Stand, I tell myself.

Don't move, don't think, don't speak.

Stand there and look pretty. Keep your uniform crisp and clean, like everyone else's. Fade into the architecture. Life's easier that way.

Keep calm. You don't have the right to feel anything, so don't show it. Nobody cares how you feel. There's nothing to see here. Move along.

There are thousands of soldiers beneath you, and any one of them could be you right now. You must behave better than them, be more careful than them - not even the tiniest slip is acceptable. You want to keep this power, right?

Strategize. Kill more people, seize more resources - be ruthless for the empire's sake. It becomes easier in time.

You're not "above" anything. Use that neat blonde hair and those pretty blue eyes to your advantage. You know how to turn on the charm.

Don't smile too wide. Don't laugh too hard. Don't frown. Express only pleasant things, when appropriate, and then go cold. Emptiness is scarier than rage. That's what you need to do - scare them. Seize their obedience without straining your voice.

The halls of Vector are your battleground. Influence is the only thing that matters. You can have all the power in the world, and it won't get you anywhere if the wrong person says no. Keep doing as you're told. Prove yourself reliable, and eventually, someday, you can choose your own direction.

This is necessity, I tell myself.

Or was that the Empire talking?

Stand, I tell myself.

Laugh, scream, gesticulate.

Stand there and be garish. It's your own body, so you can decorate it however you like. Make them stare. Life's more fun that way.

Do whatever you want. Ultimate power makes for the ultimate freedom of expression. Why worry about consequences? Follow your whims. Do the impossible.

There are thousands of soldiers under your command, but none of them could ever hope to compare to you. You have no restrictions, no rules - anything goes! Nobody has power like yours, and no one can take it away.

Who needs effect? Cause, cause, cause - exercise your will. If you don't use it, you lose it, after all!

No one can use you, though. You're untouchable and invincible. Make sure those ants know where they stand.

Grin wider. Laugh harder. Scream with rage. Change your face often, perhaps every time they blink, and mostly smile. Glee is unsettling in a bloody, bad man. There's a useful tool - unsettle them. They'll be too disoriented to disagree with anything!

The world is your playground. Glorious power is free for the taking all around you. Drink deep, and your will can spread everywhere, engulf everything, even to the ends of the world. Why not twist reality itself inside out? If you can, do, and revel in the fact that you can do more than anyone else.

This is meaning, I tell myself.

Or was that the Magitek talking?