"Ever since the royalist armies had begun their siege on this city six weeks ago, all necessary services had been cut off: water, electricity, food, and even air in some cases. The outer spaceport had already fallen to the rapidly advancing royalist shock troopers even before the siege had commenced. From here, fire-bombers were rapidly sent out to gradually reduce the city to ruins. Along with them, cruise missiles were also utilised extensively to minimise the risk of a shoot-down. The royalists' new kingdom knew that this city was no ordinary mass-produced suburban project, but rather the capital of a once-bustling kingdom that was a vassal to the royalists' predecessors. And for that very reason, the vassal had all the reason to be as fortified as it was, most of its defences were made from their empire's numerous armouries." 

"The civil war had carved up the already turbulent landscape of the world even more. That very empire, after a chain of unfortunate events that ended up in a succession crisis, found itself split up into two major halves, each supporting a different claimant to the throne. […] The Royalists supported a certain pair of princesses as they waged war against the others. And through the sisters' stellar leadership, soon the war spilt from the former empire's own borders towards its own vassal states. […] To some, the sisters may seem like liberators, saving the populace from the bygone tyranny of the first dynasties. But to others, they perhaps are only the newest addition to the ever-growing list of power-hungry monarchs that have ever ruled this turbulent land." 

"But no matter how controversial their actions were, ultimately, many believed that their numerous victories in battle were contributing immensely to ending the long-winding and bloody conflict that had lasted for decades. […] This capital city was one of the last to resist them, and also with one of the most dogged resistances we had ever seen. For weeks, the city had been rapidly razed and pummelled with bombs and missiles, so much that the debris fields became large bonfires, warming up the very resistance that the royalists were trying to annihilate." 

"Snowfall was the least of their concerns. Not when their once mighty city had fallen apart, its gigantic wreckage now scattered across the land, painting the snowy landscape with specks of hellfire. And amongst the intertwining streaks of ice and fire, scavengers scour the debris, desperately looking for any kind of provisions that will aid them in their perilous escape from their besieged city."

I had one last chance to have a look at her face today, as she prepared herself to accompany some very important people. She had a solemn look on her face, a face too young and innocent for a war like this, but at the same time, an expression that betrayed it. This war wasn't the first one she had ever fought, and perhaps it won't ever be the last one she will ever fight. Every night, I hear her pained, slightly raspy voice praying to her deities for an end to all wars. Even as the bombshell continued elsewhere, she kept on, seemingly trying to make herself louder than the hellscape right outside the walls. She sounded like a singer, before an orchestra of absolute carnage. Her friends couldn't help but join in. But all good things must come to an end. This morning, we received reports that the royalists had broken through the penultimate defensive perimeter. In other words, they will reach our location - the palace and the old spaceport - in less than half a day. The shocking news was simply too much for her and her friends - their ears drooped and folded, begging to simply not exist. At least we did not come here unprepared, however.

We all knew what awaited us long before we retreated back here, and we all knew what would await those who stayed back. Even that peculiar princess-like person, her doctor, and their bodyguards knew that. It was a lost cause fighting against a force much superior, and much more brutal than us, when everything else had betrayed us. This very palace that we are standing in, though, was our trump card. A section of it can double as an "escape vehicle" in times of absolute distress, and since it also has camouflage, it will be nigh impossible to spot it. The only remaining problem now is to manoeuvre ourselves out of this sea of flames and the ever-tightening royalist air force. That old spaceport over there will launch decoys to bait them and buy us some crucial time. To anyone who finds this record, know that you are watching the end of a once-triumphant kingdom that ruled over this land. A kingdom that was forcefully thrust into a war that it had nothing to do with, a kingdom betrayed by those who instigated this unjust war, and a kingdom that had fallen victim to the unfortunate consequences of its own pacifism. Know that the truth matters more than even the most comforting of lies, the most appealing of ruses, and the most inviting of tricks. The key to winning lies within you, not those weapons, not those burning cities and glassed fields. Keep the truth alive, and keep it alive, always.

So there go the decoys. And that palace looks a little bit shorter now. And here we are, looking at a cacophony of stars, of spaceships, of burning wrecks and glassed fields. Those unmistakable silhouettes of royalist ships looming in the distance, and those swarms of smaller shadows spreading from them… We all know what awaits those who stay back to fight one last time for their homeland, to serve their faithful kingdom one last time. Soon, the royalists will make landfall, and we will be the only ones left to face them. At least I can have some solace, knowing that the very first battalions we will fight are wholly made of "collaborators". In other words, those spineless traitors will be the first ones to pay for their crimes. And as the first shots ring out all around us, we return once more into the fight.