"The White City", "the Opulent", "the Pearl of Neolandia": these and other names had been assigned over the centuries to Shafiz, capital of the desert kingdom. And rightly so: unlike Katolean and Durenian, the Neolandians were a people of merchants, and their capital was a monument to their wealth. The Ivory Palace, home to the rulers of Neolandia, was not as imposing and massive as the Rock of Katolis: its white stone towers instead soared against the sky with elegance and sophistication. After her victory surely Amaya must have looked out from those towers, staring at the carved fountains in the center of the squares and at the... empty streets. Empty as were the hundred bazaars of the city, and in the same way all the houses were empty, from the richest villas to the filthiest hovels. The inhabitants had all fled before the Katolean army entered the walls: Amaya had conquered a ghost town.

This did not prevent the general from having his men lodged in the city, after sending news of the victory to his nephew. The inhabitants would have returned as soon as they realized that the war had been lost. After all, didn't the allies just occupy their capital? It was only a matter of time.

General Amaya had tremendously underestimated the stubbornness of the Neolandians. The inhabitants did not return that week, nor the following. Meanwhile, the army's food supply continued to decline.

On the night of July 20, while in Katolis Prince Callum and Rayla were spending their wedding night, dozens of fires spread throughout Shafiz. It was the middle of summer: within a few minutes the fire spread throughout the city, burning wooden beams and breaking the mud bricks of the buildings.

The flames were set by the Neolandians, who secretly entered the city with the help of dark magic. Ilehas' orders were clear: rather than surrender to the Katoleans, the whole kingdom would have burned. And his subjects obeyed him, blinded by hatred, setting fire to their own homes.

Actually, it wasn't a sudden decision. Taleq, who had participated in the war councils, tells us how the evacuation of the city had been decided days before the battle: in fact, Ilehas was aware that his army was inferior to the allied one, and had prepared plans in case of defeat.

Amaya ordered his magicians to find a solution. Primary magic is a powerful weapon, and a skilled magician of the sky is able to make it rain at will, provided that there are clouds in the sky. But that night the sky was clear. The elven magicians resorted to the magic of the sea, but the ritual took time, and every minute that passed the fire spreaded. The smell of burnt flesh permeated the air along with the cries of men and horses who had not been fast enough or lucky enough to escape.

Eventually, with a spell of immense power, the sea grew. With an unnatural tidal wave, water poured into the streets, extinguishing the fire. Although it could not reach the higher quarters, which continued to burn for days, much of the fire was extinguished. But it was too late.

The once glorious Shafiz was but a ruin.

The fire had cost many lives of men and horses, but that's not what Amaya was worried about. Nothing remained of the grain reserves, and what little had been saved had been submerged by water and would have soon rotted. Amaya had to make a decision, and fast. She could wait for supplies from Katolis, but there was a high risk that the enemy would intercept them: or she could withdraw.

On June 22, the Allied army abandoned Shafiz. At first, Amaya moved east, intending to besiege Janine's small harbour to seize its food reserves. But she had to desist: her siege engines had been damaged in the fire, and she obviously couldn't take the city by starvation.

All that remained was to leave the country and return to Katolis.

It was the 25th of June. The Allied army had been defeated without losing a single battle.