Your Life In an Anthro's World

Speculation Of Future Confrontation

"You have my sincerest apologies, young man. I wanted to believe that Malcolm's faith in you was justified. But I couldn't blindly trust you and hope for the best," Mr. Kaln said as he stood up, "After all, it's as you said. Your ancestors chose the path of war. I had to see if you would do the same and the drive behind your reasoning. So I probed, goaded and taunted you to see if you'd abandon your ideals for the sake of the easier path, and thankfully you didn't. I'd hoped that you were what we so desperately needed. It appears that my hope was justified."

"Needed for what?" You asked cautiously.

"Needed for change," the governor continued, "Look around this room. Everyone in here gets along despite being members of different species. There's even a hybrid among us," The governor stated as he gestured to Sally. "But despite our differences, we all get along. That doesn't happen very often around here, sad to say. Most regions and cities are divided by their species and even subspecies and of course, wealth and status."

"Sounds familiar," You muttered to yourself.

"That said," The governor continued, "Malcolm's city is an exception. He's built a community that thrives off of embracing one another's differences. We hope to take that idea beyond this city. But that can't happen with people like Silvia Deluma influencing large regions along with this board of hers."

"I understand what your saying, but what do I have to do with it?" You asked.

"You are the common denominator for all of us. Not a single one of us would be here without you," The governor stated. "Malcolm's goal has always been for all anthros to understand and support one another regardless of species. I've always supported him, but it's difficult for anthros to be peaceable with one another on their own. Nobody wants to make the first move, and everyone is quick to say they can't because their natural prey, predators or some other species related reason."

Malcolm then interjected, "If we can show people that you can get along with so many different anthros regardless of species, and that they can get along with one another, it would at the very least put us on the road to building that community."

You raised an eyebrow, "So really, this is basically about peace and equality for all." Malcolm and Mr. Kaln exchanged glances briefly before returning their gaze to you, "Or, is there more to it than that?"

"It's more complicated than that," Malcolm replied.

"Silvia answers to a board," Governor Kaln interjected, "This board is a powerful organization that from our understanding has been in power for quite some time. They have a large span of influence over an area that covers a large portion of the continent. This city just happens to be one of the few pockets where that influence is weak."

"But I thought you were the governor?" You replied with confusion.

"I am, that's why I said they have an influence, not control," The governor replied. Some regions are more prone to their reach than others."

"You mean regions like Silvia's..." You muttered.

The governor narrowed his eyes, "As far as I can tell, Silvia has put entered into some kind of arrangement with the board. The best I can make of it is that she answers to them and only them in exchange for unrivaled authority in her region. Even I would be at her mercy if I were to actually set foot in that region, let alone the city."

"Okay, so what does that have to do with anthros understanding one another?" You asked.

"If Silvia and the board are able to learn how to use those weapons, you can bet that it would only be a matter of time before they were able to conquer this city. They'd take over the city, hand it over to Silvia and tell her to do it again," Malcolm explained.