New rules

Jamie looked out at the gathered Lioric people, the relieved faces of parents embracing their children, and the collective sigh of relief that rose from the crowd like a wave. They were safe now, though not yet at peace. As the last of the children rejoined their families, tears of joy mixed with expressions of shock.

The Lioric people, once downtrodden under the looming shadow of Scheminal X, found themselves in a moment they hadn't dared to hope for.

One elderly woman, her face wrinkled with the passage of years and hardship, moved toward Jamie, her hands trembling. "Thank you, thank you," she stammered, voice hoarse with emotion. "You saved our children. You've saved us."