For a time, while Lady Eira helped Maela wash and refresh herself, the countess from Blackwell did little more than listen as Eira spoke of the Bloodroot Empire and all the changes it brought.
From allowing women to rule directly, rather than holding thrones until a 'legitimate' heir was able to take it, to the establishment of formal, standing armies, Maela soaked in the scale of her daughter's ambition and tried to sort out which parts had likely come from Ashlynn and which may have come from the vampire, Nyrielle.
The more she listened, the less surprised she was that these changes had upended Eira's goals in life. The young people in this new empire had just been shown a glittering feast of possibilities that they'd never even dreamed of. It would be strange if they weren't excited.
