There were 50 steps. I knew this for a fact because I made sure to count when I took my first step down the stairs, sandwiched between Alsaj and Kalistra. The passage way was narrow, barely over two feet wide. To my chagrin, my shoulders were too wide to fit into the narrow tunnel. Thus, rather than risk being stuck, I decided to turn my chest sideways and leaned my back against the left wall as I walked down the stairs one step at a time. Frankly, it was ridiculous the way I had to drop my left foot down the step and then my right foot to pull my body down each step; I felt like I had turned into a sideway walking crab. But I had no choice if I wanted to leave the mountain and return to the surface.

Thankfully, the wall was smooth and cool to the touch. The wall appeared to be made of plastic, but this could be just an outer coating or finish over wood, steel or another fabric. I was very tempted to cut out a sample with my sword, but I could imagine my master being horrified with my use of a sacred sword from her dojo as a mere tool. Thus, I continued my crab-like walk down the stairs.

I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that Kalistra did not make any comment regarding the way I was walking down the stairs. A part of me expected a rude observation from my stern master. Perhaps, she settled for a shake of her head and let at it go at that. Alsaj did not glance back at us, and there was no reason for her to learn of my unusual way of walking down these stairs. Otherwise, she would be giggling at me.

It took a good handful of minutes to reach the bottom of the stairs, which emptied into . . . a cavern. When Kalistra exited the passage way, we heard a loud "click" behind us. We turned our head in unison and we saw that a wall had sprung up to block the stairs. Furthermore, we didn't see any way to move the wall to regain entry to the stairs.

"We're wasting time. Let's look for an exit," the cat girl said.

We turned our attention back to the cavern. Unlike the previous cavern that we encountered near the entrance, there were no giant sized bats hanging from the ceiling. Instead, the walls were covered with slimy green and brown colored moss. More importantly, we heard the sound of running water nearby.

"Let's follow the sound of water," Alsaj suggested. Holding up the fire orb in her palm, she started walking across the cavern and we followed her lead. Toward the center, we reached a small pond with running water. At first, the water was only a few inches above the ground and we were able to walk around the pond. But as we journeyed onward, the pond grew in depth and size until it covered the entire length of the cavern. At the far end, there was an opening in the wall and water was flowing through.

"I don't like to swim," Kalistra hissed. Unfortunately, there was no way to get across except through swimming.

"Should I change back to my demon form and fly you to the other side?" Alsaj offered politely.

"No, I'll swim," the cat girl grumbled and jumped, feet first, into the water. "It's cold," she meowed and started swimming across.

"What about you, milord?" the monk asked.

"Nah, I think I could use a bath," I smiled and jumped into the water.

Alsaj shook her head at our stubbornness. She transformed back to Jasla and flew over the water. Since she was our only source of light in this cavern, the demoness flapped her wings continuously to stay directly above us. She held out the fire orb and used it to guide us to the opening in the wall as that was the only exit from the cavern.

When Kalistra and I almost reached the opening, Jasla returned to her human form and stood at the mouth of a tunnel. We quickly joined her at the opening. The tunnel was much wider than I expected. It was approximately six feet wide. The water continued moving in the tunnel and reached our knees.

The unexpectedly wide tunnel was a mixed blessing for a number of reasons. It was a safe bet that the entire cavern was submerged under water at one time. And water creatures could have easily ended up at the bottom of the cavern, which was still submerged in water. Thus, I was concerned that there may be monsters lurking in the water but so far, my fear was unfounded. Furthermore, if creatures do appear, they could easily surround us because of the wide space inside the tunnel.

I glanced back at Kalistra and I saw that she had her paw on her sword hilt. Apparently, she had similar concerns and maintained her vigilance.

The tunnel continued snaking through the mountain, twisting and turning, narrowing and widening. However, the water continued following in one direction and we simply followed the water flow.

I admit that I was not having a good time inside the tunnel. My waterlogged boots felt like I was walking with my feet chained to a steel ball and chain. Don't get me wrong; I could still walk. But it was a difficult and uncomfortable trek. Furthermore, I was imagining monsters lurking in the water, waiting to drag us off our feet and into a watery grave. I started hearing the "Jaws" theme song inside my head. After an hour of travel, I decided to start a conversation with my companions in order to distract myself from these discomforts. "Master, earlier today you warned me that the nobility required obligations to both the crown and to each other," I said.

"What about it?" the cat girl replied.

"How does the Church of Britannia fit into this hierarchy?" I asked. My master made it clear that I should avoid the nobility as much as possible because other nobles could demand that I perform odious or even dangerous service for them. But she had not warned me to stay away from the Church back when we were in the frontier town of Tregome. And we hadn't really talked about relations with the Church, even though I already understood some of the personal dangers in associating with the Church.

"It's a shadow kingdom within the kingdom," Alsaj interrupted our conversation.

"What do you mean?" I was astounded by her remark. Was it based on the human monk's personal experience, or from her knowledge as Jasla?

"It's both," she responded with a giggle. Alsaj was starting to enjoy reading my thoughts because they were so unusual and entertaining; she should have branded me sooner! "Let me explain. Currently, the Regent rules the Kingdom of Merlin until a rightful king is chosen. A committee made up of 12 Bishops, 6 Archbishops, and the Pope decide on the candidates for Kingship. The Bishops and Archbishops vote to accept renown human men as official candidates; the Pope will cast any tie-breaking votes. The candidates are eventually asked to fight each other, similar to your Melee Tournament, to determine who will become the Champion of Order and the Champion of Chaos. The two Champions will then fight for the Crown. So in effect, the Church has tremendous influence over who becomes the next King. In addition, members of the Church serve as administrators, tax collectors, and judges across the Kingdom. Merlin can exist without a king or regent. However, it will fall apart if the Church no longer exists. Additionally, while the King is the nominal head of the Church, the King has no actual say in the day-to-day affairs of the Church. That's why I consider the Church of Britannia to be a 'shadow kingdom' because it is answerable only to itself," Alsaj explained.

While Kalistra continued to check the water around her for possible signs of monsters, she paid close attention to the monk's lecture. The cat girl never really cared much for the Church because it regarded the animal people as monsters rather than protectors of humans in Britannia. She saw the Church as oppressors of the animal people. Now, it appeared that the Church had oppressed the human low-born, too. "Perhaps, the common folk should rebel against the Church and govern themselves," she said softly. "I say do away with the Church altogether and see what happens. I doubt the kingdom will collapse. I have faith in our commoners to hold the kingdom together."

My jaw dropped at the suggestion. How could a Lawful creature make such a dangerous proposal? Did Kalistra realize what she was saying?

Alsaj giggled. "Are you certain that would be wise?" she asked. "While I understand that you hate the Church for its poor treatment and discrimination of the animal people, the organization also provides Law and Order to the kingdom. If the Church is destroyed, then Chaos will reign over Merlin. Wouldn't this be antithetical to the teachings of your dojo, which turned Law and Order into a rigid Code of Honor?"

"The Church is corrupt and rotten to the core," Kalistra responded.

"So what will you do about it, little kitty?" the sister grinned.

The cat girl looked at me. "When Lawrence becomes King of Merlin, he will abolish the Church," she announced.

I was taken aback. My master was going to use me to pursue her own vendetta. I held up my hand. "I don't know if I will get that far because I'm sure there are many excellent candidates for the crown already. Even if I do become the King of Merlin, I might not have the authority to abolish the Church," I pointed out.

In the blink of an eye, Kalistra drew her sword out of its scabbard and swung the blade over my scalp in one motion.

By the time I realized what she did, the crazy cat girl was sheathing her sword. "What was that for?" I yelled at her. "What are you trying to prove with that crazy stunt?" I frantically patted the top of my head to ensure that nothing was cut.

Kalistra pointed her left paw at Alsaj. "Tell him," she ordered.

The monk giggled. The little kitty was rather audacious to presume to order Alsaj around despite knowing the monk's secret identity as the mortal avatar of a demigoddess. Nonetheless, Alsaj liked the cat girl and graciously complied. "Well, if I understood your servant, she was showing you a simple fact: 'might makes right.'" Seeing a slight nod from the cat girl, Alsaj continued. "The Monarchy has more power than its subjects realize. The King could declare war and he could also declare anyone to be a traitor to the Crown, including the Church itself. The nobility and the commoners pledge themselves to the Crown, not the Church. If the King declares the Church to be an outlaw organization within Merlin, then you can be sure there will be many folks, who harbor grievances against the Church, to step to the forefront to ensure that the Church is abolished. Am I right, kitty?" she asked Kalistra.

"Close enough, shorty," Kalistra replied. My master turned to face me. "What will you do?"

I looked back at her for a moment. "If I'm fortunate enough to seize the Crown, then I will do what is right for my kingdom. If I determine that the Church of Britannia is as corrupt as you seem to believe, then I will order its abolishment from Merlin," I answered.

"Fair enough," the cat girl replied. She was relieved that I had NOT been bought off by the Church with a judgeship and a stone necklace. My willingness to keep an open mind spoke highly of my integrity. It made Kalistra proud of me. To show her appreciation, my master bowed deeply to me.

I was shocked by her bow. At that moment, I began to understand how much Kalistra resented the Church and its treatment of the animal people. However, her feelings will not sway me. If I become the King of Merlin, I will review the actions of the Church and then determine whether it is subverting the will of the people. If that is my determination, then I will not hesitate to strike down the Church to liberate my subjects.

At that moment, a wind blew into the tunnel. Our eyes lit up at its implication.

"We're near the exit!" I said.

Alsaj nodded in agreement with my assessment and started walking again, but this time at a faster pace.

After another twenty minutes or so, sunlight was shining into the tunnel. Soon, we heard a loud, continuous roar as water spilled out of the tunnel. While the water current was stronger than before, our waterlogged footwear made it impossible for the current to lift us off our feet.

Alsaj cautiously approached the opening. Grabbing hold of the wall, she peered down and saw that we were on top of a waterfall! Furthermore, we were a good twenty feet above the ground.

I peered down over the monk's shoulder and winced at the steep drop. "How are we going to get down?" I asked.

Alsaj turned around to face me. "I can carry you down in my succubus form," she proposed. "But I won't be able to carry you both at the same time. So it'll be two trips," she quickly added.

Kalistra's eyes glowed. "No need. Please carry my pupil. I can climb down on my own." She bowed slightly to the sister.

Before I could talk some sense into the cat girl, she jumped out! Alsaj and I stuck our heads out and watched in disbelief as Kalistra hopped down the side of the cliff from foothold to foothold until she safely reached the water below us. Once she swam back to shore, she looked up at us.

I shook my head. "I wouldn't believe she did it if I didn't see it happen with my own eyes," I remarked.

"Your servant is truly stubborn," Alsaj giggled. In a flash, she returned to her true form. "Shall we?" she asked.

"Um. . . what should I do? I can't wrap my arms around your back because that will interfere with your wings," I said.

"Hohoho! You silly hamster!" Jasla chuckled. "Just stand still."

I obeyed and stood taller. I felt the demoness press her chest against my back and then she wrapped her arms around my waist.

"And off we go!" Jasla said as she flapped her large wings and lifted us out of the tunnel. She flew in a small circle while descending, and she steered her wings until we landed on the ground in front of Kalistra.

"About time you guys came down," the cat girl grumbled.

When Jasla released me, I received a pop-up notification which read, "Minor faction quest COMPLETED. +400 XP. +200 Reputation. +400 XP."

"I have to go now," the succubus said with a sad face. "If you ever need my assistance, Lawrence, please call me," she grinned. Jasla opened a portal to the Plane of Fire and stepped through. It closed behind her, leaving just the two of us again.

"Finally!" Kalistra celebrated with a cartwheel and somersault combo.

I clapped my hands at her acrobatic feat.

The cat girl hissed. "We have no time for your silliness! We need to keep moving or else we won't reach Bristol in time. Now start running!" With that, she took off, heading northbound.

I emptied the water in my boots, put them back on my feet, and quickly ran after her.