Days kept passing by one by one, and at some point, I just found myself in the resting area with Druoag, as I just took a shower, and still had a towel thrown around my neck. He was sitting on the bench, so I decided to join him. He didn't say a thing, neither did I. I just focused on drying my hair a bit, with the towel.

When I finished I noticed he was looking at me.

- What? - I asked.

- Nothing - he replied. - I just find some of your race customs really bizarre, that's it.

I shrugged my shoulders. There was not really I could say about how he felt about human behavior. I myself found some of the stuff we do quite strange and bizarre.

- I got an answer from your home planet - he added after a moment.

I immediately looked at him. For me this whole thing was already written off, so his words completely surprised me.

- I got some translated information about the history of your race - he continued. - Quite a lot actually.

I didn't really care about that, what I wanted to know was if he had any information about Earth's whereabouts which the fact he started this whole conversation indicated, but I didn't know how to ask for it.

- I also have some of the intel you requested - he brought it by himself, probably reading the question straight from my facial expression. - The High Queen visited your planet. Apparently, she was quite interested in the strange technology your race discovered. I believe you call it 'The device'. She even put a tax on your species of some kind. If I understand correctly it's supposed to be paid in some kind of crystals.historical

- Did she... Did she do something? Did she do something to humans?

- No. I don't know the details, but your planet seems to work normally. There is nothing unusual besides this technology, as nobody in the whole empire has seen something like that before, and the tax, as usually she prefers either food or natural resources. I'm sorry, but there isn't much I was able to find out.

I nodded after a moment of brain lag. I don't know why I even thought he would be able to bring me some detailed informations. It was probably impossible.

At least I had confirmation that she was utilizing the saplings in some way.

This little that he gave me only increased my appetite for more. I had so many questions I wanted to find answers to. The main one was: 'How bad is it there?'

Were hunters forced to collect the crystals and give them all to her? Or could they still use some for themselves? And what about the other cities, like Aaraam'soturi or Loistavadvaar? She clearly knew about them.

The whole idea of tax and that she only 'visited' earth would indicate she wasn't really hunting ghosts out there. For other hunters, it would also be very difficult to do so, so there was a chance the red crystals were not in use.

In the end, I had way more questions than before, but I was still thankful for what he did, which I didn't express at all.

- Thank you. Thank you fr doing me this favor - I finally broke my silence.

- I promised you I would do so. I just had to make sure Yagg wouldn't find out. He would be very angry. He is a difficult person, but I still consider him a friend - he confessed.

- Yeah... He certainly is difficult, and I also can see his charm, although for me he definitely is not showing much of it. Still, I respect him, and his devotion to producing amazing fighters.

- Yes. He certainly cares a lot about that. I never told you this, but he actually saved me. He saved me from myself. You see, he visited this planet quite long ago, looking for gladiators. I was one of the strongest Oags, and thought the strength was the answer to everything. Then he showed up, speaking of wonders beyond, of the High Queen and glory. To that point, I didn't even believe she was real, but his appearance made me think that if she has everything, I can go with him, and take it from her. That's how I became a gladiator.

He clearly got taken by the current of the memories flowing through his mind, as he became silent for a moment. A smile appeared on his terrifying face.

- But the more I saw out there, and the stronger my opponents became, the more I started to question my point of view. I started looking for informations about her to learn if it's really possible she is so powerful as they say. And before I finally could meet her, as I joined the Royal Tournament, I already knew some dark secrets.

- Dark secrets? - he picked my interest.

- Yes.

- Like what?

- There is a legend everybody in the empire... Almost everybody in the empire believes. It's that she was born from the will of the multiverse to put the chaos in order, so everything belongs to her. To many, she is like a living deity. The truth is different and more ugly. She was bred. Her father, the most potent male Quel'kabarian psionic, and his wife at that point, the most powerful Quel'kabarian female psionic, decided to have a baby. They wanted to produce the most powerful being, and they did. Although they didn't expect the High Queen to, even as a not fully grown baby, tear through her mother's womb and get outside...

- So, the mother is dead?

- Yes.

- What other things did you learn?

- I also learned that the whole Royal Tournament is only a cover for the High Queen looking for a suitable mate. She wants to have children, but not with a weakling. The problem is, nobody can meet her standard of power. Nobody is even close, and that's why almost every champion ends up dead after she meets them in private. The whole empire believes they retire after years and years of battling, as they achieve the greatest title of them all, but it's a lie. A lie all of the royal cour know, and they all keep it a secret. I'm one of the very few survivors, who refused her offer of the crown. And that's only because Bashan warned me.

After he said that everything clicked. Her obsession over The Great One finally had sense. She wanted to find him because he showed power at least comparable to her.. She saw in him a possibility of having what she wanted throughout all those years of her rule.