Free Guardians Inc.:Thundersword (Guardians Incorporated #2) by Julian Rosado-Machain Page B

the resources. Recycling—”
          “Too little,” Idar interrupted. “Too late. Ask the whales and dolphins. You can’t even stop the massacres of their anchor species every year. They are threatening to do something about it themselves.”
          “Like what?”
          “You’ll have to ask them yourself. The Norway, Iceland, and Japan representatives have had to be…ahh…protectively escorted outside of the forum a couple of times.” Idar looked directly at Thomas. “We Fauns depend on our anchor species, our ‘little brothers’ to survive. When an animal species becomes threatened, Fauns lose strength and magical powers. We begin to whither, and when that species becomes extinct, its faun counterpart dies as well. In this day and age, there are many Faun clans in danger.”
          “And you?” For the first time, Thomas spoke directly to the Minister. “What about your clan? I know wolves are threatened too.”
          “Well,” Idar reclined back again, a grin drawn on his snout. “My particular clan is safe thanks to the forethought of my ancestors. You see, we were the first to recognize humans as an emerging power, an animal unlike any other we’d seen. We actually thought that you were the Fauns of the Cro-Magnons! But you are not; you are an anchor species. So, we decided to throw our lot with you, and we pushed our anchor species to live with you and become your companions.” He waited for the idea to dawn on Thomas.
          “Dogs?” Thomas asked. “Your anchor species are dogs?”
          “Yes, dogs,” Idar told him. “Isn’t that wonderful? All dogs trace their ancestry to wolves. Our ancestors knew what they were doing. They taught humans how to care for our anchor species, which insured that as long as humans survived we would too. We went to war over that with many other clans. It took some of them—I don’t know…seven or eight thousand years—to understand what we already knew, that humans were here to stay. Then other clans followed our example, the B-beeki, the Phoy, the Ochran-Threr…” Thomas had never heard those names, and Idar stopped and translated the names for him. “The Chickens.”
          “Chickens have fauns?”
          “Oh yes!” Idar said, “the Ochran-Threr are true martyrs of our cause. Their leader is the president of the League of Nations. She is both wise and powerful.”
           Chickens! It was a little difficult for Thomas to think that a chicken was both powerful and wise. He nodded with an involuntary chuckle.
          “What’s so funny?” Idar growled, his claws raking the table as he closed his hand into a fist.
    Thomas immediately stopped chuckling. “Nothing, sir,” he said. “It’s just that chickens, well…”
          Idar slammed his fist on the table, taking a chunk out of it. “You haven’t taught him anything!” Idar reproached Elise.
    Thomas gulped. Elise’s eyes grew wide.
    “Listen, here,” he said as he pointed a claw at Thomas. “You humans think you’re masters of the planet. You have no sense of history, and you forget easily. To you, twenty, fifty, a hundred years is a long time! We have lived eons, and we do learn from history. You discount the Ochran-Threr…the chickens,” he said angrily, “based on your perception of them. They are a proud clan. Do you think it was easy for them to offer their anchor species to you knowing that untold billions would die to sate your hunger? You humans practiced slavery among your own kind! In some places you still do!” He stood up from the table. “You’re barbaric, brutish, and because of your nature this experiment…this League of Nations, is on the brink of collapsing. I haven’t met the other Byrne, but I’ve heard that he is committed to our cause and that he is, at the very least, respectful.” His eyes turned into slits. “If you, boy,” he said, “are the best the Guardians have to