They see the Abyssal Gate before them at the bottom of the stairs. Two guards stand in front of it like some monoliths.

Darian feels a hard kick in the back and hears the ringing of a gunshot. He turns around and shoots the assailant and falls to his knees out of breath. Coughing up blood.

Vyss has already closed the gap to the downed assassin who shot Darian and kicked away her gun. She's still alive but breathing heavily, looking up at Vyss standing over her, sword drawn and ready to kill. Vyss spits in her face.

She hears Darian shoot at the guards. Downing one of them. He looks over at Vyss and wheeze, "Fucking kill her already."

She hesitates. Looking into the other woman's eyes, she sees her as a child. Carefree, running down the street with a group of other children. She sees the woman's elderly parents. They are frail and need her help.

"Please don't. It's nothing personal," says the assassin between labored breaths. "You would've done the same. I'll say you fell into the Void."

"Kill her," says Darian. His voice is stronger now. "The fucker tried to kill us, and she knows we were here. She wouldn't hesitate to do it again if she got the opportunity. Credits is the only thing that matters to these fuckers. They have no morals, no loyalty but to credits."

"Don't," pleads the assassin. "I have a little daughter. She's nine."

Vyss plunges the blade into the woman's forehead and feels it make contact with the rock beneath. She turns to Darian and says, "Are you alright?"

"I'll survive. The vest stopped the bullet, but hell, the fucker packed a punch. My organs might be a bit bruised. That's all."

"What do we do about the other guard?" asks Vyss.

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"I'll find him and give him an offer he can't refuse," answers Darian.

"Good," she says.

"I can't follow you any longer. You'll have to make it on your own from here. Not that you need me. You're better at this than me. Hell, no one would stand a better chance."

Darian retrieves the keys from the downed guard and opens the gates.

"I don't have ten million credits to give you," says Vyss, "But I'll return and repay you for what you did today. I don't know when, but I know I will."

"Worry about that later, Vyss. Now go. Disappear into the shadows."

As Vyss goes through the gates, she turns around to see Darian one last time and says, "I owe you."

The sound of Darian locking the gate behind her is swallowed by the relentless rumble of pickaxes against bedrock. She stops for a moment before continuing into the heart of darkness.

The market of the Abyss is bustling with people. The stalls are selling whatever they would sell in the First Circle. Everything is just more decrepit. The food smells good as long as one doesn't ponder its origin. Alas, she'll have to find out sooner or later not to starve to death.

She finds a stall selling clothing of seemingly better quality than the rest. The seller looks at her and smirks, "A walking, breathing fortune, I see."

"I need to sell something. Perhaps my cloak," she says, taking it off and holding it for the man to see.

"Fine cloak," he says, rubbing his nose. "Magnificent cloak."

"So, how much do I get for it?"

"Let's say fifty."

"That's fucking nothing for a ballistic cloak."

"Perhaps not where you're from, but you won't get any more for it down here. If you don't try to sell it to one of the crime lords. But they'd just as likely take all you have and sell you. I'm your best bet down here."

"Eighty," she says.

"Fifty," he says.

"Sixty?" she continues.

"Fifty," he repeats. "You won't get any more. That's three moons's salary for a miner down here. I'm not trying to rip you off. I'll take it for fifty."

"Sure," she says as she lays it on the table. "I also want a set of clothes and a cloak."

"Let's see," he says. "These are the finest I have in your size."

"I don't need nice clothes," she says. "I need something discreet. I want to blend in."

"You're on the run, huh?"

"I'm nothing. Do you have what I need? If you forget you saw me, you can keep ten of what you would give me for that cloak."

"We have a deal," he says, handing her the clothes and credits.

She puts on the new cloak and says, "Where can I get food and water, preferably bottled and canned?"

"They'll have what you need," he says, pointing at a stall.

"Good," she says and turns to leave.

The man says, "If you want to stay hidden, I recommend the tunnels. Most people here think they're cursed and won't go near them. Not that they would've any reason to go there anyways."