( Elizabeth Aurelius's POV )
The first mistake people made when looking at a ruined city was assuming there was no longer any structure.
There was always structure.
You simply had to find what remained of it.
I stood on the roof of a partially collapsed building and looked across the streets below.
Stone houses.
Warehouses.
A market district.
Three watchtowers.
A large administrative building near the center.
Two bridges crossing a narrow canal.
Several roads wide enough for wagons.
Smoke rose from the eastern quarter, but most of the western district remained intact.
More importantly...
People.
A great many people.
Civilians filled the streets below us.
Some were injured.
Some were gathering possessions.
Others were simply standing around waiting for someone to tell them what to do.
Behind me, thirty-seven Zenith students were still recovering from being transported into the Mirage Hermit's illusion.
I was not.
