Viirad grows and grows, but as each day passes, my ability to personally administer it wanes. I remember back when the extent of the empire only spanned a few Wittenlandian provinces. At the time, I could speak to the individuals in charge of each part of government and be relatively close to each one. Today, the number of governors and company board members, church officials, and scientists are too great for me to allocate sufficient time in the day for each.

With Griffonia having completely fallen under my control, I decided not to waste a year traveling the rest of the continent to mind control everyone. I am still required in Zebrica, and full control can wait until after I rule the world. In the meantime, I’ve split the western half of the continent into administrative regions to get rid of some of the bureaucratic issues that have arisen from incorporating so many governments into my own. To the burgeoning church, who have named themselves “Viirad Keepers”, I have given Griffonstone, the so-called birthplace of griffons. It is a holy land for many griffons, which should help them establish greater legitimacy in the eyes of griffons during my absence as I finish conquering Zebrica.

While the griffonian heartland and Karthinia have been rather droll, I did have a chance to catch up with what happened in the far north. The necromancers of the dread peninsula are still around, but much of the city of Magehold was destroyed by the Arcturian Order alongside their leader at the time, Rosa Maledicta. I met with their current leader, Queen Rubra, who says that, while Rosa’s faction was destroyed and the rest of the necromancers went into hiding, the Arcturian Order was mysteriously destroyed soon after, supposedly by Windigos. Curious. In any case, I let her keep control of the desolate peninsula as long as she swore loyalty to me.

The central northern territories of Griffonia are sparsely populated, mountainous and overall have no value, so I burned them to prevent any potential dissent from starting. Given their low population density, it is not only impractical for me to attempt to mind control everygriff there, but also just not worth it. The northwest proved a little more interesting. I had the pleasure of being able to kill Queen Sköldsvӓrd of Vedina personally, and after doing so, the behavior of her consort, King Ondska, fascinated me. He seemed quick to beg for mercy rather than trying to avenge his wife, saying it was out of respect for my power. He said that, because I had proven to be the stronger one, he was obliged to serve me.

An unusual ideology to be sure, but a scan of his mind showed me he did believe in his own kratocratic words. I still probably would have killed him, but he mentioned some interesting projects he had on griffon magic. While every fawn knows griffon flight magic is different from that of seers or unicorns, Ondska was adamant about his research to give griffons the same powers other races had. Most of it was alchemy-based, of course, but the parts that weren’t were promising enough that I allowed him to keep his position of power and rule northwest Griffonia as one of my governors. I couldn’t let him keep his former title, of course, as the only monarch around should be me.

I have considered giving myself the royal and governmental titles of the lands I have conquered. If I so chose, I could crown myself the Griffonian Empress or as the worldly incarnation of Mahimata tomorrow. I could even give myself titles like Chancellor of the River Federation or Kaiserin of Roam, but I don’t see a point besides the personal fun it would be. Legitimizing the states I have conquered is counterproductive - Empress of Viirad, First Under the Sky, Savior of the Faithful are titles enough.

I can’t say I am very familiar with the realms of Griffonia I recently conquered. Though I traveled through them on the way to Barrad, their lack of magic left me unsatisfied, and I spent much more time in the Riverlands. However, my knowledge of Griffonia is still leaps and bounds over my familiarity with my current Zebrican conquests. Everycreature knows of the Storm Kingdom, of course, but even a well-studied deer such as I could not claim to know the ins and outs of every southeastern jungle state or recall the difference between Osqat and the Haymirites.

Luckily, unlike other expansionist states, I have the ability to gain the relevant knowledge of the vast territories I conquer through mind control. As new territories are absorbed, I can mind control the major cities, which can then provide me with the information required to conquer the next nation. I have repeated this across Zebrica, allowing local command of my units across the continent. In return, Viirad brings education and connection with the rest of the world, allowing these newly conquered territories to begin contributing to the empire as a whole. I didn’t set out to improve the world when I first decided to conquer it, but it is clearly a necessary requirement in order to do so.

A laydeer’s understanding of morality would have one believe that doing good and doing evil are diametrically opposed, but my experience says they are actually very closely linked. After all, what is “evil”? Any given moral system defines certain things as “bad” and other things “good”. “Evil” is, therefore, when some deer, like me, comes around and does many of the things labeled “bad“. What this forgets is that, in order to do much of anything, one must first have power. Power can only be attained through many actions generally seen as good by most systems of morality. Things like honoring deals, hard work, and kindness are all seen as good, and are required for attaining power if one wants to work with anyone else. I know this better than any creature - no creature rules alone.

Therefore, in order to maximize any output, evil or good, much good is first required. Take the Griffon Reformisten as an example. Before I converted them, their goal was the genocide of ponies. However, in order to do so effectively, they would have had to do a lot of good for griffons. They would have to rule over enough subjects to have an army large enough to commit genocide on the scale they desired, and in order to be successful, they would have had to perform many good acts for their own griffons in order to maintain an effective state and incentive system.

As for myself, I’m sure the unconverted all believe I am evil for the actions I am performing, but in order to do so, I am required to also uplift millions from poverty, provide ample opportunity for social mobility, educate, and feed my creatures. I may still fit the definition of evil they give, but I am sure my enemies deliberately ignore the good I do perform to justify their opposition. Ultimately, their opinions are irrelevant, but it is a fun thought exercise.

In related news of the nature of good and evil, there seems to be a brewing schism arising in my church. One issue with letting the church grow organically is that messages become muddled over time and distance. I don’t have the time to instruct every gathering of Viirad Keepers around the world of the proper thought, but I can tip the scales when issues rise to prominence like they are now. The current debate has coalesced around the broadly compatibilist faction versus the absolutists, with the question of whether creatures are allowed to worship other gods as long as they are recognized as lesser than myself.

The true importance of the issue lies not in the philosophy but in the issue of unity. If the faithful themselves are willing to get up in arms about what is really a non-issue for me, then it does matter in that it brings disruption to what should be my perfect order. I can tell the philosophy never mattered because of how the sides are distributed across my empire. In regions geographically close to the monastery I visited a year ago, absolutists rule, their doctrine buoyed by my influence. In regions I have touched less, like the recently integrated Hindia and Kiria, compatibilists rule. This suggests to me that most simply choose the path of convenience, and unless I have intervened, their philosophies will naturally align with that convenience.

I have convened an ecumenical council to resolve this issue. Indeed, while there is nothing morally wrong with the worship of gods other than myself today, there will be after I make my decree. When I was initially designing the spell function for my mind control spell, I chose not to include a diminishment of identity other than to nation. It was, and still is, my belief that the other identities have positive effects on maintaining the fabric of society, and, therefore, instead of trying to rebuild the entire psyches of my victims, I should keep their other identities around to make sure society keeps on functioning properly.

The side effect of that choice is that I now must resolve this religious debate. Given the choice between the 2 paths before me, I obviously prefer the absolutist take. My goal is to create a society where I am the only thing that matters, so time shouldn’t be wasted on other gods. My only concern is practical, whereby if I alienate too many members of the faith, that leads them mentally in the direction away from me. I could remain neutral on the issue, but it is clear that tensions will simply boil up higher, and I would be forced to take a side eventually. I believe the church is strong enough now to decide on this issue, so siding with the absolutists is the correct choice.

Teleporting into Griffonstone is a sight to behold. This place was quite run down just a few months ago, but ordering the city be used as the center of the Viirad Keepers has meant massive influxes of non-griffon creatures and money for the construction of grand temples in my honor. Granted most are not done yet, but with the state of modern construction technologies, it will not take much longer. These temples, while they serve no direct economic or military purpose, are important as cultural sites for my faithful around the world to visit. The idea of this place will bring them a sense of grandeur to the faith, strengthening the church around the world and bringing a sense of purpose to my worshippers everywhere.

While the city is still at least half-griffon, zebras, deer, ponies, and members of the less significant races can all be seen going about their daily business. There is an absurdity of seeing changelings, hippogriffs, minotaurs, kirin, centaurs, and gargoyles all here. It is a bit disconcerting even. Perhaps I will mandate stricter separation between the races.

In any case, my presence immediately causes these zealots to gasp in awe and bow. All action in the street grinds to a halt as others see the bowing and move to follow suit. Parrots, griffons, pegasi, and members of the other flying races halt in the sky, almost diving to the ground to not disturb the stillness with their flapping. Traffic stops moving as creatures get out of their vehicles to show respect. Usually, I’m against these useless displays, but in a city designed to hold no purpose other than to worship me, it is appropriate.

Besides, this does wonders for my ego. It is quite nice just to see the faces of so many different breeds all bowing before me. When I’m at the front lines, I usually only see one race of creatures at a time. Furthermore, my inner circle hasn’t changed much, so this display of racial unity is quite a unique sight to behold. I don’t need to cast a spell or even draw any attention to myself - these creatures know what the correct behavior is. I begin walking to the former Temple of Boreas which has been rechristened as the Temple of Viira, leaving behind me a sea of bowed heads in my wake.

The room is silent as I enter the main hall. Clearly, some creature went ahead and heralded my arrival, as I am greeted by a silent congregation with all eyes on me. I can see how the 2 sides have divided themselves by their clothing. On my right, the absolutists all wear the robed garb of the cultists that worshiped the Machine. It is nice to see there was clearly some work done to find the older traditions from my original worshippers to abide by. On my left, the religious delegations are mostly clad in the clothing of their original religions, a clearly compatibilist practice. Their delegations are also composed more of races whose nations were more recently integrated - cats, hyenas, and so on.

There is no substitute for the feeling of power of knowing all the creatures before you will obey your every whim. I have no need to cast my spell on these creatures - my voice is spell enough. I address the crowd with a simple speech to declare which side is correct. I provide a small justification, but the important part is that I have spoken. The fact I said it is justification enough. To prevent overzealous retribution, I also provide a reminder that all under me are forgiven of their transgressions against me as they were when my spell was cast. This is a useful piece of doctrine I have adopted. Due to the nature of mind control, many of those who are my most faithful were actively acting against me all the way up to when the spell reached them. Thus, it is imperative for forgiveness to be a central tenet of following me as it allows for easy reunification and reconciliation. If I have not yet provided input on something or cast my spell, the path to the right decision is clouded. However, now that I have said something, the fog is lifted, and none can be blamed for having been lost in the fog. Instead, they all thank me for lifting it and unity once again returns.

As I finish my words, the compatibilists are immediately removing their clothes, the last vestiges of the beliefs they held so firmly just five minutes ago. In what I would read as a positive sign for reconciliation of the sides, the absolutists are quick to cross the aisle and provide robes that they prepared earlier. It seems, however, that there is one holdout. One griffon priest remains stubbornly still as the others around him are quick to doff their fineries.

I teleport to him and ask, “And what might your name be?”

“Archon Grimfeather, Your Divinity” he replies, “I am honored by your attention.”

“As you should be,” I consider how to broach the topic, “Tell me then, why have you not joined your brothers and sisters?”

“Because it is wrong for me to do so.”

Fascinating. It is the nature of creatures to be contradictory, but I think there is more to this than just that.

“Explain,” I say. Brevity may be the soul of wit, but I would ascribe my brevity to a desire for clarity rather than for a display of wit.

“I can’t speak for the beliefs of the other delegations, but I do know of the power of Boreas. Of course, you are the goddess of goddesses and queen of queens, but I think it would be incorrect for me to ignore him entirely,” he explains.

“Did I command you to ignore him?” I question. Recalling my own words, I can confirm I made no such statement. It could be the case that he just misheard me, which has caused funny mind control problems before, but this seems more like the case where he is listening to what he thinks my intention is and is misreading that.

“Well, no,” he says, confirming this is a case of the latter, “but certainly a command not to worship implies such a path would be preferable.”

“Your words are not incorrect, Grimfeather,” I say, “Propose to me your reasoning why Boreas should continue to be worshiped.”

“Boreas is real. He is powerful, and he has influence over our lives. Therefore, it is important to worship him lest he grow angry,” he logics.

“The weather is both real and powerful. The condition of a farmer’s hoe also has an influence over her life. Given your reasoning, should they be worshiped as well?” I counter back.

The griffon takes a moment to think before responding, “I believe some traditions do so. Maybe not specifically farming equipment, but when there are spiritual beings involved, it is important to placate them so that life may continue undisturbed. If there was a god who dealt in hoes, it would make sense for farmers to take the necessary actions to make sure their crops grow. Generally, that is through worship.”

He raises a legitimate concern. The number of deities I have angered by enslaving their chosen race is likely pushing a hundred. However, the fact that I have not yet experienced any repercussions tells me that most of them were fake, died long ago, or are not that powerful. Look at Celestia and Luna - defeated by the spiritual power of combined arms. I assume they are still alive somewhere though, seeing as the sun and moon still make their daily rotation.

As for Boreas specifically, there was a widely publicized study out of Yale that proved the existence of heaven and Boreas via direct celestial observation, but I imagine that they would call anything they saw in the sky Boreas. That being said, it was a rigorous study of the existence of said god, and it is clear they saw something.

Boreas may or may not exist, but I highly doubt his influence. Wouldn’t he have intervened on behalf of griffonkind against me? Perhaps he did and I didn’t even notice. It is in the nature of creatures to exaggerate and inflate stories. I have experienced this firsthoof - some Yaks worship the “Gift Givers” in the far north. I sought them out myself early in my travels and I met the trio of Aurora, Bori, and Alice. They were no gods, merely three talented seers. Alice never liked me, maybe because she saw what was to come of my fate. In any case, Grimfeather here clearly believes in the power of Boreas, causing him to think as he does.

“So then, will you disobey my command?” I ask him.

“Yes.”

And so, my original great question of mind control is finally asked. If I command a creature to perform a task it believes is not in my own best interest, should it disobey? Grimfeather clearly believes he is serving me more by disobeying my command and heeding Boreas. I would imagine he believes in the threat posed by Boreas to Viirad, and is therefore willing to go behind my back to defend me. A display of a certain type of loyalty, to be sure, but is it one I am willing to accept?

If I disagree with him about the threat, I could begin a round of soul alteration and change his mind to reduce his worry in this regard, or just kill him for the disobedience. If I agree the threat is warranted, I could concede the notion, but that would undermine what I’ve done so far to bridge the doctrinal gap. I require absolute obedience, and so I will not suffer his impertinence in this matter. However, I believe I can acknowledge his point at the same time.

“Your fear is understandable,” I start, “but let it be known today that all attempts by the gods to interfere with my plans will be met with my wrath. All of my faithful, heed me!” I speak the words, but they are not required, my conversation with Grimfeather has drawn the attention of the rest of the delegations. I teleport back to the podium to better make my point.

“Boreas, Maar, Celestia, Ukko, Zal, and whoever else cares to listen: you shall not interfere in the affairs of Viirad. Any attempt to do so will end with you bowing before me, or in your deaths,” I proclaim, “Therefore, Grimfeather, you need not heed the whims of Boreas any longer. I will protect you. Is that to your satisfaction?”

He looks conflicted, but eventually relents. He removes his mitre and follows in the actions of his brethren as the crowd cheers. Peering briefly into his mind, I can tell the emotional motivation behind his beliefs has not suddenly disappeared from my brief words, but he is willing to obey regardless, at least for now.

I would enjoy just basking in the adoration of these creatures for longer, but I would like to check on the progress of the conquest of Zebrica. I have wars waging against Saddle Arabia, the Storm Kingdom, and the Federation of the Great Lakes that I will have to begin integrating. I have this down to a system now. A couple teleportations to major cities accompanied by a couple casts of my spell and my bureaucracy can handle the rest. The conquests are almost a hooves off task now. If I were to not interfere at all, I’m sure the military could handle the rest of the continent themselves even without my mind control, but I still do enjoy getting into the weeds, so to speak.

Author's Note

One thing I liked about the Viiradian puppets in the game is that they all seemed linked to the locations they were managing, so I tried to elaborate on what was going on in some of them. I've always liked Vedina, so seeing Ondska become a governor in-game I thought was worthy of an explanation.

Viira's racism was always weird to me - she has a universal message, but her focus tree says she implements segregation. I feel some level of racial integration is necessary for a global empire, if at least for her religion.

As for the existence of Boreas, the "Herald of Boreas" path in the Yale Rectorate suggests Boreas is real, but the event where they "prove" his existence seems more like a meme than anything serious, and the herald is just someone who broke into the labs to eat their piece of heaven or whatever. I kept that ambiguity here.

To respond to NovemberWolf's comment about pilgrimages, my interpretation of Viira has stated that she sees mind control as a temporary measure for this generation. Given that this method of mind control is effectively the same as a life of indoctrination, she doesn't see the difference between the two. She believes the next generation, being indoctrinated through normal means, won't need a spell to be loyal. Otherwise though, a pilgrimage tradition could be useful.