The meeting began with a little chat. It lasts only five minutes.
--Hana-- I think it's unfair that there's a race like humans; there are so many of them in the world.
--Bron-- I agree. They're a plague, multiplying rapidly while we're on the brink of extinction.
--Ozir-- The "Balmor" weren't lucky; they even wanted to have more children, but we only managed to have one every ten years at most. And if it weren't for a life expectancy of four hundred years, we wouldn't be having this conversation.
--Bron-- Like most "Zunbar" couples, my wife and I made a mistake in choosing not to have any children. It's part of our culture to prioritize the individual over the group.
--Aurora-- Maybe some of the blame is actually ours. Among the Miori, far more males are born than females, and most males chase us trying to force a relationship, causing hatred toward the opposite sex.
--Hana-- The only ones to blame are humans! Think of a greedy race. They'll do anything to get what they want, and yet, they're always dissatisfied, wanting more money, more land, more wisdom, more, more, and more!
--Bron--I blame God!I've always wondered how a being infinitely endowed with wisdom and power decided to create a race as foul as humans?! And God already knew it would turn out bad before he even created them. This means God is also foul, and he created them just to kill us.
--Ozir-- You're wrong! You fool!That wasn't the creator's decision. Most humans chose the path of filth; they enjoy sowing misfortune and cultivate rot. It's a big fact that all creation is perfect and had their choice, and even if we had made the wrong one, we could still choose again over the ages, but humans never learn.
--Bron-- I'm not a fool! I'm right.The truth is, no one really knows if this so-called creator God exists. Perhaps some humans are right when they say that gods are merely ideas created by the mind and fueled by belief. In my view, a true God must be self-sufficient. The idea is to not need or want anything from anyone. This kind of God that you talk about so much demands love and servitude from his own creations. For me, it's more like "self-needy.
"Bron" concluded this last comment with a sarcastic smile that turned into an expression of fear; after hearing a monstrous hoarseness, he looked out the window and saw a lot of dark humanoid shadows standing still and staring at him on the other side of the barrier.
--Ozir--Don't worry, this invisible barrier is made of essence. This means nothing can get through it as long as I'm alive.
-- Bron--How does it work?
--Ozir-- After many years of study. I discovered that the only thing that exists outside the mind is "essence." There is no difference between my house, my chair, the trees in the forest, and the arrows that Aurora and Hana shot into your back yesterday. Other than that, everything we see is mass; our brain creates the shape and chooses the color for everything. By using the essence of a living tree, I can create a barrier that none of these things can pass through. I also created the enchantment that extracts the essence of living beings; this essence is absorbed by my body and transferred to the barrier through touch.
-- Bron-- That's impressive! Old man. It's you who should be the god of this filthy world.
-- Hana--Don't say that.
--Bron-- Now! How are we going to kill the king?!