“We don’t have to be at war with the humans or each other,” Specca insisted. “There’s no need for animosity between us. All of our races would benefit greatly if we only worked together, not fought and raped one another all the time. We can share this world under peaceful terms, we can coexist with one another as friends and allies. It’s possible, it’s most certainly possible. You have to see this.”
“We know what we’re talking about,” Alyssa promised. “We never used to think humans could be our friends. We never used to think humans could ever love us for who we were. But then we met Daniel, and we… we…”
The girls watched with growing dismay as the elves were slowly averting their eyes from them, none seeming to be moved by their words or willing to accept them. The children stepped further away and closer to their mothers while the rangers were solemnly glancing to Daniel from the corner of their eyes.
“Everyone’s turning away from us,” Luna worried.
“I believe Daniel’s proposal has pushed them away,” Doku fretted.
“You’ve got be kidding us,” Falla argued in a fluster. “Daniel risked his life to save you people. My family risked their lives. Squeak died for you! One of our own family members gave her life to rescue you people so we could help you, so we could show you a better way of living your lives, and this is how you respond? You won’t even talk, you won’t even consider it; you just turn your heads away? We can hear you judging our man inside your minds, you know! At least have the decency to say it to our faces! Say something! Somebody say something!”
The elves merely lowered their heads in silence, none speaking back even though they already conveyed what they were thinking quite well. Daniel held out a hand to stop Falla who was about to unload all her frustrations on them in a manner that would make Clover proud, with his mates turning to him with growing anxiety as they weren’t feeling as welcome among the elves now as they did before.
“Listen up,” Daniel called out. “I want everyone here to be honest and raise their hand if they think the idea of humans and elves being allies in Eden is nothing but a fantasy tale. Please, I won’t take offense to hearing your straightforward opinion. I want you to tell me the truth with what you think. Raise your hand if you think my proposal just isn’t possible to achieve and that things cannot change between our races.”
Slowly but surely all the elves raised their hands, some looking away in shame while doing so and others averting their eyes from their heroes altogether. Daniel’s family felt their hope for an alliance with the elves swiftly fading away as they saw a unanimous rejection to Daniel’s beliefs.
“It’s okay,” Daniel reassured. “I understand how you feel. All of our races have a long history of not liking each other too much, it surely wouldn’t be an easy feat to change that. The very idea of forming peaceful relations between our races would of course sound like blasphemy to anyone. We do have our differences and needs in life, and unfortunately that does cause some tension between us, doesn’t it? I’m sure you’re all thinking that things will never change. That we should just keep pushing forward as we always have, by ourselves, and do what we need to in order to survive. Am I right?”
Many of the elves nodded with solemn expressions while Daniel’s mates lowered their heads in defeat as they felt like outcasts amongst the elves now.
“I mean, that certainly worked well for the centaurs,” Daniel spoke up as he looked away. “They did just fine all by themselves when The Sisterhood attacked their kingdom, didn’t they?”
The elves began looking to each other with troubled grimaces from that.
“You elves had everything under control too, didn’t you?” Daniel continued, glancing back to them. “When danger came straight to your home you managed to take care of it just fine all by yourselves.”
“Wait, we don’t mean you any disrespect after all you’ve done for us,” a ranger started to protest before Daniel spoke up louder.
“And the giant butterflies certainly don’t need any allies to help them, do they?” he called out to the crowd. “Never mind that they’re preyed upon by predators lurking in their forests, they can handle anything that comes their way just fine, so long as their deceptive ways don’t catch up to them of course. But I’m sure that will never happen.”
“Please, try to understand,” another elf insisted. “We’re not trying to upset you, it’s just-”
“I know the ant girls of Eden definitely don’t need allies,” Daniel spoke towards her with a stern tone. “Not those girls, no way. With their strength they don’t need to worry about anything. Not even all those ant-lionesses that prey upon them in their own nests!”
The elves cringed slightly from his tone becoming sharper and clearly more livid, while his mates and maids were now watching him with growing curiosity as he was showing a sudden surge of bravado and ire with his argument.
“And there’s no way the witches of Eden need allies to survive,” Daniel scoffed. “With their magic there’s no challenge too big or tough for them to take down. It doesn’t matter that their magical reserves are finite and directly dependent on their focuser being on hand, that a single flame can kill them almost instantly, or that nearly all races in Eden despise and distrust them by great measure. Those girls have their lives and future completely in check, no doubt about it.”
“Please, Lord Daniel Sorres, you don’t understand,” a ranger tried to explain, with Daniel then pointing to the elf and marching closer to her.
“I understand what you’re saying just fine,” he argued, with the ranger gasping and quickly stepping back before tripping and falling into the arms of her sisters. “Your way of life is better for you and there’s no reason to change that, right? That’s what everyone always says, that’s what everyone always tries to insist is true, that’s what every race I’ve come across tries to tell me when I believe things could be better for all of us. It doesn’t matter if the whole world hates you, it doesn’t matter if we’re constantly killing each other in a never-ending conflict; as long as you get to continue your race then things aren’t so bad, right?”
“Well… I… uh… but… they’re not that… um…”
“They’re not what?” Daniel sharply asked. “Things aren’t that bad with you, correct? You elves have it so good in life, don’t you? You trick humans into coming after you, into raping you, so you don’t have to lift a finger in order to rape them! Why in Eden’s grand splendor would you ever want to give up such a cushy way of life? I mean there is the fact that every human that does that to you detests you, that they’re only doing that to hurt and abuse you, and I’m going to take a wild stab in the dark and assume you usually get more than just a man’s seed when they do the deed. Maybe some scars? Bruises? Broken bones? Black eyes? Ripped hair? Burns? Any of that sound accurate?”
“How… how did you…” the elf breathed out in shock. “How did you know we did that with humans?”
“And there’s no guarantee the man will even let you go afterwards, is there?” Daniel questioned. “They could just as easily kill you during or after the horrible event, they could mutilate you or do unspeakable things to you if they had the mind to. But it’s all worth it in the end, isn’t it? So long as you get pregnant and live to give birth to a daughter, that’s all that matters to you, yes?”
The elf lost her voice entirely in the face of his accusations, with the surrounding elves staring at Daniel in speechless dismay.
“You elves have it so good, don’t you?” Daniel chastised. “You can get pregnant by drawing in those you’ve treated like dirt and lied to by tempting their inner demons into abusing you. You might suffer physical abuse in the process, but at least your race continues on. And your skill with a bow is certainly unquestionable, there’s no way anyone or anything could ever pose a threat to you or your people, right? Just ask your old priestess and high maidens how well that’s shielded them in the past!”
“What do you want from us?” the elf cried
out as she broke down before him. “What the fuck do you expect us to do? We don’t have a choice but to live this way!”
“You always have a choice! Everyone always has a choice!”
“We don’t have a choice in being born like this!” another elven woman shouted as many in the crowd were close to finally letting their words fly even if they pissed off their esteemed guests. “We can’t control what we are, but that doesn’t matter to anyone in this world! Humans are never going to give two shits about us, they never have and never will! How in Eden’s fucking asshole do you expect that to ever change?”
“Simple! Stop being monsters!” Daniel shouted back, his voice carrying far and wide as all the elves in the entire camp stopped what they were doing from the sound of his yell.
“I want you to stop being so ignorant and see the truth that’s right in front of you! Humans don’t think you’re monsters because of your ears! They don’t think you’re monsters because you can only give birth to female elves! They think you’re monsters because that’s how you act with them! You treat them like crap, you think they’re nothing but mud, you use and manipulate them to get what you want, they’re nothing but a means to getting pregnant with to you; they’re not even people in your eyes! To you they’re just seed sacks, cattle, nothing but objects for you to use as you see fit! That’s why the world thinks you’re monsters!”
The elves were rendered stunned before him, everyone clearly seeing and sensing Daniel’s remarkable amount of patience and tranquility being overtaken by his sheer anger and frustration with the subject.
“The centaurs treat men like currency,” Daniel scorned. “The giant butterflies tell every lie under the sun to trick men. Ant girls kidnap and horde entire groups of men to be seed givers for their queen. Witches hex and rape men without a care in the world. Sand wraiths eat humans and anyone else they can get their hands on. Nixies steal away men and drag them down to the depths of the sea. I’ve researched hundreds of ways humans are treated by other races, hundreds of ways they’re raped, killed, and treated like garbage during each of these encounters; and I’m here to tell you that all of that bullshit needs to stop now!”
“D-Daniel?” Doku uttered.
“He’s really angry,” Cindy worried, with Snapper pushing back into her bosom with a nervous gurgle.
“I didn’t think there would be this much shouting with him,” Falla commented.
“Why is he yelling at the elves?” Luna nervously asked. “Why is he so upset like this?”
“He’s doing what he has to,” Alyssa reasoned, with the girls turning to her questionably as she had a solemn expression on her face. “The elves need to hear this. All of our races need to hear this. Daniel’s done tiptoeing around the facts and our stubbornness; he’s telling the elves exactly what they need to hear.”
“Up until now, they have been monsters,” Specca sadly agreed.
“For as long as the history books have told,” Daniel loudly continued. “Every one of our races has been at each other’s throats ever since we came into this world! We kill, rape, kill, rape, kill, rape, kill, and rape again! That’s all that ever happens! Every race out there is at war with each other and killing one another all for the chance to rape my race to death! It’s one massive free-for-all that we’re all losing because, guess what, we’re all killing each other! That’s all we ever do! How blind can you be?”
“But why is he shouting at them?” Rolian worried. “This isn’t a good way to talk them into being nice, is it?”
“It is with the elves,” Sheal mentioned, with the girls looking to her curiously. “I’ve seen how they settle disputes while I was in Green Haven. Shouting and berating is usually how they come to an amicable agreement in the end.”
“Is that so?” Specca wondered. “Then, that would mean…”
“Daniel’s persuading them with his beliefs,” Alyssa said with a growing smile. “In a way that the elves are accustomed to learning from.”
“That’s why he started shouting and calling them out directly,” Sheal agreed with a similar grin. “My master knew exactly how to reach these lost, stubborn souls.”
“Oooh,” Rolian slowly said. “Wow. Juggy and I just thought he was angry with them. I didn’t know he was so smart like that.”
“You’re giving him far too much credit,” Felucia flatly commented. “Anyway, this battle isn’t over. Don’t start celebrating that man just yet.”
“I don’t know if you realize this,” Daniel scoffed. “But there are enough monsters out there that want to kill all of us already! There are some pretty nasty races out there who are deserving of the title monster, and not only them but we’ve got Darker Ones out for everyone’s blood! If we stay divided like this, then guess what happens? We all get picked off, one by one, until there’s nobody left! Is that what you really want? Is that how you want your race to go down in history? Oh, they were monsters until the very end, but at least they lasted a few more generations before going extinct, so good for them!”
Daniel slowly surveyed the elves before him with a harsh glare, seeing all the women and children watching him with stunned reactions as they were trying and failing to form a coherent protest to his accusations. However none could, instead they were struggling with their own frustrations in the face of his words while at the same time seeming to be teetering between hating Daniel for pointing out the truth and hating things for how they truly were. Not only that, but there was something else he spotted in their eyes. An unmistakable gleam that he had often seen before from those who were frightened and desperately searching for help, something he had hoped to find within these people to show they could indeed be reasoned with.
‘Okay, better rein it back a little. I think I may have overdone it a bit, I can see a few elves breaking down into tears from here. I thought they would put up more of a fight than this, but it seems I’ve struck deeper with my accusations than I expected. At least they’re not shooting me dead and it looks like they’re starting to see that their way of life isn’t all that great when looked at more closely. C’mon, Daniel, this is your chance. Their future is in your hands, you need to help guide them onto a better path or else they’ll end up just like the monsters in The Sisterhood.’
“Make no mistake,” Daniel spoke up. “The world sees elves as monsters who are no different than those from The Sisterhood. And why should they? Even elves are guilty of raping humans, killing humans, treating humans like lowly animals. And I just have to point this out as well, you have got to be the most vulgar and intimidating people I have ever met on the face of Eden. All of you swearing and cussing with every sentence you make certainly does not help paint your race in a better light, especially with humans who already believe you to be the devils with how you treat us. For crying out loud, I’ve heard your children speaking words that I never heard any adults in my hometown saying in all their lives. Have you no shame at all?”
To that the elves cringed, feeling that critical blow very clearly as Daniel showed no mercy with telling them how things were. Even his own mates jumped a bit from hearing him hitting the elves with so much truth at once with a very condemning tone.
“He is not taking it easy on them,” Falla slowly mentioned in surprise.
“I didn’t think he would bring up their rather crude language during this,” Specca added as she looked away. “Though it’s impossible to argue his points in their defense.”
“Well, they don’t look mad at him now,” Alyssa commented as she examined the crowd. “They just look like they’re about to start crying.”
“Daniel’s saying some mean things,” Pip worried.
“He’s only telling them the truth, little one,” Sheal replied, still watching Daniel with a slowly wagging tail. “If they’re to change their misguided ways, they must know the error of their ways first.”
“They’ll learn to be good,” Cindy hoped, coddling Snapper closer as the swarm tried burrowing deeper into her bosom. “I w
as bad before too, but Daniel taught me to be good. If I can learn to be good so can they.”
“Now then, let’s try this again,” Daniel announced as he stepped back. “Show of hands. How many elven women here have been raped, abused, and beaten by a man in order to get pregnant? How many have been treated like monsters by humans because of the way they’ve acted? Tell the truth!”
Daniel’s family looked around at seeing a great deal of hands slowly rising from elves who showed nothing but embarrassment and remorse.
“How many women here have been raped, abused, and beaten by a man, but didn’t get pregnant afterwards? How many of you suffered because of your own misguided actions and gained nothing for it in return?”
More hands began rising while a few slowly dropped, with the elves turning to each other with growing concern as they faced one of the hard truths of their lifestyle.
“How many have lost loved ones to humans who didn’t settle for just a revenge-rape, but instead killed an elf instead? How many of you have lost mothers, daughters, family, all because you followed the tradition of your ancestors and acted like real monsters with humans? Show your hands now!”
Many hands were seen in the air by both women and children alike, all of them slowly breaking down in the horrible shadow of their despair brought on by their own doing. Daniel’s mates showed remorseful looks as they saw the heartbreak and depressed faces that now adorned all the elves, none of the women and children having any shred of the joy and excitement they displayed earlier that night. Daniel could easily see he got his message through to the elves, all of them unable argue with him in the slightest against the reality of how things really were for them. Taking a slow breath to calm himself, he then spoke up again with a much different question for the elves.
Chronicles of Eden - Season II - Act II Page 12
