Chapter 117: | 117 | Who do you ask for freedom?
In the Deerfolk Tribe within the archipelago colony, silence shrouded the land while the beastfolk gathered around in a single spot. Within its center was a human girl, a brave one in the hearts of the deerfolk.
Moments ago, this young girl fought against their oppressors giving them a tinge of hope inside their hearts. They now sought for liberation, their freedom.
"What have you done, Hermona?! You have doomed us all!" One of the elders cried out in despair while the others followed suite. The fact that they had just killed a colonial envoy meant that their tribe would sooner or later disappear from the face of the earth.
"I apologize if what I had done had wrong you, but I can't simply watch everything unfold." Hermona responded to the elders and continued. "As ironic as it is, I desire for freedom and I'm sure everyone of you wishes for the same."
She looked at the surrounding beastfolk who didn't utter replies. But with their determined gaze, she understood that they desired the same as her.
"Those from the colony are oppressing us from our rights of this world. We are free, not some animals to be shackled somewhere for their use." Hermona uttered with confidence.
"Everyone in this world is free. Those that oppress their freedom are tyrants and oppressors. So, let me ask you one question. What do we do with oppressors and tyrants?" She questioned the beastfolks around her.
None of them replied until Hermona asked again.
"What do we do against oppression and its tyrants?" Her words resounded throughout the silence, causing some beastfolks to reply.
"Fight!"
"Resist!'
"Liberate!"
"That's right! We mustn't stand still and let them reap us for their benefits. In this world, we are free and we must fight for our freedom. Without it, we are nothing more but helpless creatures." Hermona's words inspired the young deerfolks.
It was akin to the covenants of the prophet slowly engraving itself to their entire being.
The elders noticed the changing atmosphere of the tribe and understood that the greater opinion of the deerfolks were morphing. Even though they were afraid of the future, they also felt hope for the first time.
"But to fight against our oppressors, we must have one thing in our grasps. And that is power! With enough power, they would be willing to listen to us. If they don't, we will be making sure that they listen." As the words of Hermona echoed, the deerfolks became riled up.
"We must fight!"
"For our freedom!"
"Take them down!"
Seeing the deerfolks regained their lost confidence, Hermona beamed a smile and signaled them to quiet down. The young deerfolks followed as they already saw Hermona as their de facto leader.
"At the moment, we don't have power, so we need to be careful. The first thing we need to do is take down their ships." She presented a strategy for them to use. It was none other than raiding nearby ships for supplies and possibly armaments.
"Luckily for us, most Magus and wyvern riders have been called to the Colonial Dominion, which means that we have a chance." They were also lucky about the changing sociopolitical landscape of the sea region of Terra.
"After raiding their ships, we will try liberating other tribes from their tyranny. With more numbers, our raiding operations would grow larger." Hermona didn't want to directly confront the colony. After all, no matter how large their numbers were.
They were no match against the local colonial navy.
"Have you thought about allying with the heretics of humanity?" One of the young deerfolks raised their hands and suggested an idea. Hermona raised an eyebrow as this was the first she had ever heard of heretics.
"Please explain, I haven't heard of any heretics in my experience." She wanted the young deerfolk to expunge more information about the so-called heretics.
"While the colonial guards were talking with one another as they dragged the wooden crates, I heard them talking about heretics making the Colonial Dominion nervous."
"According to them, the heretics have the Dragon of the Revolting Tide in their side. Not only that, they also have powerful warships that even the war masters are having a difficult time fighting against."
As the deerfolk explained, many beastfolks became amaze of the heretics. They didn't think that there would be others like them fighting against the oppressors.
On the other hand, Hermona finally realized what the young deerfolk meant after making a connection inside her mind. It was none other than the ones that killed the entirety of her squadron.
To be honest, she didn't know what to feel about them, but she remembered them rescuing slaves from a merchant ship. So, perhaps, them being allies might not be out of the possibility.
'Wait, don't they have Crassus's runic communicator? Perhaps, I can connect mine to it and talk with them.' Hermona thought to herself even though it wasn't a clear idea.
She wasn't confident that they would side with the deerfolk tribe, but it was something they could try. She wasn't against it, and maybe it could make their chances against the colony greater.
"Thank you for telling me about these heretics. I'll try talking to them, proposing a possible alliance." She expressed to the young deerfolks who merely nodded their heads in understanding.
"I'll go for now. Prepare yourselves, we'll start raiding our first ship in the following hours." Hermona ordered and headed back to her tribal home. After returning to a small wooden house, she opened a small crate and took the remaining things that signified her identity as a wyvern rider.
Along with them was the runic communicator. Even though she could use it to call for help, she never bothered to as her life with the deerfolk tribe was already satisfying enough for her.
Hermona held the runic communicator in her pale fingers and took a deep breath. She hoped that she wasn't making a mistake by calling them.
She looked at the runic communicator with an intense gaze and finally called for Crassus's frequency. And it didn't take long before someone from the other side picked it up.
"It's been a while since someone called from this runic communicator. How about you introduce yourself?" A calm voice escaped the confines of the communicator, causing the wyvern rider to feel a bit anxious.
These were the people that immediately massacred her squadron without a tinge of mercy, so she was a bit fearful of them. After all, she barely survived from their attack. On the other hand, her colleagues became burnt pieces of flesh in mere moments.
"I am Hermona, from a colony situated in an archipelago." She finally responded to the voice from the other side.
"Okay, Hermona. Judging from the way you speak, you seem like a human. Am I wrong?" The calm yet inquisitive voice echoed throughout her house.
"Yes, I am a human." Out of instinct, Hermona answered honestly as though she was speaking with her superiors.
"Hmm... A human. Why have you called me? Are you from the Colonial Dominion?" The voice questioned her identity and the faction she was part of. Hermona took another breath and replied. "I was from the Colonial Dominion.
I am now part of the Deerfolk Tribe in the archipelago colony."
"Deerfolk Tribe? A human being part with a tribe of beastfolks? Interesting... This is the first I have ever heard of it. Please continue, Hermona. Why have you called for Crassus's runic communicator?" It seemed utterly surprised by what she had replied.
"I called because I knew that you would be the one receiving it. I have led the deerfolks to a rebellion against the colony. It barely has any powerful defenders as various Magus and wyvern riders have been called upon the Colonial Dominion."
"I want to propose an alliance between us to liberate more tribes in the archipelago colony." Hermona calmly explained to the voice from the other side.
"I see... So, you are leading a rebellion. And in the archipelago colony? It looks like you are quite lucky. But before we accept your proposal for an alliance, we would like to confirm your words. Are you against it?" The voice inquired, to which Hermona shook her head and uttered.
"No, you can confirm my words however you want."
"Alright, Hermona. I'll send a Special Response Unit to your location. Could you ping it to me through the runic communicator?" Hermona followed the voice and pinged their location to the other side.
"Thank you for your compliance, expect to receive them in a few hours."
Meanwhile, in the branch office building of the Port of Dawn. Abraham laid the runic communicator to his desk and felt like he had just become like an office worker in his previous life. It was a strange experience, not befitting of a fleet admiral.
'Should I have been more cold or commanding? Nah, that wouldn't do good for our image.' He shook his head as the United Navy were protectors. There was no need for them to act dominating to be powerful. After all, they already were.
"Nonetheless, it looks like the Special Response Unit got their first mission for the upcoming operation." He muttered to himself before making a call.
The former mission of the Special Response Unit was to rile up the tribes to start a rebellion. It appears that there was no need for them to do so. The only thing that was needed to be done was assisting the rebels in their endeavors.
And this would be the new mission of the Special Response Unit.