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“And Rad? If anyone in this room was a self-centered immortal, it was you. It’s surprising to me that someone who still lives among the mortals on Pandius and still leads a nation there would have lost his way. How could you not allow Ixion to check out the artifact, and to stop the research if it was removing magic from Pandius. You are an immortal of magic! You are an immortal of order! Those are in your sphere of influence. I don’t remember you as the immortal of obstinacy. Why would you continue to allow the experiments to continue once you knew they were draining magic and against the order of your own sphere’s leader? Neither of those make sense. Does the only order that matters to you the orders you issue in Glantri to your people? Are you not also subject to order? And how can a deity of magic allow magic to be lessened?
Rad, your obstinacy and refusal to see the bigger picture led to this war as well. You have just as much blood on your hands as Ixion.
I can see that some of you see the wisdom in my words, although many are not. I suspect it is because you are dismissing me, either as human or as evil. I can see that last word resonates in the eyes of some of you.
I am the ruler of the Kingdom of the Mighty. And yes, I am evil. I accept that. I do things for my own benefit, for my own power. I accept that as well.
But let me ask you this. Let me challenge you on this.
You have seen me. You know who I am. Five of you in this room sponsored me for immortality. I am known.
During my time here, have I ever sacrificed one of my people for power? I could have been taking my prisoners and turning them into undead servants or charmed them and added to my power. I didn’t. I could have charmed everyone of my own courtiers to increase their opinion of me. I didn’t. I never sacrificed my people. I defended them against anyone who came after them. I protected them. They are mine.
So here is my key question for every immortal in this room.
If I, an admittedly evil, human, and unenlightened ruler have never sacrificed a single one of my citizens, then why would you? If you are the enlightened immortal, and not-evil, then why would you be willing to do something and cross a line even I wouldn’t think of doing?
How many people have you sacrificed? Even Alphaks sacrificed one of his own immortality seekers in order to delay my response to an attack on my nation. And folks, don’t sit in judgment of Alphaks on that matter. Ilsundel? How many of your elves lost their lives in a war you helped to craft? Valerias? You are the immortal of love. How many people in Thyatis that served you died in this great war after you helped to start it and you helped to manipulate things behind the scenes for precisely that goal. Alphatia? After pressing your nation and clergy for battle despite the fact that you are an immortal of peace, now you see your nation sunken beneath the seas. How many people that followed you or were in your sphere of control lost their lives as a direct result of your actions in this great conflict?
Your disdain for your own heritage and the people who worship you is wrong. The fact that you care more for your fellow immortals than the people who you came from and you serve is wrong.
The fact that you have forgotten that you serve them, not vice versa, is wrong."
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