Mileani let out a low sigh, trying to compose herself against the accusations and the repeated calls for peace. She was not a warmonger, and she did not like the idea of this conflict, but... She slammed her fist down on the table, hard enough to leave a crack in it. "They tortured my son!"
She let the shout hang over the room for a moment as she slowly rose to her feet, then continued, a little more quietly. "My son, Lizair, was attacked by a horde of demons while visiting some of our men on the border guard. They overwhelmed him and dragged him deep into demon territory, where he was tortured for over two hundred days." She pulled out a scroll which outlined a list of the horrible and creative injuries he had suffered at the hands of the succubi. "He was handed off to succubi. I assume I don't need to tell you what they did to him, but even though he has been returned to us and our healers for over a month, his injuries have not fully healed. He is crippled, walking with a cane and suffering from frequent pains." She tossed the scroll onto the table. "The demons weren't doing this to just anyone. They picked him on purpose. They had a poison that stripped him of his power and even dampened his connection to Haliea herself. This was planned and prepared for."
"That is why they are going after my kingdom, Eros. Because my son often joined the men on the border to help keep them safe, and with his injury my kingdom is vulnerable. None of the other kingdoms are in this poor of a condition, and my men on the border are weaker with his absence, both in strength and morale." Mileani sighed and tried to let herself calm. "I want this war to end. But I cannot, I will not let them get away with what they did. My son was tortured and raped, only escaping because his body eventually grew resistant to the poisons. The demons have used his absence to raid my kingdom and kill my soldiers. You all are safe right now, protected from attack and harm because my men are dying to keep the demons out. So I will not stand idly by and listen to you talk of peace while the crimes they commit continue."
She gestured to the scroll. "That is what they did to the representative of our goddess. That is what they will do again if given the chance. They are emboldened now, both with the maiming of our Oracle and what my son discovered during his escape. Vaerath's Oracle has been found. She was at the succubi's den." She cast her gaze around the room, daring the other lords to meet her eyes. "So, Eros, I want you to tell me why I should negotiate for peace when it is clear the demons care not for it. Pushing for peace now is not going to discourage their actions. If they can come into MY lands, kidnap MY son, and torture him, with our only response being to beg them to stop the war, what does that say?"
She sat down slowly. "My people won't stand for it. I... won't stand for it. If you want to roll over and let the demons do what they want, then your kingdoms can burn for it. But I will not let my people suffer like my son did."
Locke watched his mother's speech silently, surprise written on his face. After a moment, he swallowed and spoke. "If the demons think that the gods favor their fight, they will never back down. My brother being crippled, combined with Vaerath's Oracle returning, will be read as the will of the gods. Some of the demons I've fought in recent weeks have been zealots, fanatical in their belief that the gods desire their victory. They will not want peace."
She let the shout hang over the room for a moment as she slowly rose to her feet, then continued, a little more quietly. "My son, Lizair, was attacked by a horde of demons while visiting some of our men on the border guard. They overwhelmed him and dragged him deep into demon territory, where he was tortured for over two hundred days." She pulled out a scroll which outlined a list of the horrible and creative injuries he had suffered at the hands of the succubi. "He was handed off to succubi. I assume I don't need to tell you what they did to him, but even though he has been returned to us and our healers for over a month, his injuries have not fully healed. He is crippled, walking with a cane and suffering from frequent pains." She tossed the scroll onto the table. "The demons weren't doing this to just anyone. They picked him on purpose. They had a poison that stripped him of his power and even dampened his connection to Haliea herself. This was planned and prepared for."
"That is why they are going after my kingdom, Eros. Because my son often joined the men on the border to help keep them safe, and with his injury my kingdom is vulnerable. None of the other kingdoms are in this poor of a condition, and my men on the border are weaker with his absence, both in strength and morale." Mileani sighed and tried to let herself calm. "I want this war to end. But I cannot, I will not let them get away with what they did. My son was tortured and raped, only escaping because his body eventually grew resistant to the poisons. The demons have used his absence to raid my kingdom and kill my soldiers. You all are safe right now, protected from attack and harm because my men are dying to keep the demons out. So I will not stand idly by and listen to you talk of peace while the crimes they commit continue."
She gestured to the scroll. "That is what they did to the representative of our goddess. That is what they will do again if given the chance. They are emboldened now, both with the maiming of our Oracle and what my son discovered during his escape. Vaerath's Oracle has been found. She was at the succubi's den." She cast her gaze around the room, daring the other lords to meet her eyes. "So, Eros, I want you to tell me why I should negotiate for peace when it is clear the demons care not for it. Pushing for peace now is not going to discourage their actions. If they can come into MY lands, kidnap MY son, and torture him, with our only response being to beg them to stop the war, what does that say?"
She sat down slowly. "My people won't stand for it. I... won't stand for it. If you want to roll over and let the demons do what they want, then your kingdoms can burn for it. But I will not let my people suffer like my son did."
Locke watched his mother's speech silently, surprise written on his face. After a moment, he swallowed and spoke. "If the demons think that the gods favor their fight, they will never back down. My brother being crippled, combined with Vaerath's Oracle returning, will be read as the will of the gods. Some of the demons I've fought in recent weeks have been zealots, fanatical in their belief that the gods desire their victory. They will not want peace."
