Leadership

The crowd parts for you and the girls as you pass, and you’re a bit surprised by two things. First, there’s more people here than you expected. You didn’t think there were all that many people who lived in this village! The second thing is that there’s a lot of new faces, and that makes you realize what happened. While you were gone, many of the people from Refuge moved here, either with someone else or just by themselves. Monster girls, humans, men and women, this is a full fledged town now.

Finally, you reach the cleared area in the center of the crowd, where Victor stands, waiting alongside Amara. Captain Ben and Bella stand off to one side, and they all smile as you approach. Victor shakes your hand and nods.

“Now, let’s do this properly. Make things official. You ready to be a leader?”

You chuckle. “No. But I’ll do it anyway.”

The panther man laughs and claps you on the shoulder. “Good man.”

Stepping away from you, he raises his voice so everyone can hear. “Well, here we are, all gathered together. I told you I had an announcement, and I won’t waste your time rambling on. I am going to be stepping away from being your leader.”

There’s a lot of chatter among the crowd, and Victor holds up his hands for quiet. “Now, I’m not going anywhere, but I’m better suited for fighting and advising anyway. In my place, Nicholas will be taking the lead!”

A cheer goes up, surprising you. You didn’t realize how popular you really were with these people. Victor nods. “Now, I’m not one for speeches, so that’s all you get from me.”

He looks to you and gives you a nod. You look around nervously, feeling the eyes of everyone on you. Then you feel Ferra take your hand, and it calms you immediately. You smile at her, and take a deep breath, before addressing the crowd.

“If you love speeches, you’re gonna hate me. However, I do have some plans, so now’s as good a time as any. First off, let’s make this official. We are not a part of the Order. We no longer recognize them as our rulers. They are corrupt and evil, and we will take them down!”

Another cheer, and you wait a moment before continuing. “It’s going to be a long road. This sort of thing takes a long time. But I know we can do this. I’ve seen that people are ready. They just need a push, and I intend to give them that push!”

You raise your hands to stop the cheers this time. “Now, that means I won’t be here a lot. And this is much more than a refugee camp now, it’s a town. And a town needs a few things. First off, it needs a name.”

You hear a few shouted suggestions, but you shake your head. “I have a suggestion, if you’ll take it. How about Hope? Because that’s what’s started here. Hope for a better future, hope for freedom from the Order, hope for peace and happiness.”

Hearing cheers and agreement, you nod. “So be it. The Town is named Hope. Now, you need one more thing, especially since I’ll be away. A town needs a mayor. And I know exactly who it should be.”

You turn and walk over to Ben and Bella. “Captain Ben, would you like to be a mayor?”

You offer your hand, and he looks at you in surprise for a moment. “Are you sure? I’m just a ship’s captain. I don’t know anything about running a town.”

You nod. “Fortunately, you know someone who does.”

You glance at Bella, who laughs. “Oh, go on, Ben. I’ll keep you pointed in the right direction.”

Ben nods, and shakes your hand. “Fine. Don’t get upset if I get a bit lost, though!”

You smile, listening to the cheers over your choice. “You’ll be fine. And this is the best way to stop the pirate talk!”

Ben laughs. “Yarr, don’t be so sure, lad! I could be a pirate mayor!”

You roll your eyes and step away. Turning to address the crowd again, you see mostly approval. “That’s it for now, everyone! I said I wasn’t much for speeches, that’s all you get. Feel free to find me if you have any concerns, but for now, I need to relax. It’s been a stressful few weeks!”

Laughter and a few more cheers, and the crowd begins to break up. You walk back to your group, and take a deep breath. “That went well.”

Victor nods. “So, now what, boss man?”

You chuckle. “Now I explain the next steps.”