Agent Nadu Chennai coughed hard as she woke to darkness. She looked around for any signs of light but could see nothing. She felt around her but all she felt was rock. A thought suddenly dawned on her and quickly felt around for something but did not find what she was looking for in the darkness. She needed light. Any light. She thought for a moment and then felt herself. Her Agency armor had deployed itself, she expected that, but she looked for a slim, pen-like object inside one of her side pockets and when she found it she smiled, pressed a button and the pen-like object brightly illuminated the area. Nadu saw there was rock all around her, but most importantly she saw what she was most concerned about lying on the ground of the cavern nearby – Aoife.
As they fell into the abyss Nadu quickly threw her Seracon armor at Aoife which promptly deployed all around her. But even with the Seracon armor Aoife had a deep, nasty gash on her head. Nadu quickly scanned the rock to see if the Monolith was also part of the space but the rock looked like plain, old rock. The space around them both was big enough for Nadu to stand up in but just barely. She went over to Aoife, knelt down next to her and assessed her condition. Apart from the deep gash on her head, there were no apparent broken or twisted bones. The armor had did its duty. Nadu stood up, looked around again, then walked up to one part of the cavernous wall and assessed it for any openings. She put her face against the rock as she went to look for air pockets and after several minutes she felt a slight breeze pierce through the rock wall. Then she heard Aoife stir groggily behind her.
"Your Serene Highness?" Nadu called out softly. Aoife stirred a bit more. Nadu went over to her and knelt next to her.
"Your Serene Highness?" Nadu said softly as she gently raised Aoife up and leaned her up against one of the rocks.
"My head…" Aoife started.
"Has a significant gash. That is what you may be feeling. Nadu replied. Aoife looked at her.
"Who are you?" Aoife asked.
"Agent Nadu Chennai." Aoife looked around.
"Where are we?" Aoife asked.
"Deep inside Deapers Mountain still. Do you recall what happened?" Nadu asked.
"I recall taking one helluva of a fall." Aoife replied.
"That we did."
"How the heck did I survive?" Aoife asked but the look on Nadu's face made her suddenly scan herself. "Armor?"
"It's Seracon armor. I threw it at you to protect your fall."
"How did you survive?" Aoife asked.
"I have my own Agency armor." Nadu replied. Aoife squinted hard and was about to grab her head but Nadu stopped her.
"Your Serene Highness, we need to tend to your wound, but we need to get you out of here first."
"I need to feed." Aoife replied.
"The gash on your head is deep and may not be entirely resolved through your Succubus healing abilities." Nadu stood up and went right back to the place where she felt the airgap and tried to see if she could see through it. She shook her head then stepped back.
"What are you planning to do?" Aoife asked.
"This airgap means there is an opening that either leads deeper into the mountain or upward and out. I need to assess how far down we are and whether that Monolith is nearby. Hopefully, he's knocked out instead of waiting for us to emerge so he can finish the job." Nadu replied.
"I'm all about taking risks."
"No doubt, Your Serene Highness."
"Can we agree on something here?" Aoife asked.
"What is that, Your Serene Highness?"
"Stop calling me that. Don't get me wrong, I love the accolade but there's a time and place for it." Aoife replied. Nadu offered a brief smile. "What's so funny?"
"The Princess Royal is very much the same way." Nadu replied.
"Well, she is my daughter after all." Aoife replied. Nadu assessed the airgap area again, stepped back and then kicked the rock. Rock around the area quickly fell, but the kick exposed enough of a hole for Nadu to crawl safely through.
When she emerged on the other side she used her penlight to scan the area. She looked up and calculated they had fallen a mile and half downward. She scanned the area to see if she could see any signs of the Monolith but all she saw were cavernous pathways and wet cliffsides. Nadu turned and peered back through the hole she created.
"Aoife, I see some pathways. I need to see which one would be the best route up. Will you be fine?"
"Yeah, just hurry back."
"I will. Stay inside here and stay in the armor. It will help keep you warm."
"I will." Aoife replied.
"And try and stay awake."
"Okay."
After about two hours, Nadu returned to a sleeping Aoife on the cavern ground. Nadu went over to her and knelt down quickly.
"Aoife?" Nadu said as she gently lifted her head and pushed away the hair from her face. No response.
"Aoife?" Nadu called out again.
This time Aoife woke up groggily but this time her baby blues were on. She seized Nadu by the head, rolled over on top of her and proceeded to feed off her. Nadu allowed it for she understood Aoife needed to feed. But then Aoife locked eyes with Nadu, lowered her head and kissed Nadu deeply which both surprised and intrigued Nadu. Their kiss lasted for several long minutes, their legs intertwined as they embraced. Then Aoife broke the kiss but continued the flow of chi as she fixated her baby blues on Nadu who met her intense gaze. When Aoife reached down with her one hand between Nadu's legs Nadu seized Aoife by the neck. They momentarily locked eyes and desires then Nadu bucked Aoife off her and then rolled over and up on her feet. Aoife was shocked.
"I've never had anyone break one of my holds. Ever." Aoife said.
"I'm an Agent. I'm am trained to handle even the… strongest of Succubi or Incubi. No offense." Nadu replied.
"None taken. Rather…I should…apologize." Aoife said as she slowly stood up off the ground.
"I realize you had to feed, and I knew I was in no danger. Clearly." Nadu replied.
"Clearly. You are…compelling though." Aoife complimented. Nadu took in a deep breath.
"You know, once this is over maybe we can…" Aoife began.
"Did the feed help? You think you can make the ascent?" Nadu interrupted.
"Okay. How high?" Aoife asked.
"About a mile and half." Nadu replied.
"We fell that far?" Aoife asked.
"Be thankful we didn't fall deeper. There is a cliff drop a few outside of this opening that seems to go on for another four miles." Nadu said.
"Are you kidding?"
"No." Nadu replied.
"Well, let's hope that our Monolithic friend fell down that one." Aoife said.
"I agree. It will at least buy us some time. There are some caverns that will cut short our ascent time, but we will also need to climb." Nadu said as they made their way out of the cavern
An hour and half later they emerged out of Deapers Mountain and made their way down one of the mountain paths and then walked another mile through the deep woods when Nadu suddenly stopped, dug into a nearby bushel of leaves, pulled out a small device, pressed a button on it and transvortex opened in front of them.
"What's this?" Aoife asked.
"You have no idea with whom you have conspired with. Rumlar is of the most dangerous Agents in the Realm, and if he knows you're still alive and still on this plane he will pursue you until you are dead. So we need to get you off this plane." Nadu replied.
"So I'm off to the Presidium?" Aoife queried.
"No. We need to secure you away entirely at an undisclosed location." Nadu replied.
"Wait a minute! Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt and the store it came in!" Aoife said.
"You are not going to a prison." Nadu replied.
"You mean one with no bars. Perhaps glass walls instead?"
"None of the kind." Nadu replied.
"What about Bo?"
"What about her?"
"Wouldn't she want to know about all of this?"
"Unfortunately, The Princess Royal cannot know anything about what has happened until things are clearer." Nadu replied.
"She's The Princess Royal!"
"You must understand, an attempt was made on the life of The Queen herself by the same forces that conspired to kill you here. I need to get you to safety and then we can assess." Nadu replied.
"On what plane of existence are you pigeon-holing me on?" Aoife asked.
"The one where we can control the circumstances. The Aennoran Deep."
"That doesn't sound like Bora Bora." Aoife quipped.
"The Aennoran Deep is actually quite beautiful. It may provide you with the peace you're looking for."
"What makes you think I'm looking for peace?" Aoife queried
"I can taste it. In every vein of you." Nadu replied.
"What kind of Fae are you?" Aoife asked incredulous.
"Let's get you to safety." Nadu said as she took Aoife by the arm and then they both stepped into the transvortex.
