods exist outside the Shroud. Whether or not they will come to Terra here is uncertain, for you are most certainly not ‘pure elves’, and they are not your Creators, as they are held to be by most elven peoples across Creation.
“Regardless of that, Elven is your racial language, and that speaks more for who and what you are then any snooty-nosed notion of racial purity from another world’s elven peoples. However, the fact you have your roots in Humanity will be held against you if you contact other elven realms.” Their flickers of dismay at this bit of news were quite easy to read.
“If you accept the Elven gods, then you had best be prepared for the consequences of embracing a racist pantheon instead of an overarching one, like the Aruan.” I slowly looked them back and forth. “The moves you are already starting to pull off will be magnified under those gods. Isolation from the greater world. Elitist views of superiority over other cultures and races. Great reluctance to initiate change. Lack of faith in science and progress, and continued divergence towards a more primitive lifestyle and a reliance on magic to make up for it.”
They flushed as I summed up what they had been doing in an unflattering light. Sure, it played to their racial strengths. The problem was that the rest of the world didn’t have to play along.
“Isolationism breeds ignorance, fear, and contempt. It is by far the hardest thing that the elves have to fight. The fact you have so many long years to fill, and the fact that your first years are still going to define your viewpoint of your later ones, means that it is difficult in the extreme for you to engage in faster-moving societies. This is particularly meaningful when dealing with government.”