In recent times, the Nazedha Empire launched a full-out attack upon all
the cities and factions of Sapience, barring Spinesreach in the far
north; not only employing their vicious, merciless bands of enforcers,
the Empire also sent it its heretofore unknown elite squads into the
fray. Armed with nigh-impenetrable chaos shields and tactics far beyond
the mere denizens of Sapience, they initially presented a terrifying,
unstoppable force.

It seemed that there was no headway against this threat until crafty
entrepreneurs, inspired by Divine visions, appeared to the cities to
sell reliquaries - devices that would store and project the Divine
essence of Sapience's Gods. With each God lending His or Her own unique
affliction that were capable of piercing the Nazedha chaos shields, the
warriors of the cities could finally oppose the elite Nazedha on an
equal footing.

Even then, the war was bitter; Bloodloch, Enorian, and Duiran all
suffered attacks at the hands of the Nazedha forces, and fought back
just as fiercely against the squads and war bands that roamed within the
western reaches of Sapience. With the Nazedha adapting and venturing out
in larger and larger numbers, it seemed that the war would have no end.

End it did, however, culminating in a final assault against the three
southernmost cities. The Nazedha sent the greater part of their immense
army, and though the cities were left devastated and drained of
resources, they were ultimately victorious. It seemed the victory of the
western invaders was imminent, but then their Emperor Baelak did the
unthinkable - he surrendered.

Claiming that his forces had somehow contracted the Aalen Bloom that had
previously plagued Sapience, he explained that his armies and his city
in the western seas had run low on resources, and that his people were
being devastated by the disease. Believing its agency to be the
inhabitants of Sapience itself, he promised concessions and peace
offerings to the various peoples before returning to his homeland,
leaving a Nazedha settlement in the bay where Ashtan once stood.

While its gates as of yet remain closed, he claims that some Nazedha
citizens remain within, suffering the effects of the Aalen Bloom, and
that as of yet they remain quarantined from the homeland and from the
rest of Sapience. Whether this claim turns out to be true or not remains
to be seen, but for the moment, at least, the Nazedha press their
invasion no further.

Penned by my hand on the 10th of Khepary, in the year 370 MA.