Quoted By:
“There was a great war at my home. Our people killed each other. I fled all of that.”
Superman stays quiet for a moment. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”
You don’t reply. The war was not a bad thing, it made the Viltrumites stronger than ever, more capable of continuing their conquest that had stalled for so long. But you would not share that.
“I’m not going to say that Earth is entirely peaceful.” Superman says. “But I think we’re making good progress towards a peaceful society, an agreement where all nations on Earth can coexist and avoid war and oppression as a solution to their problems.”
A vain notion. The only solution to stopping wars between ant nests is to put them into orderly, controlled terrariums so they work for you. But you’re not going to share that thought either. “I hope you’re right. War is a terrible thing.”
He looks back towards you and smiles. “Glad we seem to be on the same page.”
He puts his hand to one of the door panels and invites you to do the same after him. You do so and it registers your prints.
“There you go.” Superman says. “The room is yours for now. Do you need anything? Water? Soda? Food?”
“Water and bread will do.” You reply. You need nothing more.
“We have fancier stuff if you want it.” Superman insists.
“I’ll be fine, thank you.” You insist as well.
He nods. “Of course, sorry. If you need to contact us, you have a communication device in your room.”
You nod back and enter the room. The very first thing you do is sit on the queen sized bed within it, enjoying the luxury it offers. It’s better than most beds aboard Viltrumite ships. There’s a small stand with books on it. Some sort of religious book called a bible, then various encyclopaedias about Earth. It covers diverse topics on history, climate, geography, fauna, flora…
You grab the history book and head straight for the end. You learn brief histories of imperialism, the world wars, the cold war, and the modern age. At points, you feel as though these ants were close to enlightening themselves on how a true state should behave, but clearly they failed somewhere along the way. You read on so many examples of soft power, polities trying to expand their strength subtly, cunningly, instead of taking what is theirs through force of arms and subjugating the weak.
Of course, it’s not as if these inferior beings, weak as they are themselves, could ever understand what true power is.
You hear a ring by the door and get off the bed, leaving the book at its spot and opening the door.
