Once more in the hellish caverns of the Abyss beneath Ison, Kaden confidently set foot into the home of the devilish Koronai. The heat was as oppressive as always, and the second he was off the ladder, it began to retract back towards the ceiling via the rope and the urging of Loku's hands. The man might have been old, but he still tended the ladder better than the youngest of slaves.

After surveying the barren landscape glowing red from the Blood of the World, Kaden realized he had no real idea where to go in order to find a Koronai. Preferably a smaller one.

"I know that look."

The familiar woman's voice startled Kaden. He twisted and laid eyes upon Princess Lyla. The princess looked like she'd sliced her way through an entire horde of demons and suffered no ill effects herself. None, that was, unless one counted her bedraggled hair draping over her head and Koronai ichor on her clothes that clung to her while soaked in her own sweat.

"Wait—What—How?"

"How am I in the Abyss?" The annoyance at such a question contained a certain unpleasant attitude.

"Yeah. I mean, did Loku let you down here?"

"There are ways into the Abyss other than through the Gap," the princess stated. "Secret ways. Ways that existed long ago and that still exist today."

Kaden accepted her cryptic reply without probing any further. "How did you know I was coming down here?"

"How do I know everything that you're doing?"

"Hernah." Kaden cursed under his breath. He'd been so focused on his work with modifying the breastplate, the tubing, and the essences, that Kaden had forgotten all about her and how the slave enjoyed sneaking and lingering at the princess's request. "All right, so I know how. But what are you doing down here?"

"Fighting Koronai, of course. Just like my ancestors did. Don't seem so surprised. You've seen how well I fight. So, are you going to join me?"

Kaden's eyes shot the princess a wide stare. "What if someone comes down here and sees us?"

"There won't be anyone other than you and I for the next twelve hours. The schedule was modified to ensure we would not be disturbed."

"Well, I wasn't planning on staying down here for that long."

"Why is that, Karo Shar?"

"Well, I was just looking to conduct a test."

Princess Lyla sauntered across the distance between them, putting her fingertips on his breastplate above where his essences were stored. "You've modified the design already?" she said, looking up at him with uncharacteristically doe-like eyes.

"It's got a Rage and a Courage ready. Also, a Sorrow to bring me down off the high when I no longer need it."

Now her fingers began tracing the metal as though it were his skin and she thought to arouse him. "And how does it work?"

"Well, pretty simple, actually. I just stick my thumb under the breastplate here." Kaden demonstrated, but did not break the vial's seal. "And push."

"The same dose as before? When we fought and then we fucked?"

Kaden blushed. "Yeah."

"You should be fine then. Until we have to worry about others stumbling down here." She pulled away. "Come, follow me."

"Where are we going?"

The princess used one of her swords to point at one opening in particular that she was now walking towards. "There are Greater Koronai this way. Down about three or four levels."

"More than one?"

The princess halted and gave him a hard stare. "Yes, more than one. The Greaters tend to roam in packs of three or four."

Kaden gulped. "Three? Or four?"

"Does that scare you, Karo Shar?"

"I've never fought a Greater Koronai," Kaden admitted to his fear. He didn't see it as weakness, although a true warrior might have. "Much less three or four of them."

"Well, they're not as menacing as a Night Terror. Not individually. But they are quite formidable in groups, They are highly intelligent and use better than crude tactics. I could fight them all myself and slay them, but I want to do it with my future husband. The man who will be at my side when we throw my brother off the throne, and I claim rule of Ison. If you can stand one on one with me, then you can also fight the pack of Greater Koronai." The princess, having given him a pep talk, resumed her trek into the Abyss.

"I'll take your word for it," Kaden conceded.

"I am not leading you astray, Karo Shar. I have every intention of making you my husband and having you rule at my side. Not as an equal, of course. But still a ruler. I will need not just a strong warrior, but one who's mind is sharper than his muscles are hard. It is a sad fact that princesses and queens of Imeron needed such."

"Wait, did you say queens?"

"Yes, I did." She stopped again and once more judged him. "Have you not even looked at the book I gave you?"

"Been working on this." Kaden pointed to his breastplate.

The princess released a heavy sigh laced with irritation. "Before men decided that they, and they alone, were to rule this world, Queens often ruled Imeron. The Princess of Ieron, leader of the Sava Warrioresses, Protector of the Barren Sands, sat upon Imeron's High Throne at least half the time. But, the problem was that Queens did not tend to sit long upon the throne."

"Well, from what I understand, until recently that was pretty much the norm for anyone."

"Even so, queens were much shorter lived as monarchs in general."

"Why?"

"Why?" The princess resumed walking, and each breath brought more words of explanation to Kaden's ears. "Biology. While the Sava Warrioresses were formidable fighters, the unfortunate thing is that we must produce heirs. I've never been pregnant, but have been around many other women who have. Sometimes you can barely tell they are with child. But, mostly, a woman's body changes significantly. And in the later stage, particularly during the actual birthing of children, a woman is particularly vulnerable. In fact, at that point, she's only as strong as those protecting her. A typical queen might have produced one heir before someone did her in. A superb queen perhaps two, or maybe even three. But never enough to maintain a line for very long and replace the competition with her own spawn. Men, unfortunately, are much more equipped to quickly produce many heirs without the curse of having to bear them themselves."

Kaden wasn't about to get into the politics of men versus woman and the topics the princess was now discussing. In fact, his father used to always say, 'Whatever a woman says, just agree. It will make your life easier.' "The way you speak of it," Kaden admitted, "it does seem unfair."

"Unfair or not is not the point. It is what it is. Relying on others to protect you adds complication. Upset the wrong person, and they aid the plot against you rather than defend you. If that person is someone you trust, unknowing that you've upset them, you'll be dead before the next sunrise. And you only have yourself to blame." Princess Lyla paused then added, "I trust you, Kaden."

Her using his given name stunned him. "Wait. You called me Kaden? Not Karo Shar?"

"Does that offend you that I didn't use the title given to you by brother? Does it break your ego?"

"N—No. It doesn't. I actually appreciate it. But you've always called me Karo Shar."

"I will call you what I please to call you when I call you."

"S—Should," Kaden fumbled over his question. "Should I call you just Lyla, then?"

"If you wish to. But only in private. Never in public. Just as I would never not call you Karo Shar in public."

Kaden nodded. "I'm sorry, I was stunned by it."

"Kaden, I say this again. I am serious when I say I want you by my side. Yes, we have a common enemy. And that makes us allies. But in you, I see things that I find attractive. Particularly your mind. Your intellect is something that I find arousing. And while, I do wish that you were a little older, and a little more muscular, you've filled in quite nicely with Touran's salves and your relatively short period of training. Now, enough of this petty small talk. I want to see how we fight together after the other day in the arena fighting against each other."

Kaden allowed the topic to change. "Can you at least give me some pointers on facing Greater Koronai?"

"Watch out for those that will come up behind your back. While one distracts you, others will try to outmaneuver you. If you let them do that, they'll tear you apart. So keep your head on a swivel. Got that?"

"Got it."

Together, they proceeded downward, through the empty caverns of the Abyss, emptied out by those who had come recently before them.

"Can I ask you another question?" Kaden eventually asked.

"Yes, you may."

"How do you fight so well without using essences like Rage and Courage to bolster your abilities?"

"Sava Warrioresses are trained to harness their own inner emotions, and draw strength from them. But—" Lyla halted suddenly.

"What is it?"

"You've been distracting me. I just realized I don't hear anything."

Kaden strained his ears as well. "Me either. So?"

"So, Greater Koronai are not generally very quiet. They should be in the area and making quite the ruckus."

Kaden drew the Rohs Fang from his back, realizing he wasn't ready for battle. "Maybe they left."

"Not likely. The more logical explanation is these are just particular cunning specimens. Be ready. If you want my advice? I'd take your essences now."

Kaden agreed with that sentiment. Using his thumb under his armor, realizing how awkward the motion the new arrangement required was and determined to refine that small problem following this test, he broke the seals on the Rage and the Courage. Both pumped into him within seconds and his body reacted as the pumping of his heart helped draw in the vapors. Kaden winced as felt the affects strike him. His bravery and muscles assuming their artificial heights, he readied.

Lyla encouraged him to follow, but spoke no further words as she began to descend deeper and lead the way. Several fresh piles of human remains contained so little flesh that they qualified as nothing more than bones and liquified goo. The princess did not stop to worry about the dead. She only proceeded onward.

Several minutes later, she called a halt by simply stopping, and Kaden followed suit. "We're being watched," she said in a whisper.

"Watched? By who?" Kaden looked around. "Or more appropriately, by what?"

"Above us." She must have noticed he was getting ready to cast his eyes upwards. "Don't look at it?"

In a hushed tone matching that of the princess, Kaden said, "I don't even know what I'm not supposed to be looking at."

Lyla's grip on her swords tightened, then relaxed. "A Shadow Koronai. A succubus. Beware, if you look into her eyes for more than a moment, she'll possess you and drag you down. Have sex with you and spawn more Koronai before feeding on you after she's removed all your seed."

The mere thought terrified Kaden. "What do we do?"

"What do we do?" the princess echoed his question, then leaned in to reply. "We're going to kill it."