Chapter 543
"Do you understand now, Rattan? You are not just endangering the Goblins. You are putting the entire foundation of this world’s balance at risk. And you are placing your own people—your kin, your blood—in the path of extinction."
Vellok’s voice grew quieter, almost reverent, as he gestured again toward the pulsating mass beneath them—Mother. The light in his eyes dimmed, but his words carried the weight of history carved in blood and secrecy.
"Mother is the continuation of our race... and our most sacred, most preserved secret. It is because of her—because of the lie we buried in silence—that we are able to maintain the illusion of a normal, functioning society."
He looked at Rattan, his expression unreadable.
"Our people—our entire race—no longer understands the concept of bloodlines. Of mother or father. Those words exist in stories, in formality, but not in meaning. They were erased—surgically removed—from the soul of the goblin identity."
He walked toward one of the conduits connected to Mother’s flesh, its dull green glow illuminating his grim features.
"Through subtle manipulation, cultural redirection, and magical suggestion, we made it so that procreation between male and female goblins is seen as natural, even expected. But it is a lie. A beautiful, necessary lie."
Vellok’s tone darkened as he recounted the origin of their new race.
"We were not born—we were grown. Bred in containment vats, stabilized by arcane filtration systems. The prototypes of a new era. And when we were deemed stable—our minds sharpened, our bodies perfected—the rest of our kin were declared obsolete."
He let the words hang in the air.
"They were condemned."