"Warlord? Can I…" Annie asked, knocking on the door to Zero’s room.
"Sure, come on in."
Annie opened the door and carefully stepped into the private den of Zero. This was a vast, spacious room lighted with multicolored lights that were coming from chandeliers on the ceiling. Stone walls were covered with soft looking wood, a fire was cracking softly inside the fireplace near a large bed, covered with soft looking blankets. Photos of Zero covered the walls. Zero was never photographed alone, she was always surrounded by others. In one photo, she was in a long skirt and a golden jacket from the Royal University of Iterna, a tie of Zero’s was carelessly thrown over her shoulder as she was towering over other people in the photo. The warlord had to bend herself in order for them all to hug each other and fit in the photo. According to the date, this photo was taken over two hundred and fifty years ago. Another photo was of her with Dragena, Alpha, Lacerated One, and Ygrite. A hood of a jacket covered Zero’s head, while she was sitting on the ground, cooking food. Annie could see the tip of Zero’s snout, smile was on her lips, two yellow dots shone brightly on the fabric of her hood, indicating the location of her eyes. At the feet of Alpha lay an impressive piece of meat, likely torn from a sand ripper. The bones and totems served as clothes for the second warlord. Lacerated One was sitting in the open, holding her paws in prayer over the fire, dressed only in ritual garb. Dragena was dressed in a strict military uniform, carrying a med kit behind her back, while she herself worked with her blades, slicing away the meat for Zero to cook. Warlord Ygrite, a horrible looking wolfkin, whose snout was pierced with countless fangs coming from inside her body, was standing guard, the only one present in power armor, her helmet hanging from her waist. This photo was titled "First Gen Forever". Aside from this photo, one thing connected all of the other photos. On each and every one of them, the face of Zero was removed, instead of her head, there was a black oval over her shoulders. Near one wall of the room lay a bass guitar, clearly forged and made for someone of Zero’s size. The sound of gentle piano music was filling the room.
Zero herself, still in her solid helmet, was sitting before a large terminal, laying back casually in an armchair. Zero was dressed in a simple white t-shirt and shorts. Her gorgeous black fur was shiny, as if it was absorbing light in the room, sealing light inside each strand of hair. Not a single scar was visible on her body. On a screen before her was the image of another warlord in a helmet.
"I will leave you alone. But Zero… If I am right and this will work, it will be a huge step forward. We can't make mistakes this time." The warlord on the screen said in a stern voice.
"Then we won't make mistakes! Thank you so much, Valerye! Scorpio and Dragena will have a field day with this challenge!" Zero sent an air kiss to the warlord on a screen, before turning off the terminal and turning toward Annie. With a snap of her fingers, Zero turned off the music in the room and returned the light to its normal white color. She almost jumped from the armchair, taking off papers from Annie’s paws, her black fur gleamed in the soft light of the room. Zero briefly checked the papers, "Great! You did really well by digging these stories out of the shamans, Annie!"
"Uhm… I kinda unsure," The wolf hag admitted, shifting from one foot to the other, unsure if this was ok for her to speak her mind. All she did was simply ask questions and write stories on paper. Finally, she decided to speak about her fears, "I mean, read them. Yes, these wolf hags saved a lot of people, but look how the shamans describe how ferocious and bloodthirsty they were! This is bound to only scare the normies. "
"They might or might not," Zero eagerly nodded, "You see, Annie, the first step to removing borders between people is to let both sides to learn about each other. Good and bad. Cool and nasty. Shamans shared their teachings with normies, but we must also share our stories and history. We aren’t perfect, but none really is perfect, so who cares! Make sure to add these to the list of the stories… Now tell me," Zero suddenly lowered herself on one knee before Annie, "What exactly has been bothering you so much recently?"
"I kinda lost and tarnished the honor of your pack." Annie mumbled angrily.
"Think nothing of it." Zero put her paw on the shoulder of Annie.
"Nothing?! The Spirit of Pride demands that we value our pride. The Spirit of Spite demands that we cherish our losses! Through acceptance of our loss, through hate of defeat, we grow stronger. Through the desire to take our pride back, we force ourselves through…"
"Yeah, yeah, I know all this stuff," Zero raised a finger in the air, stopping Annie from talking, "Yet, here is the kicker. Spite and pride aren’t worth shit. Let me tell you a story. At the dawn of our Tribe, when we all lived in an abandoned military base together, there were two girls. One was known as Z and the other as D. They were best friends ever, as much as anyone could be friends with D, D is one weird girl. They both played, hunted, and fought together. They both had each other's backs in all situations. Back then, the tribe was small, less than a hundred heads, and Z and D were quite young rascals, younger than even you. Z was always envious of D because no matter how hard she tried, she could never beat D, not even once. Z made countless mistakes and, because of her lack of supervision, some kids died while in her care." For a brief moment, Annie felt Zero's grip on her shoulder tremble, but the warlord continued casually telling her story, "Meanwhile D was always perfect, always completing any task to perfection. Resentment and envy grew deep inside the soul of Z. Each time in hand-to-hand combat, Z lost. Filled with spite, Z called D for a proper rematch in actual combat. Z prepared three pitfalls, laid down sixty landmines and used two sniper rifles against D. After a whole day of struggle and loud explosions, D lost. Z mocked her helpless opponent and put two armor-piercing bullets in her opponent's kneecaps."
"This seems to be exceedingly brutal. If you win, you win… No need to go so far. Z is a real bastard." Annie said in horror.
"You have no idea. Z was a real scumbag back then. Kids are sometimes cruel, and kids left without a proper guidance are sometimes the cruelest beings alive," Zero eagerly nodded her head, "Back to the story. Z brought D, who was tied up and bleeding, back to camp. She let D hang off from the entrance to the military base, for everyone to see and mock her rival. When Ravager came back, she took Z aside and asked if this made Z feel any better."
"That… doesn’t sound like anything that the blessed mother would do." Annie carefully said. Ravager was known for her violate temper. Back when she was with the Tribe and the forces of state, Ravager was always on the front lines of combat. The shamans told how the blessed mother, covered in gore from head to toe, broke line after line of enemy resistance, killing their leaders and bringing the rest to their knees before the Dynast."
Back when Ravager arrived to reclaim the area where the current fort Uglo stood, it was under the control of a person known as Mincemeat, one of the strongest known new breeds in the region. With his vast power over the mind, this wicked being controlled over half a million people, using their bodies as dolls. The unique body of Mincemeat had no need for sleep, and his twisted will demanded total obedience from everyone around him. Stripping people of their will, using them as extensions of his own body, he built valleys of statues in his name. Like rats, people were toiling to death in ginormous mines underneath the castle of the new breed, dying by the hundreds each day. Forcibly making people breed to produce new slaves for himself, Mincemeat also liked to capture various traders who dared tread around the edges of his empire. When ambassadors of the Reclaimers arrived for negotiations of his surrender, their will was also stripped from their bodies, forcing the ambassadors to join the ranks of wordless slaves of Mincemeat. With a smile on his face, Mincemeat made one of the ambassadors skin himself during a video call with the Dynast. The Dynast watched his servant die with a calm face, completely ignoring Mincemeat's boasts, his gaze was only on his man. As the life of an ambassador was over, so too was the call. Peace failed, strength was needed to reclaim the land.
This was when Ravager stepped in. She was always giving new breeds only one chance to give up and surrender, upon refusal she always personally killed the enemy leadership. The shamans still told stories about that battle. Hordes of enslaved people, as far as the eye could see, living waves spreading from horizon to horizon, moved upon armies of Reclaimers. Mincemeat laughed in the seat of his power, assured that in any turn of events he would obtain new slaves. Screams of rage, unleashed by his minions, hit the ranks of Reclaimers like a fury of nature. The Dynast stepped forward, ignoring the urges of his bodyguards and advisers. The ruler walked within the territory of Mincemeat’s power and the terrible mind of his foe brought the Dynast to his knees as Mincemeat noticed the presence of a free mind in his lands. Yet, just a moment later, Dynast stood up, shaking off the enslaving mind power of Mincemeat as easily as a man would shake off dust from his shoulders. The liege of the state walked back to his forces, gesturing for his chosen champion to step forward for this battle.
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Only one warrior moved forward. Like a falling star, she crashed into ranks of foes before her, cleaving her way through a living sea, coloring the sand with the red blood of foes. She needed no weapons, save for the power that she had in her own paws. No armor covered her form, for fear unleashed had no need to be concerned about her own life. The howl of rage, produced by the throats of unwilling slaves, was answered by the roar produced by the throat of the living death, rendering thousands of people close to her deaf as blood flowed from their ears as their eardrums were popped by the sound. The roar of Ravager temporarily broke the mind control of Mincemeat over his minions, and screams of horror, heard for miles, filled the day, as people gained control over their own bodies for the first time in their lives. Leaving weeping people, Ravager moved forward as Mincemeat hastily assumed control over his forces, whipping them into an even greater frenzy with his mind. His attempts to control the mind of Ravager failed in vain.
Only one form, that of the color of the darkest night, goodness of rage and fury, reached the tall fortress of Mincemeat, and the new breed knew fear for the first time in his long life. He contacted the Reclaimers via communicator, begging for truce as the wall of his fortress fell from a single punch of Ravager, stones fell down in an avalanche of death, killing foes that tried to swarm Ravager as the blessed mother stepped inside the fortress of the tyrant. Silence was the only answer to the pleas of the tyrant, the Dynast wasted no words for dead people. Screaming in horror and pleading for mercy, Mincemeat was torn from his cradle of power, dragged outside into the courtyard and lifted high in the air for everyone to see, while drones of the Reclaimers recorded the last moments of his dread empire. The pleas of Mincemeat were left unheard, for his crimes far outweighed his value to the state. In vain, the bodyguards of the tyrant hacked and slashed the fur of Ravager in vain, trying to save their cruel master. The hide of Ravager could withstand almost anything, and any exotic weapon that managed to leave tiny scratches upon the majestic skin of the blessed mother was simply not enough to kill her. The wounds of the blessed mother healed as quickly as they appeared. Mincemeat was given the mercy that he never gave to his victims, a quick death. Like a balloon, the form of Mincemeat popped between the paws of Ravager and his hold over his minions fell. His dominion lasted for nearly a century, and it was over in a day. Such was the wrath of Ravager, wrath that left forty thousand corpses in her wake as she walked toward the fortress of Mincemeat. The tyranny, upheld by thousands of unwilling slaves, was overthrown by just one person.
Half a million people, who remembered how they were enslaved every day, people, who remembered how they were controlled like marionettes, were now before Ravager. The blessed mother did not know what to do with them, as many slaves never even learned how to speak. Many of them were on the verge of death, exhausted by countless years of toiling for the sake of the mind tyrant. Devourer himself took custody over them, convincing Dynast to enlist the help of both Oathtakers and Iterna to help rehabilitate the victims. It took years, enormous efforts that strained the state to its breaking point, and assistance from both allies and foes. This slowed the Reclamation Army greatly, yet at the end, many of the prisoners were able to start normal lives, further empowering the state. The day Mincemeat and his empire fell was dubbed the "Day of Liberation" and became a holiday in the Wastes and Ravaged Lands. The ten-meter-tall Ravager statue was built by grateful former prisoners and stood in Fort Uglo for a year before Ravager broke it in one of her rages, claiming that the mysterious "she" would have found a way to save everyone, and thus Ravager deserves no credit for the mindless slaughter that occurred under her command during the "Day of Liberation". Yet to this day, some people in the Wastes still worship the blessed mother in thanks for liberation, viewing her as a hero, ignoring the desires of Ravager. Wanting to know more about Ravager of the Dunes, people asked shamans and warlords about her and the faith of the Tribe. Surprisingly, faith in spirits quickly spread throughout the Wastes, Core Lands, and even Ravaged Lands. The Church of Spirits was formed in the lands of the Reclamation Army, led by normies and new breeds of the state. Although they followed the same creed as the Wolf Tribe, shamans always rejected their offering to unite faiths into one. The Church of Spirits within the Core Lands was under strict regulation from the Dynast, who viewed it simply as another instrument for the unity of the nation.
"I know, right!? I was… I mean, Z was so afraid that Ravager will kill her. The original always just beat the knowledge into ya, instead of speaking. Seeing blessed mother so calm and sad even freaked out Z, who expected the beating to begin at any moment. And yet this time, Z and Ravager simply sat side by side, speaking for a long time with each other, something that they had never done before. At the end, Z understood. She humiliated and hurt her friend, and for what? Meager satisfaction? Piss poor reward. Z tended to the wounds of D, not daring to ask for forgiveness. Ever since then, Z tries to be a better person, but the rift between her and D remains to this very day. And yet these two work together even now, in some faraway place, learning from each other and helping the Tribe grow. The moral of the story is, who cares if someone is stronger than you? We all must work together, instead of maiming each other. That and also, everyone can change in the end, you, me everyone."
"Point A, you said that Z and D were friends. Yet I just met Virginia recently and she took me apart like I was nothing. I don’t know her, and she doesn’t know me. Frankly speaking, I don’t care to know her. Point B, I don’t hate her this much to cheat in a fight against her, so your story doesn’t really work here. Point C, you said that pride and spite do not matter, yet they pushed Z hard enough for her to prevail against D. I just want to beat Virginia fair and square, like a true warrior, and restore my honor!" Annie hit herself in the chest defiantly.
"There are other things in the world, Annie!" Zero stood up and led Annie by the shoulders to the wall, showing her photos, "Look! Look, you can go to university, find friends, like I did. You can find some sports to play, join an official team… Then be kicked out due to being "abnormal"… I am still bitter about this still… Anyway, you can even start a farm, or maybe go work at a factory! All professions are important, all people are valuable to the state. Hell, you can become a singer if you want. Look here!" Zero almost dragged Annie to the terminal and pressed buttons on the keyboard, showing an image of tropical jungles, "You ever been here? Or here?" A new image of a gigantic sprawling city appeared on the screen. Flying vehicles lazily moved above crowded streets, massive parks, filled with countless trees, were placed around the city. Normie couples were walking on the small stone roads or were sitting relaxing beside pools of water. Skyscrapers were so tall that it looked as if they were supporting the skies like pillars. The eyes of Annie widened as she never imagined that so many people could even live in the world, "Or maybe something like this will be more to your liking?" Once again, the image shifted, showing countless fields covered with snow. Cities, massive hubs, surrounded by spherical domes, were standing proud against nature’s wrath. The camera that showed the place changed, showing what was inside gigantic domes. Inside were people, gathered together during some celebration, laughing as a massive concert was happening in the middle of the city, others played on the street with snowballs. The message "Celebration of New Year in the Northern Regions" was running below the video on the screen. Fireworks erupted from the steel dome's very ceiling, exploding in purple, red, green, and other colors, "The world is big, so big that you would never believe it, Annie. I know why I am here, why I must stand by the side of my Tribe. But you, you! What could possibly be the reason for you to stay here? Go on, live, see the world! This is what young people should do, and not spend their lives fighting all the time. I can’t send all the cubs out there, but I can pay for your travels at the very least. Go on, make mistakes, make friends, have fun and learn. You will honor the fallen by living a full life, rather than living in their shadow."
"With all due respect, warlord, my mother died protecting me and Tribe. My father fought for the Tribe. My sister died because I was too weak to save her," Annie forced herself to speak calmly, "Your words make sense and are true. But I want to be a true soldier, someone who will protect weak people. Someone who will become the shield and sword of the state, just like my mother was. Spirits saved me for a reason. For this reason, I must learn to fight. I must learn how to exceed as a member of the Tribe."
"Soldier, huh…" Zero thought for a moment, "If that is your wish, so be it. I will think about what I can do to help you with this. In the meantime, I have a new task for you. Since you have done such a great job with your current assignment, I have a new one for you. You and Virginia will work together for a while."
It took all the composure of Annie in order not to scream in anger at this order.