Fagul continued his narration trying to give all details possible to Sile. Sometimes her niece, or one of the other elders would mention something and then Fagul would resume. Sile’s expression changed several times while hearing the narration of the events. 

Those mysterious merchants possessed some kind of power to entrance the masses. In order to not provoke a huge reaction, they started making their moves on small tribes. Once other tribes saw what was happening, those merchants coerced them in order to remain silent.

Those who tried to resist disappeared mysteriously, very few of those who were sent in order to ask for help returned, and those who did, returned with empty hands. The situation was dire, but somehow, those mysterious merchants were capable of preventing the information from being leaked. The masses were entranced and those with power could only sit and watch helplessly.

Merchant caravans started to be more and more uncommon, and those who travelled by these lands seemed to be totally unaware of what was happening.

Two months ago, Fagul and her niece where in their residences discussing some matters, when they suddenly noticed a black glow enveloping the whole city. The next instant, he remembers being in the middle of nowhere marching alongside all of the tribesmen, and in front of them three of those mysterious merchants were fighting against a fierce golden ape.

Each time one of those mysterious merchants was injured, more and more people seemed to regain their senses. They didn’t saw clearly the fight, but that golden ape only rested until the last of the three merchants was beat into a meat pulp. After that, he glanced at the tribes and after roaring it went away.

When they regained their senses almost everybody was scared witless. Everybody seemed to have remembered how strange their own behavior was in the past year. They started to panic, however, Fagul used his faculties as leader to come up with a plan, it wasn’t too brilliant, but it was the only thing they could do.

After confirming their own location, near the border of the Northern Plains with Blade’s Edge pass, they started a journey back to those scattered and abandoned tribes in order to scavenge for things to help such a large group to migrate towards the south.

In the way back they only found signs of another tribe, which were the one of the three elders in front of Sile. They narrated that something similar happened to them, and that after something killed those merchants they regained their mental freedom.

Together they formed a group of about one hundred thousand of what they called the survivors of the Northern Plains calamity, and have been traveling for two months in order to reach the border of the Holy Empire of Ivalice and stablish themselves there.

When Sile heard the description of those merchants, the way in which they attacked, their manners, their appearances, Sile could not associate it clearly to the doings of a specific race. Mindflayer or vampires could charm people in mass and even disguise as humans, but the former would kill them on spot, and the later could not tolerate the daylight.

“Could it be… a demonic race?” Sile said softly in her heart, trying her best to understand the current situation.

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The initial hostility of the three elders towards Sile turned into indifference in no time, then into a more neutral treatment, and at the end they were even friendly with her. Sile’s charisma was unparalleled, it is very hard, even someone that holds a grudge against her, not to get to be somewhat charmed by her.

“There’s a fortress to the southeast big enough to shelter your people. You can count on me to put a definite end to this, I’ll march towards Blade’s Edge Pass with an army and find whatever is threatening the peace of this lands.” Sile said with a resolute tone. Fagul, his niece, and the three other elders nodded in acknowledgement of her plan.

Sile got out of the carriage and let out a long sigh, there were conflicting emotions in her heart and an uneasiness that she couldn’t dispel no matter what. She stayed in the caravan for three days and two nights. Now the caravan was heading towards the fortress Sile told them, following a safe path she told the elders. Sile found that Ferros was a retired warrior and right now was one of the leaders of the militia of the caravan.

After saying her farewells, she summoned her warhorse once again and left the caravan, speeding towards Lengsat’s location.

Lengsat was waiting for Sile near a small pond deep in the woods. When she got close to him, she noticed Lengsat was talking with two robust golden furred apes, and the moment Lengsat noticed her, he immediately dismissed them.

Lengsat looked at Sile and Sile looked back at him.

“How bad is it?” Asked Sile straightforwardly.

“They are trying to awake someone. Whoever requires millions of souls in order to be awakened... You get the idea.” Said Lengsat calmly.

Sile’s face turned extremely solemn, “Are they… dead?” Asked her with great difficulty.

“No.” Replied Lengsat shaking his head, “According to them, whatever they are doing requires to refine the human souls very carefully. They started abducting people about two years ago, but they didn’t abduct more than ten thousand in a month. However…” Lengsat stopped for a moment and said each successive word very carefully, “Two months ago they decided to rush for no apparent reason and abducted everyone who they could abduct, and killed those who they couldn’t.”

Sile’s face turned extremely pale. Her mind was filled with a loud roaring, those words said by Lengsat, and the way he said them, only meant one thing!

“Someone from the Holy Empire of Ivalice warned them about your arrival to the Northern Plains.” Said Lengsat calmly, watching attentively Sile’s reaction.

Sile lowered her head and clenched tightly her fists. She closed her eyes and then compared what Lengsat told her to what she heard from the elders, and everything fitted just perfectly. The lack of information, the rush to abduct people, whoever was behind this had deep connections inside the empire.

She was loyal to an empire which was plagued by the corruption!