"Arakenys have flattened the jungle in which most of these creatures are present," Lysara said.
She added quietly, not looking up from the flowers she was weaving into a chain. "The Arakenys don't leave much room for retreat. They prefer total annihilation, in turn making every one of those beasts burn to ash."
The truth of her words hung heavy in the air.
The pale-skinned invaders had shown no interest in conquest in the traditional sense—they didn't occupy territory or install governors. Instead, they swept across the land like a plague, reducing every human settlement to ash and ruin, herding the survivors into great walking cages that disappeared back across the sea. Those who returned from captivity—and precious few did—spoke of vast underground cities where humans toiled as slaves, mining strange crystals that powered the Arakenys war machines.
Movement, Eliviraa's voice cut through his dark thoughts.
From the south, over the water.
