At the time, we did not know how or why it happened. It began with a sound, 'twas said. On the heels of that sound, monstrous creatures would appear and slaughter or devour all around them. At first, 'twas isolated in small, far-flung corners of the star. But as the phenomenon spread and grew worse, we realised that it would occur where the aetherial currents of our star were weakest.

[ He pauses, still unable to look directly at Azem. There is helpless resignation in the slump of his shoulders. ]

When it finally came to Amaurot... 'Twas far worse than we could have imagined. The sky rained fire. The earth yawned wide. The winds stilled and the seas roiled red with blood. And as panic spread, our fears were made manifest in the forms of those hideous creatures we had thus far only heard about.