Aurdis's thoughts darkened as she stared at the broken wall and the scorched remains of their once-pristine courtyard.
"Right. We can't afford another disaster like this," she thought bitterly.
Whatever Laston had created and unleashed, it had nearly torn their entire kingdom apart. If they were to survive whatever might came next, they would need to turn what used to be his weapons and knowledge against their enemies.
"We'll study everything," she murmured. "If all of this things can break us, then we'll use them to become unbreakable ourselves."
Turning back to King Fairon, she asked, "What of your forces, Your Majesty? How much have you lost?"
Fairon's face tightened. He sighed heavily. "Your father… he ordered us not to intervene until the very end. We obeyed. It allowed us to wipe out the remnants of Laston's army that meant to ambush them, yes, but it also meant we couldn't offer help when it was most needed."
