In her position, other people might have condemned Kiara for focusing on her coronation and holding it so early when the effects of the war were still felt throughout the city and kingdom, when recovery had barely started. But Regina knew better. Kiara was concerned for the people and doing what she thought she had to do. Not just because she was hosting a feast for the people of the city for the occasion, open to all. That was a nice gesture, but little more, since one meal wouldn’t feed hungry people for long. But it also gathered all of the noble lords and notable figures of Cernlia in one place, and it gave them motivation.

Unsurprisingly, the rebuilding of parts of the city damaged in the fighting went a lot faster in the time leading up to Kiara’s coronation, for some reason.

Regina had gone out into the city a few times since she’d arrived here, although she’d concealed her identity with a heavy cloak and hood. She’d ridden into the city openly, tolerating the gawkers and Max’s constant anxiety at having her exposed to the crowds. She didn’t want to have to travel in a knot of drones for her forays to see how it was doing, though, and the anonymity meant she could take fewer guards. Not to mention it gave her an excuse to leave most of the drones behind and instead borrow people from Kiara, who knew the city better and were less conspicuous than Hivekind.

Surprisingly, she’d enjoyed it a lot. There was just something about being out and about in a populated city, and this was the first chance she’d had since she could remember. Of course, Cera didn’t hold a candle to the cities she must have visited in her old life, but it wasn’t that bad. And it made her feel like she understood more about the lives of the normal people, which was definitely a good thing.

Right now, however, she saw something entirely different. Regina had been invited to Kiara’s coronation as a guest of honor, which she supposed was good manners since she had financed the war, not to mention fought parts of it herself. Well, the Hive had, but many people here would treat it as the same thing and they weren’t entirely wrong.

The ceremony was held in the throne room of the royal palace, which offered space for all invited guests. The doors had been thrown open so people could crowd into the space beyond and watch, something she knew annoyed some guests, but which she found a good idea. Kiara had chosen a priest of Alianais to officiate. They tended to rotate through the priesthoods, with each king choosing their personal favorite or whichever priesthood was currently most influential. Regina was glad about that, too. If a priest of the gods had to be involved, better Alianais than someone like Deirianon. It would also be a powerful statement from Kiara, with Alianais being the goddess of progress.

In this case, the high priest of her priesthood in Cernlia was present in Cera, anyway, and handled it personally. It was an unassuming man who Regina had heard had been chosen mostly because he didn’t upset anyone, but at least he seemed competent enough at his job.

There wasn’t as much pomp as Regina had expected, which might be due to the war or just because Kiara preferred the elegance of simplicity. She had spent the night before meditating in the temple, according to tradition. Unlike some previous kings, Regina was pretty sure she had actually held the vigil and hadn’t slept, and she looked tired, but also smiled a lot. The coronation was held early in the morning, under the light of sunrise, which painted the walls of the throne room in warm colors. An air of anticipation filled the room.

Regina watched with an appropriately solemn and serious expression as Kiara entered the room and the coronation commenced. It was a rather long ceremony, surprisingly. She found a few elements rather odd, like the prayers to every god the Cernlians could think of (or so it certainly seemed), or the number of accessories they used. A crown was obvious, but first, the high priest gave her a ring, anointed her with oil, draped a cloak over her, handed her a sword, a scepter and a literal golden apple — that had to have been a mangling of an older tradition they thought they preserved — and had her swear an oath. Kiara was kneeling through all of it, which had to be murder on her legs. Then, finally, she bowed her head and the priest placed the crown on it. It did look rather good, Regina noted with some satisfaction. She’d had the crown made herself and gifted it to Kiara, knowing that the one used in the previous coronation had been lost and they needed a new one. It was made of gold and set with several large diamonds and other precious stones, but the basic design was relatively simple, lacking any extra embellishments or religious symbols.

The gathered lords and ladies cheered as Kiara stood and turned to face them, the crown on her head. They knelt in homage to their new queen and Regina stepped aside a bit to not make it too obvious that she wasn’t doing the same. June stayed where she was, in a place of honor, and cheered loudly as she knelt as well. Regina could tell using her psychic senses that she really was nothing but glad for her sister, even if she felt a bit apprehensive about her own new position. At least Kiara doesn’t have to worry about being usurped in turn, Regina mused with a bit of dark humor. There’s literally no one else left.

Well, except for Lyns, of course. Kiara had originally wanted him to watch, out of spite, but had been convinced by her advisors not to do it and instead double the guard on him today. He was currently rotting in a cell under the royal palace, where he’d remain until Kiara decided what to do with him. Regina knew she was currently leaning towards putting him on trial for regicide or murder, depending on how the details got sorted, and then a sentence of exile once he was inevitably found guilty. It wouldn’t even need to be a sham trial — now that Kiara had taken over, she had access to all his correspondence and all of the people who’d worked for him, so getting confessions was easy enough. At least two people had already come forward and spoken about Lyns’ plan in order to gain clemency or rewards for themselves.

Watching Kiara now, and the way her people cheered her investiture as their monarch, Regina could tell it wasn’t going to be a problem. Kiara descended the dais on which the coronation had taken place to mingle with her nobles, smiling brightly and accepting their congratulations and pledges of loyalty. She didn’t stay with anyone too long, but no one looked upset when she turned to others, and looking closely, it was obvious she was managing the distance between them well. Even more than that, the people hung on her every word and turned to follow her like the proverbial sun. They straightened when she passed and took obvious pride in their fealty.

Regina had never thought of Kiara as charming, but now she wondered if others would. For her, Kiara wasn’t a ‘charming young lady’, she was charismatic. She had managed to build a political following even when she’d only been the daughter of a marquis rebelling against the king, and she’d barely even done it intentionally. She’d proved her competence throughout the war, too, and stood up for what she believed in without giving up her loyalty to Lyns, at least until he’d pushed her too far. No, Kiara is much more charismatic than Lyns could ever hope to be. He was popular, but mostly because his rival was unpopular. Kiara doesn’t need that. It was easy to see how he might have felt threatened, in that respect.

“You look like you’re thinking deep thoughts,” Janis said quietly.

Regina turned to look at her. Janis had silently stepped up beside her and was now watching Kiara as well. She’d been invited, but had mostly kept quiet, staying close to the rest of the Hive leadership present and the core supporters of Kiara she’d met before, like Margaret Bluegrass. She didn’t seem like she was hiding, but Janis was obviously in a slightly awkward position.

“Thinking about your girlfriend’s charisma,” Regina answered honestly.

Janis’ lips twitched and she shook her head. Regina noted she didn’t correct her word choice, though.

“She’ll be a good queen,” Janis said.

“Yes, she certainly has the makings of one.”

“Even if she won’t be sovereign.”

Regina gave another glance at Kiara, who was currently talking to Duke Bluegrass, before she turned to face Janis. “I guess,” she said quietly. “Let’s find somewhere we can talk, okay?”

They stayed long enough that Regina was confident it wouldn’t be seen as rude, before she slipped out of the throne room. A banquet would be held later, but it wasn’t planned for a short while yet. Instead, Regina and Janis went to the quarters they’d been assigned, to refresh themselves before the feast, at least officially. The suites were spacious and luxuriously furnished by local standards, and not far from the throne room or Kiara’s own rooms.

Janis changed out of the clothes she’d been wearing into another dress before she sat down on the armchair across from the one Regina had taken in her room. She’d used some cosmetics and styled her hair in a fancy braid, which combined with the dress, an elegant red and gold design, made her look quite classy. Regina hadn’t gone to as much trouble, but it wasn’t like makeup was a thing for the Hivekind and she’d used another outfit similar to a suit from before. It looked more understated than the military dress uniform Galatea had chosen for today, but Regina would stand out anyway.

“I feel a bit like a child playing dress-up,” Janis confessed, fiddling with the ring on her finger.

“You’re certainly not. Is that new?”

Janis looked up, then blinked as she looked back at the ring. “Yes. A present from Kiara.”

Regina stared at her for a moment. “You’re not saying …?”

Janis made a face somewhere between a grin and a grimace. “No, it’s not like we can get engaged. I think Kiara was thinking about it, though, and this is … still symbolic?”

Regina exhaled and sat back in her chair. “You could get engaged,” she said quietly. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’d advise you to wait a little before you do something like that. Although I guess these things move at different speeds in circumstances like these.”

Janis barked a short laugh. “I think Kiara’s lords would have something to say about her wanting to get married to a woman.”

Regina shrugged. “She’s the queen. She’s consolidating her rule. They’d have to accept it, especially with the Hive backing her. I think they’d realize the advantages of having a closer tie to it, anyway.”

Janis looked thoughtful. Regina tried not to pry too much, but she was controlling her surface emotions quite well, anyway. “I’m a woman, common-born and a monsterblood,” she finally said.

Regina nodded. “Yes. You are. But you’re so much more than that, too. A very talented mage, one of the people with the most knowledge of Ancient science and technology, a senior commander of the Hive …”

“I suppose.”

“And, if you’ll agree, soon much more than that.”

Janis frowned. “Is that what you wanted to talk about? Some way to make my relationship with Kiara more acceptable by giving me a fancy title, or what?”

“No.” Regina tugged on her mandible. “It is part of the reason I started considering this, perhaps, but this is about much more than your relationship with Kiara. I wouldn’t make a decision like this just based on that.”

“A decision like what?” Janis asked, now feeling a bit annoyed.

Regina sighed, trying to decide how best to put this into words. “You know what I plan on doing, right?”

“Yes.” Janis leaned forward. “The New Holy Roman Empire?”

“Central European Empire,” Regina corrected. “It’s close to what the Empire would have probably been renamed to soon. Rome had been part of the HRE for a few decades there at the end, I suppose, but before that, it hadn’t been since the Middle Ages. It definitely isn’t now, and I’d rather avoid religious connotations, especially since they’ll misunderstand. This is anything but sanctified to the gods from Haven.”

“Alright,” Janis waved a hand dismissively, “and what about your project?”

“My empire is going to need more than just a ruler and a few constituent parts like the Hive or Cernlia. Specifically — it will need an heir.”

Janis looked confused for a second, before her eyes widened and she just stared at her. “Regina? You can’t mean what I think you mean. How would that even —?”

Regina stood up and started pacing. “Maybe I went about this the wrong way,” she muttered.

She stopped and looked squarely at Janis, taking a deep breath. “Janis, I consider you family,” she said. “We’re close in a way that I’m not and can’t be with my drones, since they are Hive drones and my children. You’re my best friend and I think of you like a sister. So, I would like to make it official and adopt you.” She laughed slightly. “Well, I guess you’re sort of already adopted since you joined the Hive, but — I want you to be part of my family beyond that. Regina von Woltan’s little sister, not just Hive Queen Regina’s hive member.”

Janis still stared at her with wide eyes. “I’m honored,” she said. While her tone was even, Regina could tell the mix of emotions in it. She couldn’t resist but briefly brushed against her with her psychic senses to distinguish them. Love was the one that threatened to bring tears to her eyes, along with lingering sadness — for the family she’d lost, she knew — confusion, trepidation and joy.

Impulsively, Regina reached out to hug Janis. Her friend melted into her hug and they stood there like that for a while.

Then Janis pulled back and cleared her throat. “I’m honored,” she repeated. “And I assume you could tell that I’d like nothing more, but I don’t know if I should. I don’t feel I’m worthy of it.”

“You are,” Regina assured her. “If I want to name you family, shouldn’t I be the one to judge that? And it’s not an issue of worth. We already love each other like family.”

Janis took a deep breath and looked down, fiddling with the sleeves of her dress. “But what about the political implications?” she said, calmly. “You said you want an heir. I assume it’s the impetus for this, at least.”

“Yes, and I do want you to be my heir,” Regina said, taking a step back and sitting down again. “I think you are the best choice.”

Janis frowned. “But what about your actual children? Max or Tim —“

“No. I don’t think that would work.”

Janis sat back in her chair again, crossing her legs. “Why?”

“Several reasons. Think about it. What happens if I die? Assuming my drones don’t just follow me immediately, which I can’t rule out, I’m not sure they’d be in a state to manage much after that. I’m the anchor for the psychic link. The Hive wouldn’t get any new members and would die after a while. They’d hold on, hopefully, but there would be a major shift, and they’d have enough on their hands keeping the Hive together.” Regina shrugged a little. “You lived independently for eighteen years, and I have faith you could do it again. Obviously, I can’t be sure that anything else I build will survive, and if I die any time soon, it probably won’t. But I’m hoping the empire could survive, in time. You’d still have the support of the Hive, as a member and my chosen heir. They’d fight for you if needed, I’m quite sure. You’ll have the support of Kiara and Cernlia with her. And you’re the best choice, anyway, you have experience, talent and dedication in a combination no one else does. At least no one I trust implicitly.”

Janis stayed silent for a while, clearly thinking through Regina’s words. “I think I understand,” she finally said. “But would I even be a suitable heir, considering our respective ages?”

“I think so,” Regina shrugged. “I can’t know my lifespan. I think, barring violent death, I can expect to live to at least a hundred. That’s just a guess and I could be wildly off, though. But you’re almost half elemental, and you’ll reach a very high level, I’m sure. You’ll probably live for easily more than a hundred years, probably considerably beyond that.”

Janis nodded slowly. “Assuming we don’t both get killed,” she agreed. “My parents did and I think my grandmother did, too, so I’m not sure how long they would have lived, but it makes sense.”

“Then you agree?”

Janis smiled. “Of course. Yes.”

“Good. I’ll prepare some documents we can sign. Not sure how much weight they’ll have, but I’ll make sure it’s all legally ironclad with the other documents we’ll be drafting. For my part, I consider it done, and I hope you do too.”

“Regina —“ Janis met her eyes. “Thank you. I won’t let you down.”

“I know you won’t.”