In the centre of the large cave, a fire was flaring up, roaring around a metal cauldron full of boiling water. The cauldron was large enough to fit a whole aggelad inside, and that was exactly what was inside it. The aggelad, weighing about 200kg, was slowly boiling in the water, its flesh melting away and mixing with the salts and herbs bubbling around it.
“I’m hungry.”
“You’re always hungry, Pynazos.”
The dark, grey Thanatian growled, then threw some sort of root vegetable into the cauldron. Pynazos was the only being there that liked anything non-meaty. Everyone else there could just eat around the vegetables. Then again, no one else was hungry.
“Is everyone here?” Zoi asked as she entered the cave, her best friend Thanatos by her side.
The Thanatians all nodded, but none of them seemed very happy.
“You drag me here, while I’m trying to fix our strained relations with other races!” Kindyna snapped. “I totally get you all being sick of the parents, but fuck me, not even Phovos is willing to speak to you now.”
“Phovos will speak to us sooner or later,” Photios sighed as he played with flames from the fire. “She understands. Her anger will die down.”
“You think? At the rate we’re going, she’s considering setting up Palaestra as its own state, separate from our territories.”
Skios, who had been hiding in the shadows at the back of the cave, looked rather surprised. “Can she do that?”
“Yes she can,” Neraida explained. “We don’t have any laws stopping the Raptor from, well, setting up on her own.”
“Worse,” Dilitir interrupted as he pulled poisonous spines off his back and flicked them on the ground. “Phovos could probably take over the entirety of Vriskera and we’d be unable to stop her. It’s one thing overthrowing our parents, we can’t mess with Phovos. She knows how to tear us apart.”
Zoi listened, then closed her eyes. “You worry too much, siblings. The Raptor is no threat to us as long as we don’t disturb her. But she is not what I want to discuss today.”
“What do you want to discuss then?” Anemos asked. “The voices in the air? The promises of the ones sent home? The madness of the Banikans and their offers?”
“Or how about the fact we’ve lost standing among other races?” Trisma added.
“How about all of the above?” Gys also added, a large amount of concern in his voice. “We’re strong, Zoi, but we’re lacking in unity.”
Zoi smiled. “I think the voices in the air are the most important, for they link all of this together. A promise of unity among all races. A promise of immortality. We are powerful, we are young, but only for so long. Only Thanatos here is truly among the eternal…”
“That is because I’m undead…” Thanatos muttered, only to be shushed by Zoi.
“… This… plan, this draconic plan, it would be perfect for all Thanatians, not something to be squirrelled away by Thraki. Or Temthans for that matter.”
Kindyna glanced at Dilitir, then stared at Zoi. “You’re not suggesting we actually join up with that… cult? Did you not see what they did? To us and our allies?”
Tromos and Photianos both looked concerned.
“That beacon nearly drove us all mad!” Tromos shouted. “We had to get Phovos in to help destroy it!”
“And what’s stopping the Temthans from capturing us all and using us as slaves?” Photianos growled. “The offer they made the Rethans, you really think they’d just let us all join and not ask for anything in return?”
“They could just enslave us for all we know,” Kindyna continued. “We join the Temthans, we lose the allies we have here.”
“We join the Temthans,” Zoi explained. “We get all their technology. The Rethans were forced because they’re not the same species. We ARE Temthans. We’re just lesser ones, waiting to be raised up. Look at us, talking away in caves, roaming around forests hunting for food, living lives of pain and poverty.”
“I don’t want to be a sex slave though…” Trisma muttered.
“You won’t be,” Thanatos reassured the electric Thanatian. “They only wanted the Threan-type Rethans because they were small and have their weird downstairs genitalia things. We’re normal Temthans. Stronger than normal, yes, but otherwise genetically the same. Zoi and I have been studying what Phovos destroyed, and… well…”
“You really think…” Pagia hesitated. “… They’ll just… accept us?”
“That was what the beacon was for,” Zoi smiled. “We proved our worth. All we have to do is accept. Plus, they’ve changed. New ideals. The voices in the wind, they hear them too.”
“Better than a cult of death,” Neraida shrugged.
“The Rethans will disown us!” Kindyna warned. “The Vohra, the Vrekans, the Cassids, they’ll all lose faith in us! None of you saw first-claw what they did…”
Zoi raised her hand to silence Kindyna. “One unwilling Rethan. We are willing. We will not end up like that little freak. You’re too emotionally connected to a little freak…”
“He’s the brother of my fellow Kronaron, so shut your whore mouth!” Kindyna growled. “This is all lunacy! I thought I was always the insane, power-hungry one, and here you are, Zoi, suggesting we sign ourselves up for some… religion! I don’t care if the Whenvern himself is suggesting this, it’s insane!”
“Kindyna is right,” Dilitir sighed.
“Then we shall put this to a vote, like civilized beings…” Photios tutted. “If you think that we should not join the Temthans, raise your claw.”
Kindyna immediately raised her claw. Dilitir, Pynazos, Skios and Photianos followed. After a little hesitation, Trisma raised her claw as well.
“Six. Put your claws down. Now raise your claw if you think we should join the Temthans.”
Both Zoi and Thanatos raised their claws, swiftly followed by Neraida, Pagia, Gys and Magnetin. Varys and Anemos glanced at each other, then raised their claws too. Photios raised his claw.
“You are not voting, Tromos?”
“No. I don’t feel I can make such a huge decision.”
“Very well,” Photios tutted again. Nine against six.”
Zoi smiled, while Thanatos clapped with glee.
Kindyna though growled. Anger flashed in her eyes. Dilitir tried to calm her down, only to be pushed away.
“You’re making a huge mistake!” she shouted as she stormed off. “This decision will come back to haunt us, mark my words!”