The Empress? Wow, that's someone that she hasn't thought about in a long time. She hasn't exactly forgotten the conditioned fear that comes along with that name, but it's not as bad as when she actually lived on Alternia. Neither has she forgotten the last time that a human had such an extreme reaction to someone that they shouldn't know.

"You're from Jake's universe. And Dirk's." The one that the Empress apparently ended up in somehow. She's still not sure how that happened, just that it did and she wrecked a lot of things--at least according to what she heard Aranea tell them.

"Wow, that sure is a misunderstanding." She's not even sure where to begin to sort all of that out. "But I am getting the distinct impression that Dave's right. Newsflash! Not all trolls are like our lovely Empress! In fact, I'd say a good portion of us are about as pissed off at her as you are. We wouldn't say that within a billion lightyears of her, since she has about five different ways to cull dissenters without actually being present... But the sentiment is there. Usually." There were always the higher castes that basked in the luxury of their place in life, though. They didn't seem to have a problem with the Empress...but they still feared her. Everyone did.

"Trust me. She wasn't any kinder to us than she was to you."