[h3][color=#2dbdfc]Lucifer of Phoenix[/color][/h3]
[color=#2dbdfc]Dark Lord's Castle[/color]

When he was sure everyone was listening, Lucifer decided to voice his opinion first. He knew full-well that everyone hear [i]hated[/i] humans, and he was included in that hatred, but whether they liked it or not, they could not win this war - or any war, for that matter - without popular support.

[color=#2dbdfc]"I know what you're all thinking. 'Has Lucifer finally gone mad? Does he not realise that humans hate us and we hate them? Does he really wish to spare mortal men and women?'"[/color]

[color=#2dbdfc]"But I need you to think of just how [i]bloody[/i] long we've been fighting this fight. We make a raid here, conquer a village there, kill, rape and plunder as we please."[/color] Or rather, how you please, he thought but did not say aloud.

[color=#2dbdfc]"The long and short of it is - we are not making progress. We've devolved from an actually genuine threat to boogeymen and monsters, bedtime stories to scare little children. When was the last time we made a tactical manoeuvre that dealt long-term damage to the Kingdom? When was the last time we truly made the Lionfuries wet themselves out of fear? And the reason we aren't making waves is [i]because[/i] of our cruelty and mindlessness, not in spite of it. Even in the Outlands, people who support us..."[/color] Or rather, people who support me, Lucifer thought once again [color=#2dbdfc]"Hear only rumors of monsters that stalk the border, claiming prey if they get too close. That is not enough. I think we've forgotten the real reason we started this damn war - to put Master Alastor Daeva on the throne. But there are people in this room - you know who you are - who seem to be under the impression we are simply a rich bandit camp, raiding and looting without actually [i]controlling[/i] anything."[/color]

Lucifer's volume never got much above average conversational tones, but there was a firmness in his voice that made him seem that littlest bit more authoritative.

[color=#2dbdfc]"So what happens? We drive every half-decent warrior away from us. We don't make waves, we don't bring glory and there's money to be made in fighting us. Heck, the men who fight for Lionfury are seen as heroes! Instead, we get the drunks and the brutes, the kind of men who just want to have a fight. Our armies are weak, undisciplined and quite frankly pathetic. If it was for our more elite forces - our demons, our monsters and god-forbid, maybe even our Outlander Humans - we would be steamrolled over with nary a second thought."[/color]

[color=#2dbdfc]"So yes. I get we - [i]you[/i], I should say - don't like Humans very much. They're just pathetic mortals, after all. But those "pathetic mortals" have been what's keeping us from claiming the throne. Every time we lose a battle, is it because the enemy stormed us with demons, crushed us with Leviathans or chewed us up with Behemoths? Do they seduce our men with Sirens and Succubi, drop us from the skies with Harpies or claw through us with Werewolves? No. They rout us with high morale and superior training. Because in the end, it's the common soldier who wins the war, not the elites. So even if we all went above and beyond, it's our rank-and-file who are slowing us down. Until now."[/color]

Lucifer took a deep breath. He could win them over - all he had to do was prove his point.

[color=#2dbdfc]"A situation has arisen in Krowsgard, one that if handled correctly would earn us the respect of everyone in the city and its surrounding area. The locals are desperate and at their wits end, yet the King and his men have taken presumably the same stance you all have - why does it matter? What's to be won from helping these people? So no help comes. A matter that could be swept away with ease continues to fester like an untreated wound. That's our chance."[/color]

[color=#2dbdfc]"It's a simple matter, but one that is of great import to the locals. We deal with it and they start thinking - perhaps these people [i]can[/i] help us. They certainly were able to clear up something that the King himself couldn't or wouldn't. And they did it with little obvious gain. These are the people we should be fighting for, not the useless Lionfuries. Our actions will overrule Valorian's propaganda. And then word spreads - Alastor Daeva and his men are helping the common man. They are fighting for us, not for themselves. And then we become the ones who it is glorious to fight for. Good, honorable men and women will choose to support us, people with fervour and resolution, not the gutter-trash. Instead of being a glorified bandit troupe or a collection of lustful drunken looters, we become a true army. An uprising, a rebellion, whatever you want to call it. Maybe we shall even gain the name 'Freedom Fighters'"[/color]

[color=#2dbdfc]"I'm not saying this will happen overnight - it may take some time for us to get a good foothold of support. But when it does, you will be thankful that we have real soldiers to fight for us. And maybe you don't like that. Maybe you like the drinking, the raping and the looting. But all warfare is based on deception - just because you [i]look[/i] like an honorable, upstanding person doesn't necessarily mean you have to be one. And you can still go on raids against definitively hostile groups. A great general once said that the secret to winning a war is kindness to one's allies and sickening cruelty to one's enemies. Win over those who can be won over, crush the rest. I don't see how this is such an objectionable concept."[/color]

At this, Lucifer sat down, ready for any counter-arguments. He was not going to let this go. IF anyone wanted to fight his ideals, they would have to get through him first