“The city had fallen, his parents had died, no shred of their old lives would be left by the shape-shifters, but there were still lords galloping around on horses that could uphold the old rules. The destruction and desperation had afforded Alistair a few moments of freedom to practice magic, but now he would go back to the life of poverty and misery and powerlessness that he had been born to.”
Book:A Kingly Sword