Reinhard groaned, the sound emerging involuntarily as sensation returned. His eyes blinked open to the grey sky above, there were thick and heavy clouds with gaps where sunlight tried to penetrate.
He pushed himself up slowly, muscles protesting the movement while taking a further look around, and seeing the aftermath.
The pale tree was obliterated, where the massive trunk had stood, only a crater remained. Charred roots scattered across the ground, still smoking, while the golden architecture of Helios was visible now, no longer obscured by the tree's bulk.
Buildings showed damage from falling debris, but pieces of the city itself had survived.
The forest beyond showed similar devastation. Trees near the pale tree's former location had been consumed by the explosion. The roots that once covered the ground were gone, revealing actual soil underneath.
