Chapter 165

The familiar feeling of vibrating, nearly too-hot sands surrounding me took the edge from my frustration even before I consciously realized I'd been trying to hold onto my resentment. With a long sigh, I let the rest of my unreasonable rage fade, and not for the first time, I was grateful that here, in the evolutionary state, I was free from the constant influence of the keelish or khatif body. There wasn't any real reason for me to have been so enraged by the Administrator's statement that I wasn't as highly evolved as others, and I recognized that came from the khatif in me, that pride inherent in my race.

[There is no issue with pride, little fang. Even arrogance can often be forgiven.] The Administrator paused before continuing, [Do you feel there is nothing for you to take pride in?]

I could feel the slight edge to the question, the underlying intent, the barest hint of an accusation. No, there were many things for me to take pride in, but when it borders on arrogance, it can drive an otherwise intelligent creature to foolishness.

[True enough, I suppose.] The edge in the Administrator's voice drained, and she resumed speaking in her flighty way, the hint of severity gone as if it had been a mere product of my imagination. [I must say, though. The difference between you in here and out there is interesting. Perhaps I can take the opportunity to study you more in depth some other time.]

Maybe so. I deliberately tried to keep any emotion out of my voice as the Administrator's thoughts carried on, her tone carrying past her somewhat disturbing declaration from before without any hesitation.

[Since this is merely a continuation of a question that you posed to me before your evolution, and I could have answered you then, this will not count in any way towards your singular question from this evolution. Now, there are multiple "tiers" of being in this world, and the very system by which they function is multifaceted and immensely complex, something that only the System itself truly understands. I will try to explain this to you, in the hopes that you can… extrapolate beyond what I am saying.] It was simple to understand that the Administrator was somewhat bound in what she could say to me, though what her full intentions were and what she couldn't say were unclear. I sat myself up and dismissed the sandbath, focusing the entirety of my mind on her.

[At the bottom tiers are incredibly small creatures such as ants and other bugs, while at the very top are deities and Administrators. Between the two are the weakest of squirrels and other vermin of their same size, and above them, slightly larger herbivores, then predators of that same size, larger herbivores, and finally larger sized predators such as wolfstags. The keelish fall somewhere within these bounds, though typically one or two tiers below the wolfstags. Additionally, there are other predators much larger than them, such as Nanuks, and other creatures still even larger than the Nanuk, such as leviathans and ufudoluk, but we shall disregard them at this time for simplicity's sake.

[Above the "large" predators are the weakest of the intelligent races, the humans and dwarves, though specifically those born among the Godless.] The Administrator sighed and paused for a long moment. [This is already more complicated than I wished for my explanation to become, but a khatif would fall near the bottom of the weakest of the intelligent races. Above them are the beastkin, Misti Hawar included, Moonchildren and Sunkindred, Indlovu, and the humans of the Veratocracy. Above them all would be the Keel.]

Though I lacked any sort of a body, I felt the grin crack my face at her words. I just needed to continue on my plan to lead the swarm in escaping these lands and get to Nievtra, where I would Speak the Words of Power of Nievtala.

[That… isn't at all what you were told. But I'll refocus on the subject at hand. You know now,] her words were deliberate and strongly inflected, and I continued listening to her lecture, [that reaching adulthood as a creature is not nearly the end of their journey, not for a keelish, and not for a human.] She paused, and though I couldn't see any features of the disembodied voice that made the Administrator, I felt as if I could see her face looking at mine expectantly. After just a moment's thought, I realized that I did know. 

A True Speaker.

[Yes, for the humans within the structure of the Veratocracy, they can progress from a mere human to a True Speaker, to a High Speaker. And what of a High Speaker that has achieved that level in every discipline of Speaking? Can you imagine the power that they could command and Call with that level of individual prowess?]

Though I'd never heard of any individual ever even beginning to approach that level of individual strength, I could begin to understand how… divine they would be.

[Yes, a creature of that level is approaching divinity, and that approach of the divine is not limited to Speakers, humans, or even intelligent races. Regardless, after that, the tiers are much less apparent the closer one approaches the gods.] The Administrator sighed again, and asked, [Do you now better understand my apparent disrespect regarding your individual strength?]

A rueful smile was all I could muster, somewhat too embarrassed to address her directly. The Administrator gracefully carried past my foolishness, and to my surprise asked me a different question: [What do you think of being a keelish?]

I took a moment to consider the question. I'd mostly fully embraced the life of a keelish, and I had laid out goals to hopefully give myself sufficient power to protect myself and those I cared for, but what did I think of my new life, in general terms?

It was a more brutal life than I'd ever have imagined as a human, without the politicking or maneuvering that human life had required. Instead, violence and strength of fist could serve as the determining factor for the vast vast majority of problems, conflicts, and questions. Though I had, as a human and future chief, been schooled in working alongside others to resolve issues without the spilling of blood and ending of lives, I found I relished the absolute, if brutal nature of keelish problem-solving. The strongest was right to rule, and they deserved obedience from the weak. If the weak didn't obey, they were swiftly punished or otherwise dealt with.

I could recognize that I valued this system more because it benefitted me… but why wouldn't I enjoy the benefits of my position?

The Administrator's laughter filled the area as I came to my conclusion, her voice carrying out clearly and beautifully. [Well thought out! To the victors go the spoils! May the weak grow strong enough to find victory, but if they don't, that is their own problem!] Again, the Administrator's mercurial mood showed itself. [Now, ask your question. We don't have much time.]

Her statement of our lack of time brought the question immediately to the forefront of my mind. How much time do we have before we need to begin our escape from Veratocracy controlled lands?

[The wisest time to plant a seed is years ago. The second wisest opportunity is now.] Her voice faded from the evolutionary space as my mind faded to the dreamless unconsciousness of evolution.