Memories (Interlude 1)

After a moment of thought, Norani did not answer verbally, instead choosing to use her action of dispelling her spell as her response. Viewing the first demonic wave was giving her flashbacks to her beginnings, bringing back old wounds that had been scarred over after a thousand years. Despite knowing its capabilities firsthand, witnessing the demonic horde annihilating a nation within the span of a week was still monumental. The first wave of the original invasion caused less damage within such a short amount of time, but that was due to a much greater number of experts. After both the Heroic Era and the Storm Era's conflicts, Andor's natural energies, such as mana, declined drastically. As a result of the massive energy loss, the number of talented individuals had also dropped to a minuscule amount. Andor no longer had the energy to produce geniuses like it once had, which could only be changed with time or with radical measures.

The four present sovereigns, and a dragonling, were silently processing what they had witnessed via Luca's memories. Of the four sovereigns, the one most affected was undoubtedly Arthur. He had just witnessed the deaths of each of his family members on top of the destruction of his nation. So many emotions battled for dominance in his heart. He was proud of his last three children for upholding the Valar family creed, 'Defensor Populi' (Defender of the People), until the very end, but he grieved knowing that his lineage ended that day, along with his entire nation. As a ruler who prided himself on putting his people before himself, learning that he had died before he could defend his people from the return of the demons made him incapable of forgiving himself. All of the Valar family held their creed close to heart, regardless of how their fate goes, so he knew that the lineage would end should the kingdom face true peril. However, in his own heart, he wished that such a day would never come.

Gethras and Rhonin suffered lesser blows than Arthur but still felt great pain. After all, the military prowess of the Valarian Kingdom was considered first-class, but even a nation of such power fell in the span of a week. Rhonin was certain that his own would have taken less time, even if he himself was there. After all, the Beastlands had a short history as a nation, with very little time to grow. Felneserin, on the other hand, was almost as ancient as Cyelume, yet Gethras remembered that only the latter survived the first wave. This meant that even his homeland had fallen before the demonic onslaught, even after using everything they had to offer in terms of defence.

While it may appear that Cyelume suffered the least out of the four nations whose rulers were present, it was anything but. If anything, Nesine's homeland may have suffered the worst. Aside from Kharnboldohr, her other allies had all fallen one after another before anything could be done. The survivors of Felneserin fled ceaselessly to their doors, all as they did their best to fight off the encroaching hordes. Most exterior settlements fell before any could escape, meaning that any chance of survivors was little. Nesine also knew that the reason Cyelume survived was not only the existence of the Eye of Selene but the existence of the Dreamwalker as well. She also had a hunch that Kharnboldohr survived due to their technological prowess and their constant battle for survival with the deep-dwelling creatures.

Several silent moments passed before anyone spoke again, as Rhonin gravely asked the young Dragonborn, "My people... did any survive..?" Though he wished to ask of his family, his duties as a ruler came before his personal ones. While he could accept that his nation would not have survived such a horde, he couldn't accept the end of his people.

Luca quietly nodded, "Some did survive, either by fleeing to shelter by luck or perseverance or by using arrays to escape. Most survivors went to Cyelume, followed by Skyhaven. Kharnboldohr had sealed itself from the world following the wave, using isolation tactics to defend against the demonic horde. A handful fell into hidden pocket worlds and survived there until they were rescued. All-in-all, no more than a hundred-thousand Beastmen survived the first wave." He initially meant to end it there, but he thought to add one last detail, "Among the survivors that made it to Skyhaven were the Sixth Prince and Princess of the Lion Tribe, the second son of the Tiger Tribe chief, the only daughter and child of the Hawk Tribe chief, the third son of the Bear Tribe chief, and a few members of the Three Divine Beast clans."

Rhonin sighed a little, "At least some of them made it... You said that some of the Divine Beasts fled to Skyhaven?"

"Yes, a few. Despite being few in number, they were specifically hunted by actual demons rather than by the Tainted due to their abilities. If I remember correctly, one Vermillion Bird, three Celestial Tigers and a pair of Xuanwu managed to escape death. Unfortunately, due to the loss of their elders, who were responsible for safeguarding and instilling their knowledge, they had lost most, if not all, of their abilities, which required training to acquire."

Gethras asked next, "I already know that survivors would have fled to Cyelume, so that's not what I plan to ask. Instead, I want to know what became of Haoma, the sapling of Yggdrasil?" As forestry was a sacred practice for the Wood Elves, the wellbeing of nature was believed to be tied to their race's fate. It was said that the first Wood Elves were born from Ancient Elves that chanced upon a seed of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, and planted it. As the seed grew to become Haoma, the elves changed to resonate with the tree, which they tended to faithfully generation after generation. As the ruler of the Wood Elves, and the one most spiritually connected to Haoma among those living, his priority was to ascertain what became of his people's sacred tree.