The Fall

23. Opinions

1.30.21

Benji's POV

It's been a week since Connor left, and everything here has been mostly peaceful. There were a few arguments that I had to break up, but other than that, nothing much has happened. I know that the peace won't last long, but I've been living in the mindset that we'll be ready for the next conflict. I opened the door to my bedroom, and the first question that came into mind was what the hell is going on here. A human was sifting through my closet for something while another was watching the door. He must have been checking to see if I was coming or not, but he was looking out the wrong door. 

"Excuse me," I bellowed, trying to scare them. The man in my closet sat up so quickly he hit his head on the shelf, and his friend appeared about to shit himself. They exchanged a look before trying to jump back out of my ajar window, but I froze them in place using my magic. The two spent a few moments trying to get their feet off of the ground while I walked over. However, they had given up by the time I was behind them. Now, they were only trying to avoid eye contact with me. "What do you think you're doing."

"We were just-"

"Just what."

"We were trying to find dirt on you so that people would lose trust in your rule." The one that had admitted to their crimes looked like a deer in the headlights. I know that stories about my kind have never been positive, but I think I've done a pretty good job at keeping my reputation positive. I don't need to be ruthless to leave. I know that there are a lot of people that would call that idea stupid, but I don't care. It's my life, not theirs.

"Who told you to do that? Is there a reason that you want to sabotage us?"

"We've seen the montages on TV; we know what you did to those people in the tanks. The way that you just shorted the electricity, so they passed away."

"That may not have been my best moment, but you have to understand it from my point of view. Those weapons can hurt so many people, and it's my job to take care of them. There would have been more deaths if I hadn't done that."

"It's not for you to decide what lives should be kept or lost."

"I know that it isn't. I just have to do my best to save as many lives as I can."

"You call starting a war saving lives? I hate to say it, but your concept of right and wrong is very twisted."

"It's not that my sense is wrong. You haven't been seeing the full story." I pulled out a photocopy I had kept of the declaration and handed it to them. There wasn't any risk of it getting back to the human authorities before we wanted it to. Since my magic was connected to the pieces of paper, I could make them combust on command. Any trying to escape, and there would be no evidence for them to bring back.

The two looked through the evidence of mistreatment, and I liked seeing the doubt in their government grow. It didn't take long for them to believe what they were reading, and the look on their faces read disgust. "Is this seriously what happened? Is this document true?"

"Yes, that's our account of what the past 120 years have been like. I know that it will serve as a shock to those who haven't thought much about it."

"I can't believe we didn't notice."

"No one did. Your government is good at concealing the truth."

"This is so wrong. I mean, I understand not wanting anyone to be organizing war. However, what person in their right mind incarcerates a man just for using magic."

"No one understands what they're thinking."

"It's just so wrong..."

"That's why we're fighting against it."

"I can't believe we tried to fight against you... That was so bad of us."

"Don't feel bad; you had no way to know."

"How can we help..?"

"I want you to spread the word of what you've seen today to others in your army. I really just need to get the message out to people like you. I don't have enough influence, though, and they would probably just think I was lying."

"We can do that. I want everyone else to know just how bad it really is for you guys."

"Thank you." The two grinned before leaving, and I sat on top of my desk again. Well, it wasn't really my desk. It really belonged to someone named Linzey Harule, but I was making it my own. She probably wouldn't get it back any time soon.

A knock came on my door, and I looked over at the wood quickly. I can't smell the person on the other side yet, but I was dumb enough to call out, "Come in."

The hinges creaked when it was open, and the person I saw on the other side made my stomach do flips. "What are you doing here," I snapped, but the person entered anyways. The man before my eyes was none other than my worse rival, Oliver Pierce. However, his eyes were red with previously shed tears, and he looked like an absolute wreck. "Are you alright?"

"I wanted to apologize for the way that I treated you... By showing an outrage in public about your leadership, I made myself look like a toddler. I'm sorry."

"This is unexpected; why have you come here now? It's been an entire week since the incident, and honestly, I don't believe you. Someone else has probably told you to do this."

"I assure you that this is what I wanted to do. I just feel like I've done you a wrong, and I want the chance to fix it."

"Now, tell me what this is really about."

"Dev and I aren't together anymore, and I'm really lonely. I just want someone to think that I'm a good person."

"You're serious? You're here because you're so lonely you came to me. You don't even like me."

"I really just need someone..." His eyes were still dull compared to the last time I had seen them, and I knew that he really was struggling. He doesn't get that look for anything. 

"Can't you just go to Connor? He is your son, after all."

"He's busy comforting his Papa. I knew that Dev was his favorite parent."

"I'm sure that it isn't like that. Have you thought about the way that you've treated him for years?"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"He's your son, and you have hardly talked to him since he became the wolf council member. You're jealous of his power, and you make it pretty obvious. On top of that, you've been acting like a prick for the past two weeks. We don't like you very much."

"I want to be better... Please let me prove myself."

"Fine, but you have to actually try. Start with..."