Bonus Chapter: Haalfrin and Freyya's philosophical conversation about violence and evil

After Haalfrin explains what just happened with the 3 Arkin soldiers, he rests his chin on his palm and sighs, "What should I do about this, Freyya? I've never been in a position like this."

She doesn't answer immediately as she hops up and sits on his desk. "…Hmm…," she muses thoughtfully, "I can't really bring myself to be mad at the soldiers, since what they're doing is completely predictable and natural."

"Natural!?" Haalfrin furrows his eyebrows. "Torturing and… probably r#ping people isn't a good thing!" The Ant's clothes were off, so Haalfrin assumes what the Arkin did beforehand…

"Oh?" she raises her eyebrows at this. "Natural doesn't mean good. Natural means that it's inevitable. Natural is what happens by default – when nobody interferes. Any result but the NAUTURAL result takes a lot of sacrifice and effort."

Her answer doesn't satisfy Haalfrin at all. He clearly remembers many of the Arkin in that dungeon. "Many of those soldiers had families. Many of them were genuinely helpful and good people in life. I… I can't reconcile what I knew of them and what I saw them doing."

"Haalfrin… Oh Haalfrin…" Freyya smiles sadly and shakes her head. "I don't know if you're a wise or naïve person sometimes."

She crosses her legs and says, "Any act of violence requires you to destroy the 'personhood' in your enemies. You reduce them from individuals with souls into objects that can be done with as you will. You know this."

"I…" He wants to protest, but he's not sure what to say.

To this, Freyya rolls her eyes and keeps talking. "When you hunt, the NATURAL thing to do is only see your prey as meat on your table, not a living being with feelings. When you fight back against a murderer trying to kill you, you conveniently forget that they're a person, and in the moment, you see them as a soulless monster that must be slain – a ravenous wolf."

She continues, "As people with souls, feelings, and virtues ourselves, we could never bring ourselves to harm unless we see things this way… And this 'dehumanization' isn't a conscious act. Deep down, in our base, primal instincts, we do this to the objects of our violence."

In Freyya's mind, this truly isn't a bad thing. To her, it is sometimes necessary to kill. Since ignoring the inherent soul in your opponent is necessary to initiate violence, then it is a necessary thing to do.

However, she doesn't say this out loud, since she knows Haalfrin will heartily disagree with her, and she doesn't like to argue.

So, instead of adding onto her statement, she reinforces what she said before. "You," she pokes him in the chest, "Have killed droves of people in your life. What about when you killed all those guards when escaping the Pit? They were just normal people doing their jobs. They had families. How can you convince yourself you're a righteous person despite murdering them all? It's because you instinctually saw them as obstacles barring you from the basic dignity and freedom that all thinking creatures deserve. You didn't think about THEM. I guarantee you WOULD have saw them as people had you bumped into them in the marketplace or something."

Haalfrin thinks about her words for a moment, then shakes his head. "No. What they were doing to those girls was completely unnecessary. Sure, we need to win the war against the Ants so that they don't commit genocide on an innocent world… but why would we torture them? There's no practical use in that."

Freyya sighs wearily. "You don't understand the dead like I do. The dead… they don't change; they become MORE. When these soldiers died… they saw these ants as mere bugs – not thinking people. After all, one MUST have these thoughts in order to kill willingly."

"Oh…," Haalfrin groans. "I see now. When the time to fight and kill comes, our sense of reason and empathy is stuffed in a dark corner. However, when the time to fight is over, then reason and empathy must come back."

"Yes," Freyya nods. "I personally believe that civilized society is full of people who have monsters sleeping inside of them, and that these monsters wake up when they sense a fight."

Haalfrin can't bring himself to say that this in itself is a bad thing. Sometimes, fighting really is necessary. H#ll. He fights all the time.

He also can't deny that when fighting, there can be NO hesitation. Sympathy and care will only get in the way when you're fighting for your life. Anger and cold practicality are much more useful emotions in these circumstances – especially ANGER.

Truthfully, Haalfrin realizes thoroughly that angry people win fights more. Angry people don't cry or flinch as dramatically when they're hit; their injuries only make them fight harder. Angry people also go for the throat, the eyes, the balls…

In short, angry people ignore their own preservation in favor of their enemy's destruction, and ironically, it's the angry people who survive – who win.

However… "But Freyya," he says, "Everyone may have monsters inside them… and while I do agree that these monsters need to wake up when they're needed, they also need to go to sleep when they're unnecessary. Otherwise, we can't be civilized people anymore."

He points down to the direction the dungeons lay. "The captive Ants are people too, and I'm willing to conveniently forget that when it's time to war with them. However, those children can't fight back right now. There is no reason to be monsters to them."

This makes Freyya thoughtful. "You're right. Weak people have killed their inner monsters. Good people know when to put their monsters to sleep. Evil people have monsters that didn't go to sleep when they should have; they eventually become monsters with civilized people sleeping inside them."

"…But Haalfrin… these Arkin are DEAD! They can't change anymore! They died wishing the most horrific fates upon the Ants, and they will continue to wish for that for all eternity. The deep feelings of a dead person is something a living person like you will never understand – not until you're dead as well!"

Freyya looks down – almost on the verge of tears, and she says softly, "How else could a soul survive eternity without going mad? If I were able to evolve and change like a living person, I'd have gone completely insane without you. I may have forgotten you. I may have even come to hate you. Having stagnated souls is a blessing for the dead!"

Haalfrin looks down and stares at the floor. Weren't they supposed to be talking about a fitting punishment for the soldiers? When did their talk veer so far away?

(Well, Freyya has never been a very focused person… but whatever.)

Clearly, Haalfrin can tell that Freyya has suffered in the Death Realm. Having to exist with unrest in your heart for so long, while being unable to forget or move on… it must've been hard.

She had died separated from everyone she loves, and she was placed in a position of heavy responsibility all alone. Her soul must have been in pain – unable to find that peace the dead deserve.

… After she suddenly exposed an emotional sore spot for her, he can't bring himself to bring up his original objective anymore.

So, instead of pressing his original question, he clamps his hands on her knees and yanks her onto his lap. "Are you at peace now?"

"Mmm…"