The gazes of every single human in the human domain widened.
There was no one who didn't know that na. No one who didn't revere that na.
Atticus Ravenstein. The Apex of Humanity.
And in the next instant, they all shut down their thoughts and listened.
His voice cut through the silence, sounding across the domain.
"I speak because I need you to know the truth. Your hos will be attacked soon. You deserve to know why."
His words were quiet. But each syllable landed like a hamr.
"Last night, the Obsidian Order attacked the alliance military training camp. And they were led by a Zorvan colonel."
A collective shudder surged across the domain. Everyone had gone through the military at 18, and from their short and long experiences, they all knew what that ant. A Zorvan colonel had the strength of the leaders of the races.
Atticus didn't pause.
"They infiltrated with the help of the Dinsari and Dragon Apexes. They betrayed the Alliance by colluding with the enemy."
Another wave of shock rippled through the people. They couldn't believe it. Two apexes had betrayed the Alliance? Why? They were geniuses who lacked nothing. Neither of them could imagine why they would do sothing so stupid. Pointless.
Still, they all believed it. Because of one reason, the one who was speaking.
Atticus continued.
"Their actions endangered millions of your children. Your brothers. Your sisters. mbers of our race."
"So I killed the Obsidian Order. I killed the Zorvan colonel. And I executed both traitors."
Silence.
He had said it plainly.
There was no grandeur. No drama.
Just cold, hard fact. And that was what blew their minds.
They were shocked at the fact that he had killed the Dinsari and Dragon Apexes. However, the shock of what he did to the Zorvan colonel dwarfed it by many margins.
Because it ant one irrefutable fact, Atticus was now stronger than the leaders of the superior races.
The domain shook.
Not with sound. But with stunned, reverent fear.
Atticus wasn't done.
"But we live in an unfair world. So their races have declared war on us."
"And in just a few hours… humans turned on humans out of fear."
He took a breath. One that seed to pull the air from everyone's lungs. His voice darkened.
"I am disappointed."
Those three words felt like ice in their bones.
"I'm embarrassed to be your Apex. When I went to the Verietega Nexus, you all cheered. When I won, you all felt pride."
"You all felt it then. You echoed it."
"Humanity isn't weak. It isn't prey. It isn't bottom of the food chain."
He paused for a slight second.
"But what I see before … are cowards. On the first morning of them declaring war, you riot. You loot. You cry…"
"Pathetic."
The word reverberated across the domain like poison.
"These are the people I represented?"
The domain was dead silent.
And soon enough, they each began to feel it.
Sha.
Guilt.
It rolled across them like a wave.
But what none of the humans knew was that it wasn't natural. No. Humans were selfish creatures and it was natural for many not to be moved by Atticus' words.
But Atticus' will had grown to such an extent that it could blanket the entire domain. And because of this, he held their emotions in the palm of his hand.
He didn't just speak. He imposed. His words cutting deeper than they were supposed to.
His next words echoed deep inside every one of their hearts.
"I'll ask only once." His voice went low now. Dangerously quiet.
"Is this who you are? Will you keep hiding? Keep proving the other races right? That humanity deserves to be at the bottom?"
No one answered.
But then, they all felt it.
A flicker.
A spark.
Then, a roar.
It ca from within each one of them. They all felt an intense surge of raw, burning determination.
Atticus continued.
"Or will you use this chance to prove them wrong. To show them you're not weak. Not prey. To show them we are Apex. Predators."
"The choice is yours."
As his final word echoed, and then, his aura retracted, and everyone felt the chill vanish from their bodies.
Their breathing returned to normal. And so did their movent.
Their bodies were now free and their minds clear.
Yet, even though many seconds had passed since Atticus fell silent, no one moved.
The people simply stood there, motionless.
Not out of fear, but their minds spun as they tried to comprehend everything.
They had heard his words.
They had felt their truth.
And then…
Clang, clang, clang!
Weapons began to fall.
So were dropped gently, others struck the ground with a sharp ring or were sheathed with trembling hands.
Faces that were contorted by fury turned into darkened expressions with resolve and determination buried underneath.
And without so much as a word, they turned.
One by one, they began walking back to their hos.
The streets, that were once filled with shouting and chaos, were now silent.
n and won walked shoulder to shoulder, with their heads bowed.
There were no more fights. No more noise.
With just a few words…
Atticus had silenced the storm that threatened the domain.
"He's a born ruler."
A pair of golden eyes glead in the sky. Oberon floated above, alongside the other paragons.
They had heard everything, every word Atticus had spoken. And even they, paragons, had been shaken.
This was the first ti Atticus had given a speech of this magnitude. It wasn't too long, nor was it too short.
Each word had been said deliberately, and each sentence, filled with clarity.
"Tch."
Vexarius clicked his tongue from the side.
Oberon glanced at him, a small smile appearing on his face.
"Let guess," he said. "You're not satisfied with this one either."
Vexarius's head snapped toward him, with his eyes burning intensely.
But he didn't say any words. He looked away, his voice low.
"He's still selfish…" he muttered.
But Oberon didn't respond.
He ignored Vexarius and floated forward, descending alongside the one who had just turned the tide of the domain, Atticus.
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