16 What Is Evil?

Talian swallowed the lump in his throat. A thin film of sweat broke out on his forehead as his eyes dodged back and forth in his skull. Destorianaxe watched the elf as he started pacing and mumbling under his breath. If one were to crack his skull open to examine his brain at this time there'd likely be half a dozen Taluan's currently brawling in the wrecked remains of his mind. Logic was currently wrestling with Ambition, the two were being edged on by Honesty and Joy, while Worry and Fear were cowering in a corner. Devotion and Piety were beseeching Estrelie to guide their answer. While Loyalty and Honor frowned at the lot.

His mind was truly split in twain since he had truly glimpsed the innocence in Destorianaxe's eyes. She truly knew nothing of her kind! This was a gold mine for his people and for himself, an impressionable young black dragon? He'd be a fool not to teach her things that would tie her to himself and his people. Yet those aspects of his personality that upheld promises and duty objected, they should remain neutral teachers, let Destorianaxe grow up to be who she was meant to be without tainting her with elven politics, this was a favor for a god after all!

Yet how could he do this? With one wrong explanation would not her true nature shine through? Black dragons were hardly elven friends. Would not awakening the true black dragon inside her only result in his death and a potential greater threat fir his family, friends and nation? Better he shoot this question down! Avoid it! Leave it for fate to have the dragon discover on her own, he didn't agree to teach her concepts that could lead to his early demise!

But he was a teacher! Wasn't this his purpose and exactly why DG had sought his assistance? She was untouched clay, thirsting to be molded under his expert hands! Was this not a clear call to his abilities, to fill this young dragons head with all the knowledge she sought so she could be her own self?! Especially with lessons like these. Morality and understanding she has a choice in how she acted amongst people outside of thus cave could well lead to the first dragon to not be a huge nation level disaster! He had a duty to teach her!

Destorianaxe tilted her head watching the elf practically tearing his hair out. What was evil that so drove her teacher to this obvious loss of his mind, was it truly something he could not explain to her? Or was it so taboo to speak of she had crossed some unknown elven restriction and he was fretting himself to death over her thoughtlessness? Watching Talian stride back and forth confused her and she looked over to the side ignoring the elf in his own little world. "Stares at Skies Vast, come to me can you?"

The kobold wiped some griffin blood from her hands before running over, "Yes Mistress, how can this one serve?"

Destorianaxe twisted her head looking down on the small kobold, "Explain, what is evil?"

Stares at Skies Vast blinked slowly, for a moment she thought about her reply than answered, "Evil is anything that Mistress dislikes is it not? When Mistress cast down decree over blood sacrifice of old keepers she made that as evil. Thus tribe no longer do such to obey goddess."

"That's wrong!" Talian shouted snapping out of his internal meltdown staring at Stares at Skies Vast. The short kobold cringed but then pushed forward proudly, "What wrong? Goddess is Goddess! Goddess is beginning and end for tribe! What goddess says is wrong is evil to be expelled!"

The elf sighed and shook his head, "That is perspective evil! Completely circumstantial! By that reasoning are you, an outcast of the tribe, not then considered said evil?!"

Stares at Skies Vast cringed glancing warily from Talian to Destorianaxe before bursting into tears and collapsing before the dragon, "Stares at Skies Vast IS evil, this one begs great Goddess punish this wicked wicked outcast whaaaaaaa!"

Destorianaxe sighed rolling her eyes and looking at Talian, "Now look what you did, you made her cry." The dragon winced as she tried to rise off her bed to comfort the kobold who was bawling on the floor, giving her teacher the stink eye at having to fix his screw up.

The elf in question but his lip, he hadn't intended to make Stares at Skies Vast a scapegoat but at the same time he couldn't let her constantly fill Destorianaxe's head with that tripe! What if the dragon started believing it?! Sighing he looked to Destorianaxe who was whispering assurances to the kobold, urging the wailing servant off the stone floor and pushing her back to work to get her self imposed guilt forgotten under dutiful behavior.

Settling back on the slab with a groan of pain, Destorianaxe laid flat and looked at her teacher with a rather dead pan look, "Now that she's not coating my lair's floor in tears and mucus could you answer the question? Or do you need some more private idiot time?"

Talian shook his head and sighed, "No I'm good, sorry about that, such a query was unexpected. It's not easy to answer. As you could surmised from her claims, evil is considered what is bad or wrong in society. The problem i had with her explanation us her belief was that YOU decide what is evil... in part."

Destorianaxe listened quietly her gaze rather skeptical, "If I do not decide what is evil who does?"

Talian spoke softly, "Morality is a three teired process Destorianaxe. First off is divine. The gods and goddesses above decree, ultimately, what is good and evil since by their very nature they embody those concepts. Below that is societal morals, determined by laws and rules that guide us individuals to be productive members of our nations. Lastly are individual morals. We each decide for our selves versus our fellow beings what is right and wrong, good or evil, within our societies laws or in dire situations, to rebel again the laws and rules that exist to harm many to benefit few."

Destorianaxe listened quietly cooking her head slightly, "Explain."

Talian thought a moment before he spoke, "Alright let's use her example. As their goddess you embody all they feel is good, on your word literally anything could become what her tribe considers evil. The tribe has rules, from what she has spoken of, females of the tribe are restricted to being cooks and housewives, fir her to try and become a hunter was considered evil by the tribe. To her a woman being able to hunt is not evil, she finds that law evil as it limits the usefulness of one side of the tribe. However it is divine and society that determines good or evil so while she was not wrong to break away, society, as you know, would have condemned her and punished her fir a crime."

Talian took a breath before he continued, "Morality is also cross species. Many societies hold other races up against their own laws to determine if another kingdom or tribe is good or evil. For example, many human tribes allow the taking of slaves, where as elven society considers this practice barbaric and evil, thus many elves consider humans evil as a race."

"Judging the many by a common example is somewhat wrong but again depends on the understanding of the races. Not all human kingdoms endorse slavery. On the opposite spectrum, all orc tribes are evil. They are a race dedicated to barbarism and murder, there has never been a redeeming factor of any orcs thus just about every society considers members of that race evil."

Destorianaxe felt her mind spinning. Evil seemed such a conditional thing. Divine decree? Society law? Personal choice? Racial inclination? One simple question, by her thoughts anyways, had led to a torrent of new questions. Remaining silent she struggled to keep up with Talian as he finally came back to what had initially subjected him into becoming a wandering idiot.

"Like orcs, many consider chromatic dragons evil, this is due to their actions against multiple established kingdoms. Chromatics tend to destroy rather than aid, they prefer gathering wealth, eating anything they want and generally pushing around local kingdoms too weak to oppose them. On the divine level, The Dragon God is a neutral entity, his favoritism towards dragons has lead many humanoid races to see him as evil but there are some on the main continent who are human and worship him. The key thing to determine if a race is evil is wether the general rule or the specific few are the telling signs. In the case of chromatic dragons, the majority are despotic, cruel, vicious and murderous. Select few, like yourself as a prime example, would have anything to do with an elf like myself. In most cases I would just be another meal regardless of my knowledge."

Talian sighed looking into Destorianaxe's eyes, "Yet I cannot say for certain if this is due to your age, upbringing or some unique situation, time will ultimately tell if one is good or evil, for even the most devout holy man has fallen to corruption when the worries of his passing existence is called to the fore. Many mortal people will sell everything, even their own goodly nature for even a single month of longer life. My own people are no exception, most would say we elves are the paragons of virtue. We have our own dark secrets. Corrupt nobles and priests swim amongst our tranquil waters as easily as they do along the lesser races. No society touts these aspects though, they are swept beneath the rug, only revealed when the obvious let their evil show and become a scapegoat for the rest to expell."

Destorianaxe laid her head upon the slab in silence, she could well see her family in the light Talian had painted. Still it was hard to judge about what was evil when he had yet to speak of its opposite, good. Perhaps what was considered good was the falsehood... but she was hard pressed to say at this point. For her personally she did not consider anything she had done evil. Most of her choices thus far had been necessitated by survival. While she held regrets about her clutchmates she would be hard pressed to claim she would rather have had one of them escape in her place, being a dragon with doubts was a far better situation than some other's offal in that dark hole.

As for Stares at Skies Vast's tribe, she had some concerns over the old keeper since DG had reprimanded her for the old kobold's death. Yet that was not done to be malicious. She was hungry and she felt it had been a proper conclusion to its existence. Then there was her kobold companion herself, perhaps stealing her away had been evil but had she gone back it was not a debate what the kobold's end would have been. Nor would she have had her current eggs either. Was this not a good thing for the kobold? Even if her 'mate' was that frustrating DG...

No, with her past choices considered, she determined she was not evil by her own account. Since there was no society and no divine to deny this claim, she rested easier knowing that if she was not evil, then she must assuredly be good! Chuckling to herself despite Talian's questioning gaze she settled in, these lessons on morality appeared quite long winded and she half dozed as the elf started to go into further detail, such being immaterial now that her own evaluation had already been passed, thus her interest waned...