“This doesn’t make sense.” Quylla said. “If Guardians really are this powerful, why do they let so many bad things happen? Like the slave collar system that plagued the Gorgon Empire for decades or Balkor’s annual culling. How can they just sit there without doing anything?”
“That’s a very common misconception. No matter their race, whenever people learn about Guardians, they consider them some kind of benevolent god, tasked with taking care of them. Guardians are not gods and couldn’t care less about single individuals.
“They are forces of nature, incarnations of Mogar’s will and agenda, whatever that is. Would you call a tornado cruel? Or the rain heartless because after irrigating the fields it makes rivers flood? Or the summer heat unfair? No, and the same applies to Guardians.” Faluel said.
“What about the slave collars? Thousands lived and died as cattle for decades, yet Leegaain could have put an end to it with a snap of his fingers, just like Tyris could have killed Balkor!” Phloria said.
“To what end, exactly? You are talking in hindsight. Back then, people believed otherwise.” Faluel’s spoke with a calm and sweet voice, like a mother explaining to her children why they shouldn’t touch embers.
At a wave of her hand, pages of ancient chronicles of the Gorgon Empire appeared on each desk for them to read. According to history books, the slave collar period was considered by those who lived it as a golden age.
Everyone would live longer and prosper thanks to mages providing the people of the Gorgon Empire, not only the nobles, with everything they might need. Dimensional Magic allowed anyone to travel freely without Gates, weather magic made every harvest bountiful, and healing magic would keep everyone healthy.
In those books, the enslaved mages were praised for their sacrifice and the action of putting a collar at their necks was justified by the greater good. Unlike nobles, free mages were hard to kill and their talent was considered an unfair advantage by those incapables of using magic.
One of them could kill hundreds of innocents, so the people from the Gorgon Empire considered it right to sacrifice the freedom of the few for the needs of the many.
“This is outrageous bullshit!” Lith said.
“That’s what history taught us.” Faluel said.
“Today, Leegaain is considered a heartless monster for abandoning his people, but thank to that, mages learned how to fend for themselves, nobility has been eradicated in the Empire which is now the most magically advanced country.
“What if he intervened back then? The people that wrote the books you are reading would have called him a heartless monster and a tyrant for taking away their free will.
“They would’ve also demanded from him to provide them with an alternative means to prosper since, in their eyes, he was standing in the path of their progress. Moreover, the mages would have become conceited and feel entitled to his protection.
“The same can be said for Balkor. He indeed killed many, but he was born out of a corrupt system that created countless victims. Lith didn’t become one of them only thanks to Balkor setting an example.
“Now the academy system is being reformed, mages are allowed to reach nobility based on their merits without their humble origins being used as an excuse to undermine their achievements.
“Had Tyris killed him, people like Quylla and Lith would have had a hard time to enrol in an academy, let alone graduate. They would have become the new Balkors, if not worse.”
Lith and Quylla remembered all too well the daily hazing and badmouthing they had suffered during their academy years. And that was with Linjos doing his best to protect them and with the law by their side.
Lith thought back at Nana and at how her life had been destroyed by envious nobles despite her great talent.
“What about the Blood Desert?” Nalrond asked.
“It’s the Gorgon Empire’s polar opposite. Salaark reigns supreme, her word is the law, her people thrive and the country is at peace ever since she took its reigns for herself. Yet she is considered a heartless monster as well.” Faluel chuckled.
“What? Why? Didn’t you just say that people thrive?” Friya was flabbergasted.
“Yes, but no opinion matters except her own. In the Desert, either you submit or die. All the tribes that she subjugated to unify the desert, all those who would like to try different paths to that she chose, hate her guts.
“As you can see, no matter what you do, you will be hated.” Faluel said.
“Where does that leaves our Kingdom?” Phloria asked.
“Right in the middle. Tyris created the Griffon Kingdom, showing to all other people on the Garlen continent what could be achieved by working together under a just ruler. The Gorgon Empire and Blood Desert just followed her lead.”
“You said that each Guardian has a role and that the Garlen continent has three of them. What do they do, exactly?” Quylla asked.
“Leegaain, Tyris, and Salaark are among the first six Guardians, who were once mistaken for gods. Even before they became Guardians, Leegaain dedicated his life to amassing knowledge, Tyris to nurture talent, and Salaark to put into practice all magical discoveries.
“They are respectively considered the wisest, the kindest, and the strongest Guardian.” Faluel said.
“The kindest? Are you saying that we are stuck with the most useless Guardian?” Lith said with a sneer.
“Quite the contrary.” Faluel shook her head. “Where do you think the knowledge Leegaain hoards and Salaark uses come from? It’s only because of Tyris that the Griffon Kingdom is at peace ever since its foundation.”
“She created the Academies, giving everyone the right to learn magic. It was Tyris who taught Lochra Silverwing magic just like Leegaain did with the Magic Empress, Milea Genys, yet the two couldn’t be more different.
“While Milea is just an excellent leader for her people and the champion of the Gorgon Empire, Magus Silverwing invented all the specializations as you know them and she shared them with the entirety of Mogar.
“The Empire, the Desert, even the Jiera continent, they all learned tier four and five magic from her, yet her knowledge came from Tyris. Our Guardian helped Silverwing to spread her teachings and everyone is better for it.
“Fake mages became capable of harnessing the power that before only Awakened had, and even though the Council will never admit it, Silverwing’s teachings helped us to develop as well.
“Before, you had to Awaken someone of your bloodline, hoping they wouldn’t get drunk with power and try to kill you the moment they became powerful enough or age made you weak.
“Now, instead, we can pick our heirs even among fake mages after judging what they do with their talents. Emperor Beasts and Fae who fail to be Awakened from their parents and to inherit their legacies disguise themselves as humans to enroll in the six great academies.
“It’s the only way they have to learn powerful magic. On top of that, we learned a lot from fake mages and they pushed us to improve instead of becoming complacent.” Faluel said.
“Would it surprise you to know that when Tyris came to spectate your attempt to save Protector’s life Scarlett the Scorpicore bowed to her, whereas Scarlett had no qualms to fight Salaark to fulfill her quest for revenge against Balkor?
“Why do you think all other gods have been forgotten, yet all races keep invoking Tyris’s name when they pray to the Great Mother?”
