Smiling casually, Erik shrugged. "Well, for one, I wanted to give you another chance to join me ahead of everyone else. Inevitably, you'll end up either killed by the hunters or subjugated by me. Why not get a jump on the lesser of two evils? Assuming you'd subscribe to the idea that serving me is any kind of evil at all, of course."
Zahra scoffed. After getting control of her anxiety, she surged with a rebellious streak, unwilling to seem weak in front of him. "There's no inevitability in this world! We make our fate, and we'll beat back the hunters! We don't need you!"
Erik's lips curled into a small smile. "True inevitability does not exist, I'll admit that. A being far more powerful than any of us could appear at any time and blow our planet up from orbit without even coming down to the ground. If that happens, I guess you won't serve me, and you won't die. At least, not by the hunter's hands…"
