Not much better

The Auranians were not as sure of victory as their neighbors. They thought that the invaders leaving was just a prelude to something worse. Which would soon be revealed to be right in their path as the sea monsters cage back with a Goliath of an abomination leading them, seeming to direct the others of its kind. Though it was hard to tell as they swarmed about each other like a fish school scattering in all directions.

It was the fact that the other sea monsters, despite moving in so many different directions, were circling the one as it closed in on their old enemies that told them it was their ruler or whatever the equivalent was for whatever species these underwater horrors belonged to. Luckily their forethought and suspicion had caused them to prepare instead of their neighbors who got horribly drunk.

So when facing down the invading horde, they had multiple walls and barricades ready to stop or at least slow the sea monsters' advance. The true problem at the moment was Queen Cleo and the other survivors of the fallen capital. Queen Eeras ruler of watched from a viewing monitor in her throne room. The others waited around her, all of them loyal captains of her guard, ready to carry out her orders, whatever they were.

It was a hard moment for Queen Eeras, as at one point a lightning-fast raid on her palace had allowed Cleo to capture her; she'd been tortured for months just to amuse Queen Cleo. Now the choice was before her: leave Queen Cleo out and watch her as well as her followers be taken away by the invaders. Or she could take the second option and be better, as she had been her whole life, and save her neighbors from what was no doubt a horrible fate.

The desire for revenge ate at her, keeping her mouth closed for a long moment to let Queen Cleo meet her end. Sadly, in the end, her morality got the better of her. "Let Cleo and her people in quickly. Have her and what warriors she has left join the defense while their civilians join ours in the bunker below the palace!" Queen Eeras yelled out to her subordinates, who rush to obey. Queen Eeras herself fled her throne room to meet with Queen Cleo.

There was a rush going on in the city as last-second preparations were done and defenders went to where they were needed, while the civilians packed themselves with what little they were allowed into the bunker below the palace. The two queens met at the inner wall, both glaring hatred at each other but not speaking a word of that hatred to each other.

They simply nodded tensely to each other and then got to work combining their forces into something that could hold back the invaders. Venta and Aurora stood side by side once again. Though this time neither woman was of rank, there were no warlords or captains here. Just desperate female soldiers wondering whether or not they'll see tomorrow or if they even want to, considering a few had been taken and none knew what their fate would be.

For a moment while making final preparations, Venta looked at Aurora with questions, clearly wanting to know if she would say, "I told you so." As she had been right about their earlier battle just being a prelude to something worse. Aurora shook her head seeing and understanding the question posed silently. So with that fact being ignored, the two women just tried to make the walls a bit thicker in the moments they had left.

Then a massive thud was heard as the beast began slamming itself into the outer walls as the outer defenses fired at will at the incoming invaders. The two queens watched the outer magical turrets fire as fast as they could at what seemed to be an endless hoard of abominations pretending they were sea creatures. The sound of the turrets firing combined with the screeches and roars of the incoming sea monster invaders made it sound like hell itself was here to drag them into the depths of eternal torment.

Queen Cleo didn't look at Queen Eeras, to which Queen Eeras returned the favor, though eventually Queen Cleo stated something surprising. "I didn't think a day would ever come when I was happy you have so many of those damn turrets on your walks, but today I am." Queen Cleo said clearly to Queen Eeras.

"While it's just another day, my turrets keep the savages out." Queen Eeras said, to which Queen Cleo didn't respond, merely tightening her grip on her weapons as they all waited for the outer walls to fall and the final battle to begin. Though the chances of their success were not great in the end they would try to beat those bad odds.