After a night of general tenseness and last minute planning, it was a relief and a joy for Gunwoo to wake up in the protective embrace of Changmin’s arms.  He knew Victoria hadn’t exactly approved of it when they went to sleep, but Changmin’s promise of, ‘I will keep him safe,’ had seemed to sway her enough.  She was content with watching through the night anyway, frustrated by the short days on the planet.  Gunwoo doubted Changmin did much sleeping himself, but he knew he rested much sounder with the other angel holding him close.  It was a small blessing.

                So was the rest of the morning, for that matter.  They were all antsy, but Victoria decided not to move them early.  “We risk being seen if we move too soon.  Nor do I want to drain the ship’s power if I can help it.  We may need all of it,” she promised, a tense look on her face.  There were shadows there Gunwoo hadn’t noticed before, and he wondered what thoughts were making them appear.

                “Is there anything you need us to do?” Wonshik asked, hovering just out of reach of the Royal.

                Victoria shook her head and frowned.  “Just get ready to move when we need to.”  She glanced at Gunwoo and then looked back, “You sure about this?”

                Wonshik shrugged and Taekwoon took a small breath.  “No.”  All heads turned towards him as he hesitantly looked up from under the fall of his black bangs.  “But I guess our families will be taken care of even if we’re not here.”

                “I cannot take you to see them,” the Royal murmured, the hint of an apology in her voice.  Family was one thing she was at least familiar with.

                “We know,” Wonshik grimaced, gripping Taekwoon’s shoulder with his hand.  “We always knew it was a possibility when we volunteered for this.”

                “Doesn’t make it any easier though,” Taekwoon sighed, folding in on himself.

                “Hey,” the angel urged, pulling the demon around to face him.  “We started this together, Woonie,” he smiled, lifting the other man’s chin with a finger.  “We’ll finish it together too, alright?”  His smile was cocky and brave enough to summon a weak, lopsided one from Taekwoon.

                “Yeah,” the demon whispered, smiling just a touch more when Wonshik pulled him into a reassuring embrace.

                Gunwoo didn't need to understand them to know they were discussing something important, but he tilted his head to the side as he observed them, still not sure where those two stood.  He was certain Kibum would have been able to tell – his ‘gaydar’ as he put it was legendary – but Gunwoo didn’t know.  Quite frankly, he was okay with that.  It wasn’t as if they had to marry another angel or demon to carry on a family name and position anyway.

                “Changmin,” Victoria called loud enough to grab all their attention.  “I’m stepping out so you’re in charge.  Behave,” she added with a stern finger pointed his direction.

                “Be careful,” he responded in turn, nodding once to confirm he understood.

                “I won’t be gone long.  Gunwoo.  If you get a signal from Seyong or Insoo, answer it,” she instructed, nodding towards the ship.

                He grimaced at the inherent command and nodded in agreement.  “Alright.”

                Her gaze swung back to the angel and demon.  “Make your peace boys.  We’ll be heading out soon and you’ll be coming with us.”

                “Understood,” Wonshik saluted without bothering Taekwoon in the process.

                Her instructions completed, Victoria disappeared from sight.  The barest sounds of her footsteps gave way to quiet wing flaps as she headed for the entrance, and then she was gone.  Reluctantly, Gunwoo pulled away from Changmin, their hands lingering until their fingertips were forced to part as they went separate directions.  With a sigh, Gunwoo headed for the ship while Changmin moved to station himself near the entryway, hidden in the shadow of the mouth.  He wasn’t sure what Taekwoon and Wonshik were going to do but he figured they could take care of themselves – together if not individually anyway.

                The morning crawled by slowly with no signal from the incoming ship.  Gunwoo was ersely glad about that actually.  He didn’t really want to talk to his cousin or other former guard right now.  He felt… guilty.  And his divination was silent too, which meant there was no immediate danger nearby.  It was difficult trying to figure out the possibilities for the future, so he gave up after trying a few times.  The problem was that there were so many possible futures, and he was not accustomed to dealing with that.  And yet, it was something he’d only encountered fairly recently, if he was being honest.

                “I wonder if something is causing it,” he murmured, staring out the ship towards the sea as if the answer was out there somewhere for him to see.

                But nothing responded and he was left to grab a bite to eat from the food synthesizer and wait for the afternoon to roll around.  He did leave for a moment to stretch his legs and take care of business, but the reprieve was brief and over all too soon.  Changmin brushed his face with gentle fingers, a warm smile lingering while they looked at each other, and then they moved on again, going their separate ways in an early exercise for later.  Gunwoo hated it.  It hurt and he cursed being born as the Heir again.

                Victoria’s return didn’t allow for him to think about it too much as she kicked him out of the ship to try and get in touch with Seyong and Insoo.  She was not successful though, which left her in a poor mood.  “The area is still clear and we will be flying over at…” she struggled to use the Earth time the majority were familiar with.  “Six,” she finished with a partially closed eye and scrunched face.  “Changmin,” she waved the tallest angel over, one hand reaching for a sword at her waist.  “I believe you lost yours at the base so you can use my backup,” she instructed, handing it off to him with a raised brow.  She turned to Gunwoo, “You can-”

                “I know.  I can summon one,” he nodded in agreement, shrugging along with her.

                “What about us?” Wonshik spoke for both of them, eyeing Changmin’s sword with interest.

                “If we get attacked, I want you two falling back and staying safe until the threat has been neutralized.  I will handle the Royal if there is one and you,” she pointed at Changmin, “will back me up if there is another standard around.”

                “Yes, ma’am,” Changmin bowed professionally, all business now that they had come to talk of guarding and protecting their charges.

                “I’m going to rest for about an hour and then we’ll head out.  We clear?” she asked, looking around the group of four.

                “Yes,” Gunwoo sighed while the other three managed more professional nods.  He didn’t feel like being anything more than reluctant right now.  Dammit.  He didn’t want any of this, but… there was no turning back now.  He’d been found and cornered and if he wasn’t careful, he was going to be dead.  His present company was his best chance at survival, even if it did put him right back to where he never wanted to be in the first place.

                “Watch the shadows and wake me if anything happens,” the Royal added once more before she headed to the ship to seek shelter within.

                It left the other four on their own to pass their last few hours on Earth together.  Eventually, they decided to start sharing stories to help the angels and former humans better understand the way things were in their respective worlds.  There were still worlds left to talk about by the time that Victoria returned from her nap and told them it was time.  Gunwoo realized he wasn’t ready.  He didn’t know if he ever would be, but he just wasn’t.  Not that it stopped him from heading to the ship when Changmin gently nudged him along, a hand on his back propelling him forward.

                They all piled into the ship, Victoria in the pilot seat and Gunwoo in the passenger one with the other three spread out around them.  She invoked invisibility before leaving the cave and then moved them the short distance to the other side of the island where a larger ship would be able to join them.  There were still quite a few trees around, and plenty of things to hide near, but the terrain looked otherwise deserted.  She was even happier to see that her divination revealed nothing new either.  By all counts, it looked clear and safe for the moment.

                But nightfall was coming.  And with it came a foreboding sense of danger.  Every angel felt it, but today, it was sharper, more real.  None of them liked it.  Fidgety at the front, Victoria constantly tried to raise the incoming ship, but either they were running silent or something was blocking them.  She couldn’t say and her expression didn’t change, but there was a noticeable amount of tension in her.

                Gunwoo felt the shift in her demeanor as soon as he felt his own internal senses warn him of something.  “What is that?” he asked aloud, noticing that Changmin and Victoria were looking around as if trying to find something while Taekwoon and Wonshik appeared lost and confused.  Though, Taekwoon seemed more on edge than Wonshik, a somewhat pained expression on his face.

                Victoria sat up straight with a sudden intake of breath.  “Demon sight!” she gasped, waving her hands over the console while power crackled around her.

                All of them cried in alarm when the ship shuddered as something bombarded them from the outside.  Immediately, she tried to take off, pulling up on the controls to get them off the ground so they weren’t sitting targets, but the ship was heavy and sluggish, even with her power tapped into the system.  “Frozen ether!” she cursed, head swiveling and eyes wide, unblinking while she tried to track what was there.  Her eyes darted over the screen, tracking shadows and moving shadows and the invisible signals of her divination warnings, trying to get them out of attack range.

                “Ah!” the occupants screamed as a series of bursts punched through the protective shield, incinerating a wing.

                “Novas it’s fast!” Victoria growled, snarling between her teeth as she fought with the ship to regain some measure of control.  “Abandon ship!” she roared the command, ejecting the top hatch so they could get free with ease.  “Shields up!  Armor on!” she instructed while they dove out of attack range.  Bursts of land exploded on the shadowy ground as projectiles whistled past them.  “Hold on!” she screamed, barrel rolling to the left, tilting over the wing that had been destroyed.

                Still buckled in, Gunwoo was relatively alright, but the other three passengers were thrown against the walls, pinned in place by the momentum of the spin.  “Victoria!  Hold!” Gunwoo warned reaching his hand up to rake a line of burning fire through the ceiling, tearing open the ship with a divine ray.  Wind howled into the interior, grabbing at the occupants like a savage beast.  Hair crowded his face and Gunwoo could hardly see as Taekwoon and Wonshik managed to claw their way out, disappearing into the murky, spinning darkness beyond.

                “Changmin!  Get him out of here!” Victoria commanded, still doggedly fighting with the controls as she pulled them out of their spin and attempted a full loop overhead.

                Gunwoo’s stomach revolted and he gasped in surprise when the straps around him were suddenly cut free.  No longer anchored in place, he flailed for purchase, smacking Changmin in the face before the other angel grabbed him around the waist and yanked him away.  “Victoria!” he choked, reaching for the pilot reflexively as he was hauled into the open air.

                An agonized cry from Changmin followed by the sudden lurching spin that came next made Gunwoo panic.  The tail of the ship brushed past him so fast it pulled at his wings and then they were falling in an erratic tumble.  “Woo!” Changmin screamed, trying to push him away for some reason.

                Gunwoo’s wings flared open and the wind grabbed at him as he reached for Changmin.  It barely registered when he saw one wing open and the other one flopping uselessly at the other angel’s side.  “Min!” he gasped, flapping hard after the other man.  The good wing rammed into him on the frantic flap, nearly dazing him before he grabbed it and then yanked himself closer to Changmin so he could wrap his arms around the gasping torso.  “Hang on!” he growled, wings aching from the strain as he flapped hard, still falling.

                An explosion overhead signaled the end of Victoria’s ship.  A small, curled up figure flew from the burning remains, emerging from the inferno while hungry flames curled around the invisible barrier.  Falling, falling… the wings opened and she fell slower.  Power surged and light flared as a thin, burning sword appeared in her hand, turning her into a beacon in the sky.  “Come on, demon!” she challenged, celestial armor flickering in the firelight of her sword.

                “Victoria!” Gunwoo cried, finally slowing their descent as he felt the thrum of danger all around them.  Changmin hung weakly in his hands, one wing pinned and the other limp and twisted at his side.  On the ground, Taekwoon and Wonshik stood back to back, wings pinned and eyes scanning the sky.  Danger screamed a siren in Gunwoo’s head and he finally landed with a heaving chest and an adrenaline high.  Screaming his defiance, he released Changmin and ignited the flaming broadsword at his command.

                Danger signals peaked and he pointed his sword straight ahead.  “Shields up!” Victoria screamed from above as she swooped into place, sword held defiantly in front of her while her left hand extended towards the shadow above them.  Ice swirled overhead, white and ominous, before it pierced the veil and extended their direction.  “No!” Victoria defied as a ray of white heat streamed from her hand.

                Fire and frost collided, sending swarms of steam into the air and a font of burning rain below.  Ice consumed the fire, whittling away the defensive attack until Victoria’s arms bowed.  Ice diffused across her shield as she was simultaneously consumed by steam.  Burning rays flickered and dimmed.  A small explosion dissipated the steam, sending Victoria’s limp, steaming body flying through the air.  Her sword was gone and her wings in tatters.

                “No!” Gunwoo howled, pointing his sword at the hovering ship as he directed a divine ray at it in angry defiance.  The furious attack fizzled against the deflective shields and he screamed his frustration.

                Almost taunting in its appearance, the ship revealed itself from the shadows.  Gunwoo fell silent as his hair stood on end.  Power gathered and they heard the whine of it like the flood before it hit.  “Woo!” Changmin cried out, grabbing Gunwoo and physically shielding him with his maimed body.

                They winced when power discharged, expecting it to hit them, but when they continued to breathe, both looked up.  More shadows flickered above, but the ship that had been about to kill them was no longer focusing on them.  “The other demons!” Gunwoo gasped, tracking the moving ships by sound and divination more than actually seeing them.  He jumped again when a sudden explosion next to them emitted a high pitched whine that washed over the angels and demons like ants marching across their skin.

                “Null stasis field,” Changmin gasped, shoving Gunwoo to the side to try and get him out of the line of fire.

                “There’s nothing here to null!” Gunwoo coughed, eyes squinting against the firing projectiles overhead as his ears rang from the sound.

                “Except our presence!” Changmin answered, shoving Gunwoo behind him as they reached the tree line, astrilite sword at the ready.  One wing flared out while the other swung on a broken hinge, useless and pitiful, but he was every bit the protector he’d pledged himself to be when he first started watching over the Heir.

                They ducked away from stray shots fired from the two- no three ships in the air.  It was nearly impossible to follow them, hidden in shadow as they were, but when they fired at each other, their positions were revealed.  “Why aren’t they trying to kill us?!” Gunwoo asked in a mild panic.

                “They want to kill each other first!” Changmin scowled in response, figuring they were likely the demons Victoria had mentioned earlier.  “Taekwoon!  Wonshik!” he screamed, trying to get their attention so he could wave the dazed duo over.

                As soon as they realized the others were out of relative danger, Taekwoon and Wonshik started to move their direction.  But then a massive swell of power drove everyone to their knees as it felt like time stopped around them.  The smaller of two ships was clipped with a cone of cold and a piece of the wing ripped off, tumbling towards the figures on the ground.

                “Watch out!” Wonshik screamed, desperately trying to protect Taekwoon.

                “No!” the demon howled in defiance, one arm reaching past Wonshik’s vulnerable body.  Ice crackled around his hand and then erupted from his palm in a massive, uncontrolled burst.  It shattered the shield Wonshik had put up but snatched the shrapnel from the air and hurled it aside, leaving them unharmed.  Surprised and drained, he grabbed at Wonshik for support while his chest heaved at the cost of the expenditure.

                “I’ve got you,” a wide-eyed Wonshik urged, cradling Taekwoon close as he looked over his shoulder to make sure nothing else was coming at them.

                Gunwoo blinked at the demon in confusion before movement above caught his eye.  He squinted into the murky gloom when it looked like glittering dust detached from the largest ship, but then it was gone before he could figure out what it might have been.  He was still aware of power humming around him in vast amounts that made his senses vibrate, but he still didn’t know what was going on.  A series of shots made it past the ships in the air and he was thrown aside by the concussive force, separating him and Changmin.  Ringing ears deafened him and he could hardly see around the blurred vision, but he saw Wonshik and Taekwoon feebly moving on the ground, trying to recover.

                “Gunwoo!” a familiar voice shouted, making him look up from the ground again.

                It was dark, he could barely see, and the speaker was invisible, but Gunwoo realized he knew who it was.  “Seyong?” he murmured in pained confusion, tracking the hidden angel by shaky divination.  “Taekwoon!” he called a warning when he realized the angel was heading for the demon on the ground.  Fire from above showed there was a new angel ship in the air, struggling with the two demon vessels, but the Royal was going for the demon.  The cone of cold demon.  A Royal demon…

                Shaky and disoriented, Taekwoon made it to his feet with his head looking like a bobble doll, eyes tracking something nearby.  “Rah!” he reacted defensively, another cone of cold erupting from him.  The blast revealed Seyong’s form in the air where the shield deflected most of it, but it also showcased his burning sword hidden behind the veil.

                “Die!” Seyong commanded, bringing his sword down hard with all the power of his rapid descent.

                Gunwoo saw Taekwoon’s eyes go wide, his body struggling to react appropriately.  “No!” the Heir screamed in useless denial, reaching like he could stop the mistake from happening.

                The demon backpedaled, hand coming up as if he could deflect it.  A deflection shield flickered to life and shattered under Seyong’s power.  Gunwoo watched in horror that turned to miraculous wonder as the demon stumbled back just as a freezing sword manifested between them, stalling the burning blade.  It shook and trembled and seemed to be melting where it was, but it stopped the angel from killing him outright.

                “Seyong!” Gunwoo tried again, lurching to his feet like an uncoordinated foal.  But white flickered in his vision and he watched again as Wonshik moved to intervene once more.

                “Taekwoon!” the newest angel shouted, wrapping an arm around his back to support him while his other rose in the universal warding gesture.  White wings struggled to wrap around them both defensively, their tenuous barrier crumpling when Taekwoon’s fledgling sword failed, disintegrating in his hand.  “No!” Wonshik denied, his own shield shattering again when he was unable to withstand the Royal’s attack.

                Surprised confusion blossomed in Seyong’s face as he realized what happened, but he was only able to pull his attack instead of stop it entirely.  Wonshik turned away, protecting Taekwoon with his own body, and Seyong’s burning blade ripped a line down his back, searing the flesh between his shoulder blades and down his back as he narrowly managed to avoid the wings.  The angel became deadweight as the torturous pain clawed at him, leaving Taekwoon to grab Wonshik before he could fall.

                “He’s on our side!” Gunwoo gasped as he finally stumbled close with Changmin hot on his heels.

                “Frozen ether!” Seyong spat, understanding dawning too late.  “Where’s Victoria?!” he demanded while he cast about, flinching when another blast landed far too close to them.

                “Demon!” Taekwoon warned with a pained, sharp eyed stare.

                All three angels turned around with their shields jumping to life and swords blazing.  A cone of cold washed over all of them, temporarily blinding them.  When they could see again, the hidden demon was gone again, disappeared into the shadows.  “Woo!” Changmin called out, placing himself directly beside the Heir once more.

                Divination screamed warnings from all directions and Gunwoo didn’t know where to focus.  A tree nearby exploded, shattering their concentration, and Changmin inhaled suddenly, drawing their combined attention.  The former guard tensed and then fell to his knees, the astrilite sword clenched in his hand on the ground.  His good wing extended out awkwardly and Gunwoo’s eyes widened as he saw Jaejoong appear from the shadows, that insufferable smirk on his face.  Changmin coughed in pain and it was then the Heir realized there was a frozen blade buried in his gut.

                “Changmin!” he screamed, throwing himself forward with reckless abandon, burning sword blazing brightly in his hand.  Jaejoong’s smirk turned predatory.  He ripped his sword free to the side, tearing Changmin open further, and then wrapped the shadows around him once more as he jumped back.  Immediately, Gunwoo lunged towards Changmin to make sure he wasn’t going to die.

                “Watch out!” Changmin coughed, waving Gunwoo away with a wet, rasping voice, his sword still planted on the ground.  Too late, he realized his mistake.

                “!” he inhaled, pivoting as he summoned all his protective measures at once.  An invisible shield popped up, his celestial armor solidified again, and his burning blade came around just in time to catch the freezing sword that swung at him.

                “Found you,” Jaejoong leered, pressing his sword hard against the Heir’s.  Before he could really dig in, his attention slipped to the right and he slashed across Gunwoo’s defenses, startling the Heir into stepping back.

                “What have I told you about blind spots?!” Seyong snarled, racing in to engage the Royal demon head on.  Fire and ice swords clashed, the edges humming intensely as the weapons held.  Shards of smoking ice dissipated as they pulled apart, returning to clash again in a flurry of shadows and fluctuating invisibility.  Wings flapped in and out of range, hands darted out to try and grab, and shifting shields warded off close range attacks.

                Gunwoo stumbled closer, having trouble following the two fighters.  He wanted to help, but his attention was torn between them and the gasping Changmin.  Ships still zoomed and attacked each other overhead, but on the ground, his attention was fixated solely on Seyong and Jaejoong.  Again and again they clashed, shields flashing and swords flying.  Finally!  Hands reached and grabbed, snarling wings on both attackers as their weapons clashed and stalled, creating steam between them.  “No!” the Heir gasped, panic filling his lungs as he lunged towards them.

                He could feel their powers warring.  Jaejoong grimaced as wounding took hold, but it was not enough.  And Gunwoo could see the debilitation sinking in, worming its way past Seyong’s defenses, weakening him.  Nostrils flaring, the former guard fell to his knees with a pained cry, still defiantly holding up the shield and sword.  Jaejoong’s erse enjoyment was almost manifest as he held Seyong’s sword in place with his shield of deflection, allowing him to slide his own weapon free so he could place the tip against the crumbling circle of protection and press determinedly.

                Gunwoo felt despair creep in and silence him as he desperately tried to bridge the distance between them in time.  Why wasn’t Seyong looking at him?!  Why didn’t he acknowledge the Heir was coming?!  He had to see him!  ‘Say something!’ he wanted to scream, but the words lodged in his throat as he pulled his sword back, ready to strike.

                Seyong’s shield fractured with a choking gasp from the Royal.  Jaejoong’s freezing blade slipped through, bypassing the trembling sword stuck on his deflection, and buried itself in the former guard’s chest as it stalled and then pierced even the celestial armor.  Weakly, the angel’s left hand reached up to grab Jaejoong’s sword hand, holding tight.  “Got you,” he choked in gasping breaths with a victorious smirk.

                Finally breaking his silence, Gunwoo screamed and rammed the point of his sword towards Jaejoong’s back.  Too late, the demon realized his peril.  His eyes widened and he tore the sword free from the angel’s chest, nearly cutting him in half.  The stained blade stalled as Seyong’s dying grip held tight, keeping him from finishing his turn in time.  “Gyah!” Gunwoo snarled, ramming his heated blade through Jaejoong’s ribs, impaling him on the molten sword.

                The demon choked in surprise as he blinked at Gunwoo with disbelieving eyes.  “I was supposed to-”

                “Die!” Gunwoo finished for him, forcing his sword up and through the demon’s chest so that the blade cleaved his head in two as it came free.  Jaejoong’s body fell limply to the ground, taking Seyong’s with it, and Gunwoo struggled to breathe, gasping for air as emotions clogged his throat.  He looked up in a panic as one of the ships whined, the engine complaining as it died.  It was useless, he knew, but he threw himself over Seyong’s body with his shields up as the small skimmer came crashing down, a personal pod jettisoning before it crashed.  The other two ships came to a revealed stalemate in the air, both facing off against the other, ready to fire but stalling with the temporary truce.

                “Wonshik!” Taekwoon cried from the side, cradling the downed angel in his arms.

                Changmin was lying on the ground with blood pooling around him and Gunwoo continued to crouch over Seyong’s lifeless body as tears burned his eyes.  “Gyah!” the Heir howled, dismissing his sword as he sat back on his heels and raised his face to the dark sky.

                “Ugh,” a pained groan from the tree line made him look to his left, but he couldn’t even muster his sword again as he saw an injured demon staggering from the darkness.  Blood dribbled down the side of his face and he was clutching his right arm with a pained expression that Gunwoo recognized all too well.  “Nice,” he grunted when his eyes landed on Jaejoong before he simply collapsed where he was, content to not be a threat.

                “Someone help me!  I can’t heal him!” Taekwoon sobbed, body bowed over Wonshik’s as he held him close.

                “Min?” Gunwoo whimpered as he was unable to understand the words the demon was saying.  He reached towards the downed angel as he struggled to see, recognizing the sound in Taekwoon’s voice, if nothing else.

                “My goodness,” a new voice clucked in disappointment as the speaker walked from the darkness.  The Heir hiccupped for breath as he sat up and tried to marshal his strength for the newest threat, but it melted as soon as he saw who it was: Kim Myungsoo.  Only, he wasn’t alone.  Beside him was another man who was entirely unfamiliar but that felt strangely powerful.  “You have all certainly made a mess of things,” he sighed with a shake of his slightly bruised head as he kept one hand on the stranger’s arm.

                “You had to be a spoilsport didn’t you?” the orangish haired stranger scowled with a glare at Myungsoo.

                “And you had to be meddlesome again, didn’t you?” Myungsoo responded in kind.

                “It’s more fun that way.”

                “Hush.”

                “Help me,” Gunwoo pleaded on his knees, staring at the uncharacteristically unharmed figure in their midst.

                “Why don’t you help them, Prince Gunwoo?” Myungsoo blinked neutrally before he turned his attention to the two ships in the air.  After a brief pause, both started descending, and it didn’t appear as if they intended for it to happen.

                Not wasting any time, Gunwoo checked on Seyong again, just to be sure, but confirmed that the angel had died defending him.  Fresh tears stung his eyes as he moved quickly to Changmin, pulling the guard into his arms.  “Min!” he urged frantically, patting the other angel’s cheek.  He didn’t wake but a hand over his mouth showed he was still breathing, even if blood was bubbling from the corner of his mouth.  “No.  Don’t die on me!” he begged, pouring what healing he could into the other angel.  The need was great and the power intense; overcoming Jaejoong’s residual effects wasn’t easy.

                When he looked up from his healing, taking short, gasping breaths, he noticed Insoo leaning over Wonshik with his hands placed upon the other angel’s body.  Taekwoon looked unsure and so very tired but not panicky, and then there were the two living demons nearby.  Victoria was nowhere to be found, but Myungsoo was there with a stranger beside him and none of it made sense.  Worse, they seemed to be surrounded by an unnatural stillness and it only added to Gunwoo’s confusion.

                “You should rest now, wayward Heir,” Myungsoo smiled, reaching his free hand to touch Gunwoo’s forehead.

                Immediately, his eyelids felt incredibly heavy and he lost his grip on consciousness without much of a fight.