Chapter 193: A Conflict of Interests (1/2)
Grotokia looked to the camera and raised his hand, ”Five, four, three...” The rest of his countdown was him moving his hand. As the interview started, he steepled his fingers and stared at the main camera,
”Tonight, we'll be looking at Chrona and Daniel, two contestants in Giess's yearly tournament. On the one hand, Chrona has been a regular combatant of the competition for the last decade. On the other, Daniel is a newcomer who hides his identity. We'll be discussing what they think of each other, what their strategies are, and what the intend to do if victorious. Only here with the Galactic Filming Corporation.”
He turned to me, ”Now, recently your hotel room was bombed by someone who also tried hiding their identity. Based on the reports coming in, the body was evaporated in the explosion. Is that right?”
Before I did anything, I pulled out my obelisk and started recording the interview with it. The glass orb made sure I had back up footage if these guys tried framing me. With that handled, I spoke up.
”Yes.”
”Experts are speculating that a special interest group sent the assassin to stop you from winning the tournament. Mind weighing in on that with your own thoughts?”
”I don't think it was a gialgathen at the very least,” I said while raising a hand.
Grotokia jimmied his papers, ”They have a strong motivation for doing so considering how dominant you've been in the tournament. This is also the strongest center for gialgathen support on the continent. I don't mean to dismantle your argument, but the odds are stacking up against that claim.”
I could see what the guy was trying to do. He was giving me a compliment while guiding me into condemning the gialgathens. Torix and I covered this line of questioning over the last few days, however, so I had an answer already prepared.
”Think about it. There was nothing left of the assailant, right? A gialgathen would have smothered everything in blood and guts considering their size. Even then, the bomb exploded inside our room. A gialgathen couldn't have gotten inside, and I've never seen one using complicated tech. They're too good at magic to need it.” I waved my fingers,
”They use their tails for most tasks. Hard to create and use a bomb without something more dexterous like fingers.”
Grotokia leaned towards me while cupping his chin, ”Couldn't they have just thrown the bomb inside?”
”Malakai was guarding the gate. They couldn't have.”
”But what if Malakia was the one to throw in the bomb? Seems likely given his previous lack of success in the tournament. He could have been bitter and resentful of you.”
I shook my head, ”He wasn't. Malakai almost died from the explosion. Even then, we'd have known he was throwing the bomb in.” I tapped the side of my helmet, ”I have good ears and good eyes. I would have known.”
”Are you sure that Malakai didn't deceive you into believing it couldn't have been him?”
I was about done with Grotokia goading me into this bullshit. I rolled my eyes, ”Yes, I'm sure. Malakai earned a great reputation built over decades. He's not someone to flip on a dime over something like this. Besides, this is just random speculation on your part with no solid proof.”
Grotokia took a sharp breath, ”That's what we're here for. To get firsthand accounts of the incident. Moving on-” Grotokia turned to Chrona, ”As a long time supporter of Emagrotha's methodology, what do you think of Daniel's rapid rise to prominence?”
Chrona sent a telepathic wave to the voice caster who spoke out for her. Since I didn't hear her voice in my head and in my ears, she spared us a ton of confusion.
”Emagrotha believed in a strong sense of personal responsibility. She'd have treated Daniel with a tremendous level of respect given his obvious ability.” Chrona looked at me, ”I will do the same.”
I raised a palm to her, ”Likewise.”
Grotokia coughed into his hand, sending up bubbles inside his pressurized suit, ”It's good to see sportsmanship so close to the match. At the same time, tension surely must be high. If you didn't already know, Daniel has begun to represent an anti-gialgathen movement-”
I cut him off.
”Thisbey represents that bullshit. Don't put words in my mouth.”
Grotokia turned towards me, his heart rate elevating like he was nervous. ”You're clearly the figurehead of the anti-gialgathen groups rising to prominence across Giess. I don't think it's something you have a say in anymore.”
What the fuck was this guy talking about? He didn't get to tell me what I was here for or what I was doing.
”What the fuck are you talking about? Of course I have a say in it. I have nothing against the gialgathens. My opinion on them is that they're strong as hell and a proud people.”
”If that were the case, then why didn't you make that more clear early on? Seems like your trying to avoid taking responsibility for your actions.”
Fuck this guy.
”I'm not big on media. I'm here now because I have to be. I'm a man of action. I go out into the world and act. Thisbey's the opposite. He sits around and talks all day. That's why he tries to use my own image to support his racist bullshit. He needs my positive image to use since he doesn't have one.”
The reporter coughed into his hand, water swirling in his helmet,
”Thisbey's a known philanthropist, environmentalist, and-”
”And a piece of shit that bribes media until they support him like mindless drones. Case and point - you.”
Grotokia was rendered silent for a bit. Chrona's voice actor burst into laughter, his eyes focused on his mic. Grotokia sent him a dirty glare, silencing the voice actor. It didn't matter. Chrona's tail was whipping behind her, and she was baring her teeth like a puppy wanting to play.
”This is most certainly the best interview I've ever been a part of,” the voice actor spilled out while wincing. He was a true professional, doing his job despite his ever-rising chance of getting fired. I admired the guy for his dedication.
Grotokia didn't.
”Your unfounded speculation and accusations aside, let's get back on topic. Chrona, you're a known supporter of Emagrotha's philosophies, right?”
Chrona nodded her head, the voice speaking up, ”Of course. She was wise well beyond her years despite being ancient.”
Grotokia pointed at Chrona, ”You do realize that Emagrotha was a supporter of slavery? Right?”
Chrona glared at the reporter, ”No, she was not. She believed they should earn their freedom instead of being granted it.”
The reporter waved his hand, ”You don't honestly think that, do you? By making them 'earn' their freedom, the espens were held to a standard they couldn't hope to reach at the time. If Emagrotha's policies were followed through with, espens would have been servants to the gialgathens for at least sixty more years. Their only way out would have been through Schema's system. Even that would have taken years.”
For once, the reporter made a good point.
”Emagrotha warned that granting freedom without recourse would lead to espens becoming parasites. Like a seer, she predicted the stagnation of the espen people that continues to this day. Despite having this 'system' you speak of, your average espen has hardly become a force to reckon with. If anything, they've grown fat, lazy, and content.”
Grotokia turned to me, ”What's your thoughts on the matter?”
”Hmmm...There's truth to both sides. On the one hand, slavery is outright unacceptable. Period. You don't earn your freedom. It's a part of this whole being-alive-thing we got going. As a race though, we need to involve ourselves more in dungeon clearing and silver extermination as a whole.”
I turned to the main camera, facing the audience, ”It's how I got strong. It's how anyone watching can get strong too.”
Grotokia nodded, ”So what I'm hearing is that you believe in the espen people reaching their full potential, not earning the right to live a free life? If so, that's an important distinction to make.”
I sat back and thought about it. Now that they were arguing about politics, I wasn't able to keep up. Chrona spoke up,
”And that is why, even a quarter century after that A.I. came, the espens still rely on gialgathens for guidance and protection. Because you all wanted to gain without making the proper sacrifices. It disgusts me.”
I raised a hand while trying to speak up, but Grotokia egged Chrona on, ”Really now? Doesn't that sound elitist? Not everyone can be exceptional like Daniel here. He's a rare exception.”
Chrona glared, ”The poor and weak starve and die. That is the way of life.”
”So what about orphaned children? Should they starve and die?”
Grotokia cornered her as fast as a horde of bees swarming a bear stealing their honey. That's to say really fast.
Chrona leaned back, ”Well, I didn't say that.”
”It was implied based on what you just so confidently announced. Have you not thought out these principles your spouting as facts?”