Eira gave Cardonis one glance as he spoke once more, sighing lightly as she moved to take her seat.<span style="color: #40BFFF">"You are assuming that he has the power to do such a thing, which he does not. When have you ever known me to take foolish risks?"</span>Her voice remained cold and her words took on the semblance of a question, but it was not one that required an answer. She was not a fool, nor was she reckless, especially in times like these. Every move she had made for as far back as she could remember had been calculated, this trait was only further amplified in times like this. It was foolish of him to believe she would do anything without have a well-calculated idea of the consequences of every word she spoke, every step she took. Every word and every move she made were made with a purpose. She didn't like that being questioned, and if she allowed such emotions it might have been frustrating, but she did not, so she simply brushed it off and moved on.<br/><br/>She listened as each kingdom spoke, offering what aid they could in the form of manpower, weapons, and other necessary supplies. Some offered impressive numbers, while others had no great armies to offer at present. The past three hundred years and lulled the world into complacency, and the great armies of the nation had slowly dwindled to but a fraction of what they might have been in the last war. But this was but a statistic, it meant little in the grand scheme of things. The strength and determination of the people would allow them to build their armies up to a more sizable number, and the great industry that had developed since the last war would allow them a greater number of supplies and weapons.<br/><br/><span style="color: #40BFFF">"As far as manpower goes, Eirwen will provide whatever archers we can, along with our elite guard, groundsmen, and a small number of wizards. We can also provide healers and enchanters from our university."</span>She offered in the way of troops.<span style="color: #40BFFF">"In addition to whatever crystalline weaponry we can spare, we can offer a portion of our typical exports to those that need them."</span>She explained, knowing that many of them already received exports of crystals, rare woods, and certain rare plants from Eirwen. They could not offer much in the way of food, as much of their own food was imported from elsewhere, as the cold mountains were not friendly to many crops, save those grown in the enchanted gardens. Those plants that did grow, however, generally had certain special properties.<br/><br/><span style="color: #40BFFF">"This is not a war than can be won by one of us, nor one that will be won in a day. It will take all of us pitching in whatever aid we can whenever we can. Our best hope is to find our advantages and use them to end this war as quickly as possible. The longer it draws out, the more soul Dardanos will devourer, the stronger he will become, and the less hope we have of succeeding. We cannot afford to be hasty, but likewise we cannot afford to drag our feet."</span>she looked around the room at the other rulers, her gaze astute and calculating.<span style="color: #40BFFF">"I suggest we make whatever plans we can during this meeting, then part ways and make our preparations. I fear it would be unwise for all of us to come together in such a meeting once the war has begun, unless it is under dire circumstances. We cannot make ourselves such easy prey. Any further meetings should be conducted in secret, within your kingdoms, and between no more than two or three rulers at once, to prevent such a gathering from being too convenient a target for Dardanos to resist."</span>she observed as she met the gaze of each ruler, giving them each a chance to disagree, if they wished.<br/><br/><span style="color: #40BFFF">"Whatever suggestions, plans or otherwise that you may have, I suggest you speak your piece now, lest there not be another opportunity to do so."</span>She offered and then fell silent to give the others a chance to speak. She was content to listen to what they had to say as she considered their predicament, as well as the best course of action to take from here. It didn't seem wise to attempt to lay the foundation for the entire war here at this moment, lest Dardanos catch wind of it despite her attempts to block out any of his attempts to find his way here a second time. Nevertheless, they may have no other choice but to lay down a basic plan and go from there. They would have to build on it as the war progressed and things developed and changed, but a foundation must be laid while they were all gathered, despite whatever fleeting risk remained that Dardanos might catch some of what was said. He could not catch all of it.<br/><br/>A large part of their plan must be in the recovery of the weapon that had been forged by the original snow queen centuries ago. It was the only weapon in existence capable of killing either herself or Dardanos. Without that weapon she could weaken him, perhaps even contain the darkness within him, but there was no killing him unless they could recover it. Beyond this, he would be looking for it as well, for he needed it to kill her, so it was imperative that they find it first. Regardless of the fact that this weapon was the only thing that could kill the darkness, she must also prepare for the possibility that either he might find the weapon first, or that neither of them would be able to find it, both of which would require a backup plan. The best option was to find a way to pull the darkness from Dardanos and contain it somehow. The only problem was that she hadn't the slightest idea how to accomplish either of those, nor where to even begin searching for those answer. They were, however, things she must consider, answers she must look for in case they became her only option, and even if the only thing capable of containing that darkness was her, as the original snow queen had once done. She would not bring these issues into the discussion quite yet, as they needed some semblance of a plan to survive this war before they could go diving into the dirty details of how to kill the one behind it.