It didn't take much effort to hear people's concerns. It would have been more difficult to try to block them out.

"We're completely out of water!"

"Everything has been burned down! The children are still sleeping outside in tents!"

"At least you have tents!"

I rubbed my forehead as the bickering started with a vengeance. This was an organizational nightmare. But I needed to get it done.

I took a deep breath and paused a moment to gather my thoughts. Every flock had sent contingents to the king's flock because they had need of help.

And they had a multitude of complaints—which I understood. But we couldn't accomplish anything without some semblance of order. I finally held up my hands after the din in the room Sven had assigned to me grew to a level where I couldn't even hear myself think.

"One at a time!" I called out in a raised voice so that it could carry over the noise. "I can't take anything to the king if I cannot hear it," I added as the noise slowly decreased. I waited another minute for it to fade completely. A couple of them were still glaring at each other, but since that wasn't a loud action, I was fine with it. "Okay," I said, letting out a huff of breath. "Now. I'm going to go in order of severity. Who has need of food and water?"

Seven hands went up.

"I'm going to note each flock, and I want you to tell me how many people you have that are in need."

I called on the first one.

"Nine hundred."

Then the next.

"Three thousand."

And the next.

"Twenty-five hundred."

The numbers were grim, but we were making progress now that I'd been able to force some order on the crowd. I quickly got through food and water. Not wasting time, I moved on.

"Who needs medical assistance?"

Twelve hands went up this time.

I went through the same routine, noting flocks and numbers on my tablet.

"How many of you are in need of shelter?"

More hands shot up.

As I went through the list of basic necessities, I couldn't help thinking that I was just scratching the surface of what actually needed to happen.

This was just how to deal with the present problems, how to ensure we didn't have even more casualties that could be prevented. And that was important, very important.

But it didn't address the long-term outlook. The rebuilding we needed to do for the future.

It struck me anew how ostentatious and gaudy this palace actually was. And how it juxtaposed so harshly with the ruin of many of our flocks' cities. I thought about that as I got through everyone's concerns and complaints after I opened up the floor. How corruption at the top resulted in a skewed allocation of resources.

But I couldn't dwell on it as opinions flew out rapidly, with some insisting they needed to be prioritized more than others despite my assurance that I was going to help those most in need first. I couldn't blame them for being skeptical. We'd seen how Emberich doled out favors to his political allies. Even I was still skeptical.

I hoped I wasn't feeding them a lie by saying they were going to get the help they needed. I hoped Sven was not all talk. It was difficult to pick through what was actually happening with the back-and-forth among the crowd itself, but I managed to get the pertinent information out of them by the end. It took hours, and a lot of a balancing of personalities. But I was able to push through with the no-nonsense attitude I'd learned to adopt in this position early on.

Though I'd never had to deal with anything on this scale before, that attitude was more necessary than ever. If they saw me sweat, they'd tear me apart. We were a race who valued strength. This was not the arena to show I was feeling overwhelmed. Even if that was how I felt.

After everyone had their say, they didn't leave immediately, taking time to mingle and speak to each other.

I heard multiple representatives offering what aid they could. That was what we needed, to come together, not fight and push each other away. It gave me hope, hope that we'd figure out a way to move forward together.

Movement caught my eye, a sure stride in the middle of the milling crowd. I focused on the statuesque redhead, her eyes on me. It was Morgan. Not the person I wanted to see right now.

I didn't know why she disliked me, but I'd come to the conclusion that you couldn't please everyone. This was going to be brutal.

"I know you know what we already need," Morgan stated as she got within earshot.

As she was a representative for my own flock, she was correct.

"Yes," I said shortly. "I'm going to submit our requests just like I'm going to submit everybody else's."

Then I saw David, Elsa, and Sheen coming up behind her. Wonderful. The whole gang was here.

"You need to tell your king that he needs to fix the destruction he's responsible for," David asserted before he even said hello.

I resisted the urge to tell him he wasn't just my king. I had no desire to enter into a useless argument.

"We do not have the resources to fix this ourselves," Elsa added in a more conciliatory tone.

"I know," I agreed, tamping down on my irritation. I knew as much as any of them how much we needed the aid. My flock was never a fan of Emberich's. When I was first chosen for this job, I felt the immediate judgment coming from some members of my own flock. It was as if I'd immediately become lumped in with Emberich, never mind that I was trying my best to help everyone else. Sometimes you had to deal with not-so-pleasant realities if you wanted to get things done.

Over time, many had come around, seeing that I wasn't Emberich's flunky but had the people's interest at heart. But some never let go of their initial reaction. Morgan and David were among the more obvious hold-outs. The fact that they were coming to me now, with that attitude, did not endear them to me. But reacting in frustration and irritation wouldn't help.

Even if slapping Morgan across the face would, no doubt, be therapeutic.

They just wanted what was best for our flock. I wanted that too. I gripped that knowledge tight, using it to bolster my patience.

"I will bring it up when I see him next," I agreed after I'd calmed down a bit. "I will make sure we get the help we need," I reassured them.

Morgan nodded once, though I could see the skepticism behind her eyes. I was sure she wanted me to see it. The others nodded, though I could see they were reluctant to believe it as well. I couldn't blame them for it. They weren't wrong.

We had no idea how Sven was going to behave when action was required. The Crown didn't exactly have a stellar record thus far. Not in our lifetime. With resources stretched so thin...

I felt my stomach give twist with anxiety. I really hoped that I hadn't just lied to my flock.

And everyone else.