Secrets of The Scorpion Queen

Chapter 6

Camilla and I arrived to class with a few minutes to spare. The room was all wooden paneling with a large circular table in the middle. The professor was also seated at the table—very different than the hierarchal style used in Nitre.

As I knew he would be, Etienne was already seated in class with Jon directly next to him. They had been quietly whispering to each other as we walked in, but now they were unabashedly staring at us. I met their gaze and only broke eye contact to take a seat pull out me textbook, the very same one Jada was referencing.

I refused to let his venomous gaze shake my confidence as I sat stone faced in my chair making sure nothing touched the sigil now carefully drawn on the inside of forearm. I heard the whispers of my peers. Clearly word had gotten out about my "accident" last night. I needed to quash that reputation and allow them to see me for the ruler my father intended. Stern, highly-educated, and unyielding. I could play that role for Nitre.

As soon as it hit the top of the hour class started in earnest. I trusted that Jada could see what I was sending her mind to mind. The professor, Professor Huit he said, wanted to establish a baseline for the class so he would be using this first session to cover the basics.

"Now, as you all know, the amalgamation of magicka and technology is a pursuit that straddles the boundaries between the soft and hard sciences. It's a discipline that necessitates a profound understanding of engineering and chemistry as well as an adept manipulation of runes and sigils. In this class' relentless pursuit of innovation, it will become imperative to exercise prudence regarding the constraints inherent in magicka utilization, all the while maintaining a requisite level of scientific inquisitiveness. Consider, for instance, the advent of mag-lites, an evolution from rudimentary electricity to a more refined, sustainable energy source," the professor hurriedly explained.

I was sweating now. We were far more out of our depth than I could have realized.

"Camilla, did he say they use magicka in their electricity?" I whispered.

That had been about the only thing I'd taken away from his speech so far.

"I—I think so? Are they powering their kingdom through magicka? It's that available?" She whispered back.

"What I like to do with this particular class, is identify a specific use case of technology entwined magicka and break down its history and invention." Professor Huit continued. "Let's look at transportation—take trams for instance. They're not only a more resourceful use of magicka due to their public service, but they don't require as much raw magicka to power the tracks they run on. Once laid, they don't need fuel or maintence. They simply require sigil maintenance to control their direction and speed."

We didn't have public transportation at all in Nitre—outside of the camel-led wagons people often used to move crops and other agricultural resources. It simply wasn't necessary as travel wasn't a part of the culture.

Not only did we not have this type of technology, but we wouldn't be able to fuel it if we did. My mind was reeling. I must have seriously underestimated how long and how diminished magicka in Nitre really was. We still ran on traditional electricity for one, and tech entwined magicka was only used by royals for more household related conveniences and travel.

We must not have ever had enough raw magicka to produce innovation like this. Perhaps to protect our people? Simplicity fuels happiness. That's what we'd been taught.

I was completely distracted, but my attention snapped back to Professor Huit when he pointed directly at me. Everyone was staring.

"Princess Leola Lidron. I will not ask you again to pay attention. Now, can you please describe the priority distribution of magicka in the technology sector as described by The United Tiberiak in their charter of ethical usage?"