“Good.”
“Alanna…” I sigh.
Her grey eyes narrow on mine, “Woodlands are certainly known for enjoying their own company, Alexis,” she replies coolly, “theirowncompany.”
“I’ve gathered that,” I reply earnestly, thinking of Troy’s man strapped against the chair, “but why? There has to be a reason, no?”
“Oh there is,” she scoffs, “they think humans are an afront and perversion to the natural magic that is supposed to live in all of the Old World. They treat them as second-class beings and view them simply as a means to an end. To them, humans are a waist of space, but that doesn’t stop them from tormenting those human for the sheer reason that they can.”
“But we’ve thrived without magic,” I shake my head, angered that anyone could be so cruel as to actually believe that, “welivewith every moment that is given to us. How can they have such thoughts when we’ve prevailed and contributed to the Old World? It belongs to us just as much as it does them.”
“Your kind has thrived,” she nods with a small smile, “but I truly don’t think they care. In Woodlands, humans amount to nothing more than their service to the Discerni. They’re treated as inferior beings.”
“There’s no way King Zander would ever allow something like that to take place…”
“It is the Discerni way of Woodlands. Their tradition. A sentiment that has been held since the years following the Great Rift when the first humans began appearing from the Kingdom of Aireal. The Discerni saw the lack of summoning and how easily the humans could be overcome and manipulated, and they exacted their strength to force them into servitude. Half of the cities in Woodlands were built on the backs of humans. They’ve always been used for cheap labor.”
I sit back on the stool in complete disgust, unable to comprehend how this sentiment is allowed in Disce.
“Why don’t the humans fight back? Why don’t they petition for a better life?”
Alanna gives me an apologetic look, “because they’re degraded every day into believing that the lives they have are the only ones they’ll ever know. It’s engrained into their minds, Alexis. From the moment they are born, humans are taught to revere the Discerni as their superiors.”
There’s no way. There’s no way something like this could ever be allowed.
“But Zander is known for his good relations with humans,” I frown, “and I’ve never seen anything from him except kindness and grace when it comes to us. I can’t believe that he’d let something like that exist.”
“The King can only do so much,” Alanna replies softly, “unless he wants a war between his Courts, he has to let the tradition continue.”
“Then war should be his choice.”
Alanna eyes me quietly, “if he chooses that path, then he will lose thousands of human lives in the process. Believe me when I tell you that the Discerni are not beneath sacrificing their labor.”
“I find it hard to believe that the humans in Woodlands would go along with that.”
“Thehumansknow nothing else outside of the life that is afforded to them,” she sighs, “if the Discerni in their city tell them to shackle their hands and feet to form a barrier between them and a warring force, they’ll do as they’re told and ask how tight they want the chains to be.”
“Do they know nothing of what goes on in Knowledge and Warrior?” I scoff, “that they can just walk across the border and into a better life?”
“They don’t…”
“But you knew,” I give her a hard look, “you got out.”
“Thanks to Desmond,” she nods, “and my father falling in love with a human woman. Had he not, I suspect we would still be there.”
“Fuck me,” I slump in my seat.
“Fuck traditions,” Alanna scowls, “you want Zander to choose war? Just know that the Woodlands Discerni are prepared to defend their way of life without hesitation.”
“Is Cal safe to take the travel?” I grimace over the tub, “I don’t want to put him in danger.”
“He’s fine. Our group will be fine. We’ll all be greeted as a guest of the King and his sons. I suspect the Discerni will do their best to avoid showing you what actually goes on behind closed doors.”
“They hide their nature?” I asked confused, “I got the impression this was all done out in the open.”
Alanna shakes her head, “it’s a well-hidden secret, especially when it comes to travelers not of Woodlands. But you’ll see, Alexis. Trust that the Prince and his brother will not let you travel the Court without witnessing its true nature.”
I scowl again, “has anything been done? Aside from relocating those who wish to leave? How are we in Knowledge so ignorant to what’s happening?”
