true.”
“Then why do the humans obey so readily?”
“Fear. Fear, trauma, and the desire to survive. Nothing more. Their behavior is quite similar to that of members of our own race that have been in captivity for extended lengths of time.
“As it turns out, the ‘training’ that they undergo in the slave pens is nothing less than torture and intimidation. They usually use pain inducers in order to avoid leaving permanent marks, but because of their brutal nature, the slavers still beat the humans in their ‘care’ quite frequently.
One of my operatives infiltrated the slave pens two weeks ago to gather intelligence on what is really going on within their walls. Images and recordings of what he discovered are being made available to you all.
“For fifty years, ever since the genetic bottleneck that might have otherwise doomed us was discovered, we have kept breeding-slaves of intelligent beings who crave freedom just as much as we do, and have simply been terrorized into obeying.”
Gasps of shock and horror; more muttering. The horned one spoke up again. “If this is true, then the slavers have been antagonizing another intelligent, space-faring race, who might decide at some point to make war on us for the sake of their captives.”
“That is absolutely true. And that is why I will be releasing the results of a deeper investigation within a month. If I determine, and I am certain that I will, that the slavers have committed crimes that might lead our entire civilization into war once again, I will propose the banning of the entire practice on this world.”
“But what about our need for human breeding stock?”
“We have the opportunity still to undo what the slavers have done, and create an equitable treaty between our two peoples. As it turns out, humans are compatible enough with us that members of our race have begun recognizing their true mates among them.” He settled his hand on Irina's shoulder.
“As I have.”
More gasps and mutterings of surprise. Kaelon smiled.
“To save our people, and to ensure that more of us discover our true mates, we must seek a treaty and trade agreements. This will force us to give up profiting from slave labor. However, the ultimate gains will more than repay any temporary losses.”
Irina looked around at them as they stared at her, and felt the weight lifting off of her heart. They seemed more shocked than anything at the news that their exploitation of humanity had caused far more harm than the slavers had told them. Perhaps they weren't all monsters. Perhaps they could learn to approach humans peacefully.
The horned man turned his gaze to her suddenly, and asked, “I was at the celebration where Torvin tried to rape you first. I remember how you cursed us all. You called us savages. Now I realize that you were right to do so. I can't speak for everyone, but I will be looking very carefully at this evidence. I must ask you--was your experience like what the High Commander is describing?”
She blinked at him. This whole time, the only members of his race who had ever bothered to directly address her could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Before now, most of them had never even looked her in the eye. “My name is Dr. Irina Evans,” she replied.
“I am a biologist with a specialty in healing herbs. I was on a mission to gather medical specimens to assist my people. Four months before I became a member of the high Commander's household, I was kidnapped from Earth spacing lanes and forced into the camps.”
She looked around. The entire crowd had gone quiet, and was listening to her every word intently. She swallowed dryness from her mouth and went on.
“During that time, I was starved, beaten, terrorized, tortured by nerve induction, and had to fend off several attempts at rape. During that time, I witnessed several women break under the conditioning. Some developed an insanity which made them tractable. Most learned to obey out of fear. And
“Then why do the humans obey so readily?”
“Fear. Fear, trauma, and the desire to survive. Nothing more. Their behavior is quite similar to that of members of our own race that have been in captivity for extended lengths of time.
“As it turns out, the ‘training’ that they undergo in the slave pens is nothing less than torture and intimidation. They usually use pain inducers in order to avoid leaving permanent marks, but because of their brutal nature, the slavers still beat the humans in their ‘care’ quite frequently.
One of my operatives infiltrated the slave pens two weeks ago to gather intelligence on what is really going on within their walls. Images and recordings of what he discovered are being made available to you all.
“For fifty years, ever since the genetic bottleneck that might have otherwise doomed us was discovered, we have kept breeding-slaves of intelligent beings who crave freedom just as much as we do, and have simply been terrorized into obeying.”
Gasps of shock and horror; more muttering. The horned one spoke up again. “If this is true, then the slavers have been antagonizing another intelligent, space-faring race, who might decide at some point to make war on us for the sake of their captives.”
“That is absolutely true. And that is why I will be releasing the results of a deeper investigation within a month. If I determine, and I am certain that I will, that the slavers have committed crimes that might lead our entire civilization into war once again, I will propose the banning of the entire practice on this world.”
“But what about our need for human breeding stock?”
“We have the opportunity still to undo what the slavers have done, and create an equitable treaty between our two peoples. As it turns out, humans are compatible enough with us that members of our race have begun recognizing their true mates among them.” He settled his hand on Irina's shoulder.
“As I have.”
More gasps and mutterings of surprise. Kaelon smiled.
“To save our people, and to ensure that more of us discover our true mates, we must seek a treaty and trade agreements. This will force us to give up profiting from slave labor. However, the ultimate gains will more than repay any temporary losses.”
Irina looked around at them as they stared at her, and felt the weight lifting off of her heart. They seemed more shocked than anything at the news that their exploitation of humanity had caused far more harm than the slavers had told them. Perhaps they weren't all monsters. Perhaps they could learn to approach humans peacefully.
The horned man turned his gaze to her suddenly, and asked, “I was at the celebration where Torvin tried to rape you first. I remember how you cursed us all. You called us savages. Now I realize that you were right to do so. I can't speak for everyone, but I will be looking very carefully at this evidence. I must ask you--was your experience like what the High Commander is describing?”
She blinked at him. This whole time, the only members of his race who had ever bothered to directly address her could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Before now, most of them had never even looked her in the eye. “My name is Dr. Irina Evans,” she replied.
“I am a biologist with a specialty in healing herbs. I was on a mission to gather medical specimens to assist my people. Four months before I became a member of the high Commander's household, I was kidnapped from Earth spacing lanes and forced into the camps.”
She looked around. The entire crowd had gone quiet, and was listening to her every word intently. She swallowed dryness from her mouth and went on.
“During that time, I was starved, beaten, terrorized, tortured by nerve induction, and had to fend off several attempts at rape. During that time, I witnessed several women break under the conditioning. Some developed an insanity which made them tractable. Most learned to obey out of fear. And
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