The carriage moved through streets Leo had walked just hours ago, they looked different now. Imperial soldiers at every corner, moving coordinatedly, with focused vigilance.
Buildings showed damage, scorch marks, broken windows, collapsed walls, but already, workers were clearing debris. Mages reinforcing structures. The city repaied itself with methodical efficiency.
Bodies had been cleared. The dead were collected, identified, and processed. Order had been restored, all that was left was morning.
Leo watched through the carriage window, trying to process the scale of the entire event that had gone down.
They passed a plaza where cultists knelt in rows, hands bound, and energy-suppressing shackles glowing faintly. Imperial guards standing watch. Maybe thirty prisoners or more as far as Leo could see.
All captured, all defeated.
