Kanae and the others returned to Elusis in haste. Kara, Theena, and Seven sat towards the back of the spine. They had a lot to catch up on. However, she couldn't shake being worried about Sivvy. The Knight of Red had been quiet all the way back after being infused with the elemental lord, Elirashj. In the short time she had gotten to know her, the harpy was pretty boisterous and talkative, too.

Once they were back at the East Saviran Trading Association tower, Kanae could sit down with her to see if everything was alright. Archbishop Patrice, Delayn, and Camilla were going to be surprised to find Sivvy alive after all this time.

However, as the group approached Elusis, something seemed very wrong. Harpies swarmed the skies and all about the spires, both under and upper-city alike.

"Shit. I'm taking us down!" Edina exclaimed as a group of harpies broke off and flew their way.

They descended into the canyons below, hiding within the many outcrops and ridges. The necromancer unsummoned her undead dragon, and everyone laid low in the shadows. Elusis soldiers, all harpies wielding weapons with a red hue to them, soared past and scanned the landscape. Two landed on the surface and walked together.

Kanae lifted a finger up to her lips. Their group had squeezed inside a narrow corridor. Any tighter and her tits wouldn't have fit. She struggled to breathe being sandwiched by the earth.

"I swear I saw something in the distance," one harpy said.

"I'm sure you're seeing things. Must've been the heat," the other ribbed his companion.

They flew off and returned to the main group. Kanae poked her head out, and they were flying back to Elusis.

"I think we should walk the rest of the way. Less noticeable than a giant undead dragon," Kanae said.

"If it were up to me, I'd wanna fight my way through. We're at war now, remember?" Edina reminded her.

"Let's just save our strength until we reunite with the archbishop's group." She rolled her eyes.

They climbed out of the canyons and hailed a passing caravan to hitch a ride on. Their cargo was full of hard-shelled fruits and jerky. According to the caravan leader, Elusis had increased taxes that could be paid in the form of foodstuffs. Countless villages and towns were running low on harvests but had no choice. Pay up or have it all taken by force.

The caravan neared the city and stopped at a checkpoint camp. Wagons and other vehicles waited in multiple lines as Elusis soldiers checked their containers. Raised tents were occupied by quartermasters and piles of crates, barrels, and boxes. Some containers were stacked out in the open, and soldiers readily fished into them to pull out something to eat.

When it was finally their turn, a no-nonsense harpy officer of dark brown plumage motioned for them to drive closer. Kanae pulled the cloak tighter over herself. The rest of her group were hidden and spread out in the other cars. Less suspicious that way, but risks the chance of at least one of them being found out.

"Name, town, and dues type," the officer said, holding a quill to his clipboard.

"Massoun. I come from the village of Tarkish. One bushel of ronoa jerky and five bushels of fruits," the beastman villager declared.

Kanae peered out of a hole in the cover. The officer signaled to his soldiers to check the back. She and Red were back here, behind all of the boxes and decoy crates. Both of them prepared for a fight if it came to that.

Harpy soldiers pulled open the flap, and one entered the wagon. Their creaky footsteps drew closer to the back. Red squeezed the bone maul, but Kanae shook her head and motioned to stay quiet. The soldier took a crowbar to a crate and cracked it open, to another, and then walked back outside.

"It's light. There isn't enough jerky to make even half a bushel," she reported.

"You hear that, Mr. Massoun? You're trying to lie to us? Lie to the Harpy King? Skimping out on your taxes during wartime warrants execution," the officer warned, hand on the hilt of his sword.

"No, sir! Please, this is all I can afford to bring. My family will… I… I'll go back and bring the rest. I promise!" Massoun pleaded desperately.

"I've had enough," Red whispered. "I'm not going to sit by and let them strongarm these innocent people."

"I feel the same way, but we're not going to stand a chance against an army. We can save more people later. Just… Let me take care of this," Kanae implored.

The officer was about to give the order to arrest Massoun, but Kanae casted Charm. She quietly compelled the man to be merciful.

"We'll take what you have now, but let it be known that we won't suffer anything less than what is owed!" The officer turned to his soldiers. "Grab what's inside." And to Massoun he said, "Be glad you get to keep your head."

"Th-Thank you, sir!" Massoun cried.

"That was a little harsh for someone charmed." Red chuckled.

"He needed to sound convincing, or someone's going to suspect something!" Kanae shrugged.

Fortunately for them, it worked. After the soldiers unburdened the wagon of its bushels, Massoun was permitted to pass. The remaining vehicles also passed their inspection and fulfilled dues without issue.

Massoun stopped once they were far and out of sight from the checkpoint. Behind the sprawling townhouses of the under-city and beneath the shadows of looming spires, they hopped out of the wagons back in Elusis.

"I can't thank you enough for getting us in. Will you and your fellow villagers be alright?" Kanae asked, shaking Massoun's hand.

"Oh, we'll be alright. We Savirans are tough folks. If the sun and dry lands haven't beaten us down, nothing will. And things are looking up! I've never seen the ground in Elusis so saturated with moisture before!" Massoun grinded his feet into the somewhat muddy dirt.

That wasn't a good sign at all.

They bid goodbye to the villagers and made their way to the association tower, only to find that it was surrounded by Elusis soldiers. The blood in Kanae's veins turned cold as she feared the worst.

"Alright, now it's my turn to hold you back!" Red grabbed her tail before she could fly in there.

"I already lost Petyr and Renya! Patrice, Delayn, and Camilla could still be in there!" Kanae struggled.

"Camilla…" Kara wrung her hands worriedly.

"I got a hunch that they're safe and sound. The tower's all beaten up. They had a fight on their hands," the Knight of Color explained.

Red was right. Those three couldn't be beaten that easily. Kanae had seen them fight on more than one occasion. Even an academic like Patrice was no slouch.

"Thanks, Red. I think I know where they might be," Kanae said.

"Kanae, wait." Theena stopped them. "As much as I want to go with you guys, I need to check on my parents first. I'll meet you all up later."

"It's a cold day in the three hells if I let you go off alone again. I'm coming with," Seven insisted.

"Me, too. I know Camilla's fine. I can't say the same for you if you leave alone." Kara folded her arms.

"You guys… Fine." The Arkesian woman sighed.

Kanae grinned. All three of them had grown up.

"When you're done, go to the temple spire that Mystic Jahree resides in. There should be a latch that can be opened at the base. Or if you guys come in from the upper-city, that also works," Kanae explained.

They went their separate ways as two groups. When Kanae's group arrived at the base of the spire, she didn't expect to find a party going on around the latch. The under-city's downtrodden danced to music, performed prayer in front of totem poles of Glentir, and shared food with each other.

A couple of harpy soldiers patrolled from the air. They traded dirty glances with the people below before flying off.

"We've got harpies approaching from the ground!" someone shouted.

Some of the citizens picked up weapons that were really just kitchen and gardening tools.

"Wait, yeah I'm a harpy. But I ain't even from here!" Red threw her hands up.

"And I'm a succubus! We just want to meet with Jahree!" Kanae insisted.

"Nice try, Elusis dogs. We're not falling for your tricks!" A man charged them with a pitchfork.

Someone parried the tool, a long and thin rapier blade wedged between the prongs. She held a smoking pipe in her free hand that smelled of hash.

"It's cool, it's cool! I know these three. They're with me." Saint Priest Camilla grinned.

"Well… if you say so, Camilla." The man backed off, and so did everyone else and cautiously went back to their merriment.

"Cam!" Red didn't hesitate and dove in for a hug.

"There she is! Big bad Red!" Camilla returned the embrace. "How many years has it been? Sheesh. You've been imprisoned for so long, but it looks like you gained weight. They feed you like royalty or what?"

"The bones they fed me had no flavor, but there was plenty to go around. I kept training, waiting for the right day to break out. Amethyst here was my lucky break!" She glanced over her shoulder and grinned.

Kanae rolled her eyes. "Due in large part to your crazy plan. So, Camilla, did everyone in the association tower get out okay?"

"Come see for yourself." The feline beastman led them through the latch.

They climbed the series of vast stairs and ladders ascending the temple spire, popping out the top in the storage room. The place was buzzing with a lot more activity than the last time Kanae had come here.

People had taken refuge within the many rooms the spire had to offer. Some of them Kanae recognized were residents from the association tower. Archbishop Patrice was dishing out instructions, face buried in a notebook, when she looked up and nearly tripped over herself.

"Amethyst, Red?" Patrice gawked.

"The Knight of Red?" Standing next to the archbishop was Petyr.

"Petyr?!" Kanae gasped and raced up to her. "You're okay! What happened? How?"

"Take a step back before you infect me with your succubus foulness. Yeah, I'm fine. When the spire floors were coming down on me, I put myself on top of Riley. Everything went dark after that. More importantly, you're a sight for fucking sore eyes. Had a nice vacation locked up behind bars?" Petyr zeroed her gaze at Red.

"I could say the same of you, traitor! Haha. Heard from Amethyst you got your ass handed to you fighting for Ortesia. Now, you're back on our side, and you ain't Gold anymore. Must sting~" Red orbited around the paladin and teased.

"Uh, oh. I think Petyr's about to blow." Edina backed away.

Kanae thought the same and stepped back as the high elf's eyes twitched with anger. Then, expectedly, she threw a punch at the harpy. Unexpectedly, Red caught the blow. Unwilling to give an inch, Petyr launched another with her other hand only to get blocked by Red after letting her maul drop. Now, the two were locked in combat.

"Do… Do they have history?" Kanae asked Camilla.

"Before Red got captured and Gold retreated to Ortesia, the previous Grand Eye sent them on missions together to fight demons. They weren't the best of friends. So, yeah. You can call it history." Camilla laughed.

"As Archbishop, I command you both to cease this childish tantrum at once!" Archbishop Patrice boomed.

Petyr wrenched away, and the Knight of Red dropped to one knee.

"Knight of Red, Sivvy Brenhallow reporting for duty! I wasn't present for your ceremony, but congratulations on becoming Archbishop, Professor Starborne. I always thought Gretchen Redbaron was too much of a stick up her ass. According to Amethyst, it's more like she has a dreadmourn cock up her pussy now. Bet that loosened her up real good!" Red snorted.

Archbishop Patrice asked Jahree to find them somewhere private to speak. The man guided them to a tiny mosque dedicated in worship to Demigoddess Threcia. Instead of totem poles that were indicative of Glentir, carvings on stone altars depicted her leading people into battle.

Their footsteps echoed on the way in. The place was mostly deserted, with the exception of a few mystics under Jahree's service, dusting the stone.

The group spent the better part of the afternoon exchanging information. A lot had happened while Kanae was away, and just as much happened on everyone's ends.

"So, Exalted Mystic Ujit has finally passed at last. My heart is heavy with the loss of the greatest shaman of our time," Jahree mourned as it dawned on him that he had to carry her torch.

"Unfortunate. I had hoped to learn more about the coming flood from Ujit. She believed the primal planes and elemental lords were key to stopping it. Red, you have been infused with Elirashj. Can she put a stop to it?" Patrice asked.

"Against an ocean of water? Nope. Hells, I feel her scoffing at the idea inside me. We're gonna need to look elsewhere. All she promised to help us with is in fighting the Harpy King," Red explained.

"We should focus on one problem at a time," Kanae implored them. "If we can defeat the Harpy King, we can turn our full attention to the flood. I'm just not sure how we're going to beat an army of harpies, undead, and two syndicates just by ourselves."

"About that…" The archbishop tugged on the collar of her robe.

Everyone faced Archbishop Patrice.

She continued, "Grand Eye Analise got in touch with me before we were attacked at the association. When I explained our predicament, Her Holiness reached out to Queen Arenade Brightwind, who was in Radevic for your children's enrollment to school. And…"

"And what?" Kanae asked impatiently.

"Queen Arenade formally declared war on Elusis right then and there. She intends to sail to Port Kandis with an army. Radevic has promised to lend a sizable force as well," Patrice answered anxiously.

"Wait a minute. But the Commonwealth and Radevic don't have a fleet," Edina chimed in.

"Correct. They are Rown ships." She flipped through her notepad. "40 Indigon-class cargo ships. They are 350 feet in length and 60 feet from keel to the topmost deck, all provided by Rown Company's Acting Chair Thedia. I may have let slip that Renya Rown had been captured by the Harpy King. They are estimated to make landfall in Port Kandis and cross the Arkesian Wastes in two months' time."

Kanae buried her face into both hands and groaned. She had hoped to rescue the Knight of Red quietly and avoid confrontation altogether. War was on its way to Elusis, whether or not anyone liked it.