Orion met Jorik's gaze, holding it. The dragon did not flinch, but raised his goblet in a gesture of humble respect.
"With the World Tunnels shattered and the Archlords of the great houses returning, the board has been reset," Jorik said, his voice a low rumble. "Barring some unforeseen catastrophe, most wars between the powers of the realm will grind to a halt."
He spoke the truth. With a power like an Archlord anchoring each side, continued conflict would escalate into a war of annihilation, a battle for the very survival of a race. Such gambles were too vast, their consequences too dire. It was far more likely that the Archlords, like Orion and King Neptor, would extinguish the flames of conflict with a few curt words—a pact born of mutual, overwhelming power. In the calculus of kings, old grievances were poor currency.
