Red fought battle after battle against endless hordes of monsters. Some were tall enough to reach the cavern ceiling. Other monsters were too thick to budge after death, and Red had to find a new route. They all bled acid that dripped and redefined the world as Red knew it.

Acuzio was doggedly trotting on undamaged by any of the fights. None of the monsters came close to the dragon. Red finally picked up the dragon, and nothing attacked him as long as he held it.

He received cuts and bruises all over his war-torn body. Every muscle screamed before reaching a bright opening that spoke of the sun's heat. Red heaved out a breath he'd been holding at the familiar sight of light and life.

He finally made it out of that hellish place.

"Don't be surprised by what you find," Acuzio said, but the sun turned up the light before Red could ask him what he meant.

The Capital of Adabin had undergone tremendous shifts since Red's trials. The man thought as he stumbled down the empty dusty streets. He was too exhausted to care if his red eyes were spotted. The bustling streets were also dead silent, so no one was there to care.

What wasn't silent was that familiar second-beating heart. He was finally back where things made sense. He could feel the pulling of blood drawing him in the direction of where Merin was.

Acuzio one-mindedly trotted ahead of Red as if he knew where the two were going. Red didn't have the energy to question it as the feeling of connected blood pulled him.

Red found himself outside a decrepit building on the outskirts of the capital. Plants and other things adorned it, but Red did not mind it paid it no mind.

He was here for what was inside, not outside.

The door swung open before Red could touch it, and Merin stood in the doorframe. Her mouth was open as if she were in the middle of saying something, but it screamed his name instead.

"You're plumper than I last saw you..." He said before diving face forward toward the ground.

Red was gone for six months before he finally returned. The first month was tumultuous, with his family sending spies and guards to search.

Merin took her two remaining pets to seek refuge with Reu, Bellare, Zoltan, and Letha. She discovered that Zoltan was one of the cloaked men who stopped at the palace. The snarky man still had to obey her, but that didn't stop his tongue from wagging.

The second month was when Merin realized she was pregnant.

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The third was when she started disguising herself as an old woman and walking the streets to offer healing cream to Febris victims. That was also when Merin discovered that Habrin men highly respected older women. Her Russus title aligned her with the royal family, bringing danger and preconceived notions. Some rightfully blamed the Emperor for what befell them, while others wanted a taste of what the royal family did.

Russus were a target outside the palace walls, as were young women of childbearing years. You were left alone and respected if you looked old enough to be a grandma.

Time began to blur by the time Habrin went to war against their Northern provinces.

She hadn't given up hope that Reu would find Red, and she was right not to, Merin thought as she finally looked at him after six long months.

Merin caught Red as he all but fell into her arms. She stumbled under his massive muscle-bound frame, but with the use of her strings, she persisted.

His handsome face was marked with wounds, and his hair had grown to span his back. He looked like he fought through the bowels of her Christian father's hell and survived to talk about it.

"Letha! Run some hot water!" Merin said. She then called for Zoltan to help bring Red in.

It took some time to bathe the sleeping man by hand, but it was time Merin spent wiping away his wounds as well. There were burns from strange substances, cuts, and what looked like teeth marks that spanned his broad back. He had layers upon layers of blood, grime, and dirt.

"You're next." She said to Acuzio, who had also come back and hadn't gone unnoticed.

Acuzio made noises in protest and darted away.

Merin watched him go before returning her attention to Red.

His bright eyes were open and staring into her own.

A knot that she didn't want to acknowledge loosened and dissolved in her gut.

"Hi." She said.

"Hey." He said.

There was a long silence as they soaked in the sight of each other. Merin dove forward to squeeze him as she whispered her regrets of lying to Mordecai.

When she finally contained herself, she demanded to know where he'd gone.

While Red explained everything, she cut up pieces of fruit and veggies for Red to snack on while the stew slowly burned. She fed him by hand as she listened rapt to what Mordecai had done.

"He was trying to kill you."

"He wasn't. If he wanted me dead, I'd be dead." Red said after swallowing a banana slice. He made a face as he looked at the next piece of banana offered to him.

"What," Merin said.

"All you're offering now are banana slices."

"It's all I crave," Merin said, aware that her pale face was heating up. "We have too many bananas now. I even make butter from bananas, and I've been eating it on everything."

"It's nasty!" A voice from the door spoke.

Merin made a face at Zoltan, who had learned how to serve but not keep his mouth shut. The man ran off and closed the door on his way out before she could order it.

"I missed so much." Red's voice was hoarse and full of unspoken emotion. It made Merin's heart skip as she turned back to stare at him.

"Not everything. I'm glad you came back." Merin said. She wasn't a crier, but she could feel massive tears build in her annoyingly weak ducts.

Red brought her closer to him until his head could rest on her stomach. She could feel something shift within her at the touch. Later she would understand it was a pull of blood connecting to blood. But at this moment, she took the time to brush his hair.

She was afraid of facing this without him, let alone at all. She was in Habrin, though, a land cursed to have sons instead of daughters. She would beat her mother's prophesy as long as she gave birth in Habrin.

So then, why did a part of her doubt that things would go as planned? Between Mordecai's interference and Red's Inni blood, there was no telling what would happen.