Edina Hackett joined in the rowdy cheers as she and other gamblers, seated around an intricately-woven rug, casted two six-sided dice one after another. Each side was etched with the symbol of a lemon, snake, oasis, coin, handshake, and a sultan. They were playing Sultan's Farce, a game of pure chance. The goal of the game was to declare a symbol and guess the quantity it will end up being. However, the caveat was that no one called sultan, because if a dice lands on the sultan's side, it reduces the total value of the other dice thrown from the same hand by one for everyone. The pot continued to grow until someone won.

Four players shook the dice in their cups. Edina was among them. A group of people watched from behind, beer and cigars in their hands.

"Two serpents!"

"Three handshakes!"

"One coin!"

"One snake," Edina said and licked her teeth.

Everyone tossed their dice. One man ended up with a snake and handshake. A second rolled two oases. The third got a lemon and sultan. Last, Edina's dice settled on a snake… and sultan. Since there were two snakes in play, her Sultan reduced the total by one. She had won. The spectators cheered while the losing gamblers cursed their luck.

"Hehe. Mine for the taking!" Edina reached for the wooden tray that contained a small pile of gold.

"Hold it right there, you little bitch." A human player plunged a knife into the tray, and the room fell silent. "I smell a cheat. Your dice. They're weighted, aren't they?"

"You can cut them open for all I care. Now, quit being a sore loser and let go. Or are you giving me your dagger, too? Because I like that green gemstone on the pommel." The squirreling eyed the man's weapon with a glint in her eyes.

Ticked off, the angry human grabbed Edina by the collar of her robe. But a blade levelled on his neck petrified him. An undead warrior yanked the man backwards, and she collected her winnings and a new dagger.

"Feel free to try your luck against me later, loser!" Edina sneered.

On the way out, she ran into Kara and Camilla sitting in the back. Both of them had been watching the entire time. A bowl of eaten fruits rested between them with only their cores left. The Saint Priest was enjoying herself with a little smoke from a long pipe.

"Is gambling really all that fun?" Kara asked nervously.

"Don't do it, Kara." Camilla shook her head. "That's how you form bad habits. You're going to lose all your money, when it could be spent on something much much better!"

"It's only fun when you bag the dough." Edina winked.

The Saint Priest emptied the spent ashes into the fruit bowl and jumped to her feet. Edina noticed worry written all over the feline beastman's face.

"Have you seen Amethyst? A whole day has passed, and she hasn't reported in. Archbishop Patrice starts getting lecture-happy when nervous, and Delayn and I have to be at the receiving end!" Camilla groaned.

"Last I heard, Kanae and Renya went to bust some heads at a place called Bar Ingot. I'm sure they're just taking their sweet time. Kanae likes to get down and dirty for days at a time." Edina brushed off their concerns.

"Can you check on them for the archbishop's sense of mind?" the Saint Priest asked.

Edina relented, but not without a sigh. Her searches hadn't exactly been successful. Petyr was still missing. Could be dead for all she cared. The three of them headed upstairs to the squirreling's room.

Although Camilla cruised right in, Kara hesitated to enter when Edina opened the door. She had temporarily converted it into her lair. The middle of the room had a ritual circle painted in animal blood. Pillar of the Damned and the Scythe of Soul Reaping hung from a coat rack. Edina grabbed the staff on her way into the circle.

Camilla drew the drapes and threw open the windows to let fresh air in. She met the gaze of a falcon perched on the outcrop.

"Perfect timing." Edina seized control of the falcon with Charm, compelling it to come in. She extended an arm for the bird of prey to land on, only to absorb its lifeforce. Kara and Camilla grimaced as necromantic energies coursed through its small body. A few withered feathers shedded, and the flesh on its head sloughed off to reveal half its skull.

The falcon had become undead, and Edina its master. She sent it flying out of the association tower. In the next blink, the necromancer saw through the falcon's eyes. It rocketed through the skies with ease, and before long, Edina had found Bar Ingot. Her falcon landed on the bar's signpost.

Drunk people came and went, but no sign of the succubus or dark elf Edina was looking for. The ground outside Bar Ingot seemed recently-disturbed though, and not by the usual foot traffic.

"Where the fuck did those two go?" Edina wondered aloud, almost forgetting that the others were in the room with her.

"What do you see?" Camilla asked.

"Nothing yet. I'm gonna fly up to the second story," she said.

The falcon flew up to a window sill on the upper floor of the tavern. Keen predator eyes peered past the curtains into a lavish bedroom and office. Suddenly, she got a face full of ass. Minotaur ass.

"Oh, come back to bed~" a woman's voice pleaded.

"Later," the minotaur answered in a gruff manner. "The Harpy King wants us to move out soon. Renya's finally out of the picture. Rown Company will be mine for the taking."

"Going to become a big shot now, hmm? Don't forget us when you're up in those spires now," another woman cooed.

"I heard you got into a scuffle with a succubus, too? How was that? Was she every bit as sexy as the stories say?" the first one asked.

He chuckled. "Heh. Not as sexy as you two. But the succubus won't be a problem anymore. I delivered them straight to the Opalescent Spire. The Harpy King's sending her to Buhar. His Right Talon will see to it that she never sees the light of day again. All thanks to me! Bahahah!"

Edina backed out of the falcon and gasped. They got Kanae and Renya. Shit.

"What's the matter?" Camilla asked. "Did you run into Kanae getting spitroasted?"

"I wish! The two dumbasses got captured. Kanae's getting sent to Buhar. Not sure where Renya is. I'm flying to the Opalescent Spire to see what I can find next," Edina said.

"Hey, hold on. Amethyst has been what?!" the Saint Priest choked on her spit.

Returning to the falcon, Edina pushed her undead minion to its limit. Half-way there, it occurred to her that a bird flying around inside the spire would look suspicious. She compelled the falcon to do what it did best— hunt. Like an arrow flying through the air, it descended at break neck speeds and spotted a rodent rummaging through trash in the under-city. Her falcon captured it in the blink of an eye and veered back up into the air.

They landed unnoticed in one of the many openings along the Opalescent Spire. Edina transferred the necromantic energies on the falcon into the rodent, seizing control of it next. But the giant spire might as well be a country to a fist-sized rat. Just like trying to search for Petyr, this was going to take a while. The undead rat wandered about and ran into a hairless cat.

"Uh, oh." Edina gulped.

The cat pounced. But the rat was quicker. It gave chase down the length of a long corridor.

"Edina? W-What's going on?" Kara panicked.

"Stupid cat! Get away from my minion! It's dead anyway. Grrr. Go find something else to kill!" Edina yelled.

Unfortunately, in a straight pursuit, the cat was much faster. It drew closer until someone swooped the yowling beast up.

"Lory, where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you." A young human woman cradled the struggling cat.

"Hah. Sucker! Now to— wait a sec…" Edina's undead rat skidded to a stop and glanced back.

That wasn't just any human. Dark brown hair, sad look, early 20s… Her face wasn't painted like it was back during the fight near Maraag's Crossing. She even possessed the bow with an enchanted bowstring. What was her name again? Thee… Thee…

It completely slipped Edina that she was mouthing the name out aloud.

"Theena? Do you see Theena?" Kara shook Edina by the shoulders.

"Hey! Stop that!" Edina pushed back.

"What's gotten into you, Kara? Let Edina do her thing!" Camilla pulled her sister off the ritual circle.

When Edina returned to the undead rat, Theena was staring at and looming over her. The human snatched her off the floor before she could escape.

"You're… undead? This couldn't be Riben's. But the only other necromancer in Savir is…" Theena gasped, her eyes snapping open.

The next thing Edina knew, they were inside a bedroom. Theena's room. Theena put the undead rat down on the table. Her cat, Lory, pawed and meowed incessantly on the other side of the door.

"You're Edina, aren't you? From the edirashem back in Avanesse?" Theena asked.

"What have you done with my friends, you bitch?!" Edina shouted.

"I… I'm sorry. Kanae's being taken to Buhar. Renya's locked up somewhere in the spire. But you have to help Kanae. Seven, he… They plan to infuse him with an elemental in Buhar. It's a dangerous ritual. He could die if you don't help him!" she cried.

Kara jumped back into the ritual circle and put a hand on Edina's Pillar of the Damned.

"Theena, it's me!" Kara exclaimed. "What was that about Seven? Where are you?

"Kara… I don't expect you to ever forgive me, but—"

"Shut up. Shut up, shut up, shut up! You left us alone in Bravost. Do you know how worried sick we were? It's because of you that Seven ran off to Elusis. You're the reason why he's in danger now, and… and…" She couldn't finish her sentence on account of choking up.

"I know. It is my fault. I only learned what happened to Seven the other day when Nasiri brought Kanae to the spire. I thought I could protect you two, but I was wrong. Please, Edina, Kara, and anyone else listening. We can't stop the war, but you can save Kanae and Seven," the human woman explained.

A heavy knock came to the door.

Edina felt a shiver run up her undead rodent's spine. Theena opened a book and placed it on top of the rat. She answered the door to a wave of necromantic energy entering the room.

"R-Riben?" Theena stepped backwards as the elven necromancer Riben Crow entered, followed by the Necronomicon flying in beside him.

"The thing about necromancers is that we can sense each other's magic. After all, we draw from the same plane." Riben's gaze flicked to the book.

The undead rat was about to take off running until the Necronomicon opened its pages. Tendrils made of necrotic magic grabbed hold of Theena and the rat.

"You're… choking me…" Theena struggled to breathe.

"Edina Hackett. We meet again," Riben taunted. "Still after my Necronomicon? You can have it once I've resurrected my family."

"At the cost of what? Hundreds of thousands of lives? And Arenade thinks I have an evil bone in my body. You're sick in the head. I'm a betting squirreling, and I wager you won't come out of this getting what you want," she fired back.

"And who's going to stop me? You? Your imprisoned succubus friend? Or—"

Lory the cat jumped onto the desk and interrupted them. She chomped down on the rat, then made a run for the door.

"Hey!" Riben snapped.

Necronomicon spewed forth necrotic tendrils to capture Lory, but Theena drew her bow and tugged on the drawstring. The woman loosed a lightning-infused arrow that plunged into Riben's chest and electrocuted him, as well as the living grimoire.

"Run, Lory!" Theena yelled.

"It's just a rat! Oh, what the three hells…" Edina released control of the rat and inhabited the undead falcon next. She flew into the corridor just as Theena burst out from her room, slammed the door shut behind her, and shot an ice arrow at the knob. "Grrr. We better be able to trust you. We're at the East Saviran Trading Association outpost in the under-city. Make sure no one's following you!"

"Okay, but… never mind." She shook her head and ran off to get Lory.

Edina returned to herself, back in the room with Camilla and Kara staring at her worriedly.

"What just happened? You gave the enemy the location of our hideout?" Camilla gawked.

"Well, if you put it like that… I mean, Theena sounded like she was in hot shit after shooting Riben! Maybe she's friendly after all?" Edina anxiously pressed her index fingers together.

"I have to warn Archbishop Patrice…" the Saint Priest rushed out.

They hurried after Camilla, following her into the archbishop's bedroom where Patrice and Delayn were nose deep in books. Actually, Patrice was. Delayn slept on a pile of books instead.

"Your Grace, we may have unwanted company approaching. We should warn Shaheed and prepare to fight back if such a need arises," Camilla explained.

"Wait!" Kara interjected. "We're talking about Theena. Please, don't hurt her!"

"I'm sorry, child. But we cannot take chances. Camilla, go tell our gracious host. Delayn and Edina, with me. We prepare to defend the association with our lives whether or not Amethyst is here." Archbishop Patrice picked up her staff, and Delayn stirred from her slumber.

The group descended to the association tower's first floor with all of the merchant guild's muscle. All 50 of them. They were fucked if a real fight broke out. Lucky for them, Edina was a walking army generator. If all 50 fell, well… that was another 50 to her personal army that their enemies were going to have to face.

An hour passed with no one having attacked yet. Even so, they stood vigilant. Edina summoned Death Knight Cantu just in case. She possessed four more death knights and two undead dragons if it was warranted. The only one not to wield a weapon was Kara, who Camilla had stand behind her.

Then a sharp whistle pierced the air. Someone from the upper floor signalled from the stairwell.

"One figure approaching. Hooded. Female. Holding something in her arms," the man announced.

"Steady. We don't know who else is with her," Shaheed warned.

The door creaked open, and a battered Theena stumbled in cradling Lory. An association grunt drew his sword, only for Kara to push past Camilla and race out. They held each other's gaze for a while, and then Kara slapped Theena across the face. She hugged the human girl tightly and began to sob.

Edina exchanged glances with the Saint Priests. Delayn inched over to the door to peer outside. She turned back to them and shook her head. The same scout from the second floor also waved that it was clear outside.

Better a false alarm than anything else. Shaheed called off the association guards. Edina, Patrice, Delayn, and Camilla walked up to the tearful girls, who were still on their knees and crying.

"Ugh. The cat." Edina glared at Lory, the dead mouse still in her mouth.

Once Kara and Theena had a moment to recompose, the former agent of the Harpy King told them everything.

"The Harpy King will begin flying his forces toward Bravost by the end of the week. I… I don't know if there's anything that can stop him," Theena confessed.

"And Amethyst had to go get herself captured at a time like this. I feel like she let it happen. That dirty succubus… Archbishop, this changes things. I think it's best if you use Elizabeth's teleportation pellet to escape. If you insist that we continue our mission here, Camilla and I can stay to see it through," Delayn explained.

"Escape? A silly notion." Archbishop Patrice snorted.

"But, Your Grace—"

Patrice reached into her person and fished out the tiny teleportation pellet. She breathed magic into the device and was about to activate. Edina recognized what was about to happen, having been sucked in before.

However, the archbishop tossed it over her shoulder. It landed across the room just as the teleportation spell happened. A vase and some chairs nearby had vanished. Delayn stared aghast at what Patrice had done, jaw hanging open.

"You… Did you just…" Delayn stammered.

"Yes, I did." Patrice rose to her feet, eyes brimming with resolve. "The time to act was yesterday. With Amethyst gone, the authority to command an order hall of the Knights of Colors falls to me. Edina, as a member of Amethyst Hall, I task you with flying to Buhar. Your mission: to set Amethyst free and find the Knight of Red rumored to be there."

"Y-You got it!" Edina saluted.

The archbishop continued, "Delayn, Camilla. We can afford to stand idle no longer. We are not the same Radevic from before Ortesia invaded. Our idleness was a cancer. Never forget Grand Eye Analise making history by standing against the empire. Which is why we will not idle now either. By imprisoning one of our own, Elusis and the Harpy King have proven themselves enemies of Radevic. If Petyr and Renya are still in this city, we will find them. To that end, I enact Aidenhall's ancient protocol— Shield Discarded, Sword Unsheathed— the Saint Priests' highest priority is no longer to safeguard me, but to fulfill my orders at whatever the cost: end the Harpy King's tyranny."

"Yes, Archbishop!" Delayn and Camilla boomed.