"Would it not be better to wait here for help?"
"There's likely a reason why those who are after you chose to blow you down here, Princess. If I had to guess, they were planning to either send you down here with that Yaksha person in the event that Carolina or any of your guards were around. Then after they were killed, you would be carried over to wherever the extraction point is. If Yaksha was not caught within the Dome's explosion, then people would be sent from various places within this sewer level to come finish off your guards, and then take you. As much as the explosion was enough to destroy the thick layers of concrete and whatever else these floors are made off, it seems like it was… configured, not to cause too much harm to flesh and blood. I guess whoever these people are, they don't want you dead, and they don't care if you get injured either."
Relovan slowly got to his feet after speaking, and looked down at the Princess.
"So then what should we do, Enforcer?"
"I just need a second or two to get my bearings straight and think. In the past, I had to memorise a number of schematics that covered the sewers of this city, so if I can just tap in to my memory, I might be able to come up with a route for us to take."
"You had to memo… do all Enforcers have to do that?"
"Enforcers? Not so much. Invaders? More than likely."
Relovan then fell silent for a minute or two, before looking up at the ceiling of the level again.
"If I recall correctly, there are only two ways to enter or exit sewer levels. One exit leads up to the levels directly above via an elevator, while the other leads to the levels below. There is no other way to enter or exit."
"Do you know which lift is in which direction, Enforcer?"
"One is to the East, and the other is to the West."
Relovan said this as he dug inside his pocket, searching for his Communicator. He pulled it out and flipped it open, only to find that the screen had been cracked to oblivion.
"Well, shit. How did this happen when the screen was flipped shut?"
The Princess chuckled and Relovan looked at her and shrugged.
"If this is the case, we might have to wait for a bit."
"For help to arrive?"
"In a sense."
Relovan took a deep breath and closed his eyes, taking a second to activate his sense again. It took a little bit longer to do this time, and even once it was active, it didn't seem to be as effective as it was before.
"So there's a limit to how much I can actively use this, huh?"
"Excuse me?" The Princess asked as she tilted her head in confusion.
"No, nothing… I was just speaking to myself. Anyway, I'm curious Princess, do you have any idea who this person coming after you could possibly be?"
"Unfortunately, I don't, Enforcer. I am neither high up in the list of successors nor powerful enough to be a threat to somebody within my family, and that means it's likely somebody who is after my…"
The Princess suddenly stopped speaking and covered her mouth, before looking up at Relovan. It was as if she remembered she didn't know Relovan at all, and exposing secrets about herself was a bad idea. Relovan though just crouched down in front of her, and smiled.
"I already know you have some special eyes, Princess Nkanyezi. Eyes that are desirable to certain people because of the power they possess. But those people will not prevail, at least not today. They have come up against an unstoppable force today."
"An unstoppable force?"
"That's right; the Law."
Relovan's smile grew wider, before he stood up and started stretching again, loosening his body.
"So just sit tight and wait right here… I'll be right back."
Relovan turned to his left and suddenly dashed off in that direction, prompting the Princess to call for him. Relovan moved with such speed that a mini gust of wind blew her robes about and he turned his body to the side. His boots slid along the ground and he bent over a bit as he raised his guards. An Essence imbued mace zoomed over the Enforcer's head from around the corner, and just as he came to a stop, he reached up with his left hand and grabbed the wrist of the one that attempted to take his head off. Relovan pulled the wrist towards him as he sprang up and unleashed an uppercut that not only snapped the attackers head back, but produced a sound akin to the explosions that his fist made during his final sparring session with Chief Nura. The attacker's body immediately went limp, and Relovan released his wrist, before darting backwards and avoiding another weapon. This time, he slid to the side, turned his body and drove a left hook directly to the body of the good that had swung the weapon. Immediately afterwards, he delivered a short left uppercut which also snapped the second attacker's head up, and finished the attack with a straight right that sent the goon crashing into the wall, before slumping down to the ground. Relovan took a few deep breaths as he stood to up straight and then quickly made his way back to the Princess.
"Are you alright, Enforcer?!"
"I'm fine. We have to move, Princess Nkanyezi. I think I may have figured out which way to go."
"O-Okay."
"First thing's first, though." Relovan positioned his hands as if he was about to do the salute again, but took a knee and bowed his head completely. "Princess Nkanyezi, I, Police Enforcer Relovan sincerely apologise for having held you without first seeking permission. Due to the circumstances at that time, I was unable to, however I am able to now. In accordance to Thoba Law, I ask if you will allow me to touch you."
Princess Nkanyezi, who was still kneeling on the ground, looked in Relovan's general direction. She might have been blind, but it was as if she could see Relovan clearly, and while it took a few seconds for her to remember urgency of the situation, she did end up nodding.
"Yes, yes I will, Enforcer."
"In that case, I ask that you forgive one more transgression."
Relovan grabbed the Princess' clothing and without waiting to clarify anything, began to rip the overelaborate and unnecessary bits off. Much to his surprise, there was no screaming, no putting up a fight, and no fussing. The Princess simply sat there and waited, and this prompted Relovan to look at her with a slightly confused look. He persisted with the ripping until he was done though, and when he finished, the Princess smiled.
"Are you finished, Enforcer."
"…I am. Were you not afraid or offended, Princess?"
"Not at all." Nkanyezi said with a shake of the head. "You've already saved me twice… I have no reason to fear you or doubt your intentions."
"…no, you still kind of do. Having your clothes attacked like this isn't normal."
The Princess just smiled as she tilted her head to the side, drawing a sigh from the Enforcer. Relovan then offered his hand to the Princess, which she took without hesitation, and they both stood up.
"Please hold on to my hand tightly, Princess. I suspect more people will come after us, and we will have to get to the lift quickly."
"Did you figure out which direction it is in?"
"More or less. We will just have to search around a bit."
With that, Relovan darted off in the opposite direction from where the two goons he had just encountered came from. At first, he thought about running at a steady pace, however it became clear that while the Princess was sleight of build, she was actually keeping up with his pace rather easily. Even as he upped the pace he was running at; she was more than able to match him. The only provision he made was alerting her of directional changes in advance. Even with the sight part of the active sense being severely weakened, Relovan was more or less able to see, even though the light within the sewer wasn't the greatest. He was also paying special attention to the minute changes within the atmosphere of the sewer. He was using the sensation on his skin to dictate what route to take, based on wind flow, temperature, and such. Despite the Princess being able to keep up with the Enforcer's speed, Relovan was still wary about running with her for too long. He gradually started slowing down, until the point where they were both standing completely still.