The sound of Kilo hitting the water jerked Castyr from the realm of unconsciousness. Cold sept into the star's bones as the chilling water engulfed him. With the shock of the cold, adrenaline pumped through Castyr's veins, and he immediately wrapped an arm around the angel sinking next to him before kicking his legs through the water violently. Castyr heaved a deep breath of fresh air as he broke the surface and began paddling toward the river's shore whilst keeping Kilo afloat.

Once on the riverbank, Castyr dragged Kilo ashore before laying him down and performing chest compressions. 1..2..3..4..5....20. Upon reaching twenty, Castyr opened Kilo's mouth and breathed into him. When there was no response, Castyr immediately began another set of pulses. 1..2..3....20. Breathe. No response.

Tears entered Castyr's eyes as he finished his fourth round of chest compressions with no response from the angel. His vision was completely blurred as he began the fifth. 1..2..3....20. Breathe. No response.

"Kilo!" Castyr frantically called out his angel's name as he continued to press on Kilo's chest. "Wake up!"

By the tenth round, Castyr was a slobbering mess. 1..2..3....20. Breathe. No response. While his training taught Castyr to keep his composure, he could no longer contain himself. His love was unresponsive following a deadly fall from the Heavens. When Kilo continued to lie unmoving, Castyr shouted his angel's name as loudly as his lungs could manage coupled with a cry of desperation through the angel and star's shared link.

KILO!! As soon as the shout left Castyr's lips and mind, Kilo began coughing up water. Tears of relief streamed from Castyr's eyes as he heard Kilo gasping for air. The star was quick to help Kilo rise into a sitting position where he checked the angel's pulse and made sure Kilo's breathing was unhindered. Once ensuring his love was safe, Castyr threw his arms around Kilo's neck and held the angel closely.

"I thought I'd lost you," Castyr said quietly as he turned his head into Kilo's neck. Hearing the tremor in Castyr's voice, Kilo wrapped his arms around Castyr and petted the star's head soothingly.

"Are you alright? Are you unhurt?" Once the relief of seeing Castyr alive after the fall had run its course, Kilo held the star at arm's length and looked over Castyr's body for any sign of injury.

"I'm unhurt," Castyr replied, his eyes widening when he saw the many arrow shafts extruding from Kilo's body. "But you're not!" Now that he was not focused on just getting Kilo to breathe, Castyr was horrified to see an arrow in Kilo's left shoulder, one in his thigh, and another in calf.

Carefully wrapping his hand around the metal shafts, Castyr steadily removed the slim arrows, and, before Kilo could protest, he channeled a large spurt of energy into the opened wounds. Unafraid of the consequences on his body, Castyr immediately healed Kilo's injuries.

"Castyr, what are-" Kilo quickly yanked Castyr's hands from his body, but the wounds were already healed. The angel steadied Castyr as he swooned from the loss of energy. "Why did you do that? I would have been fine, love."

"I didn't want to take that chance," Castyr replied solemnly as Kilo held him. He had already lost Kilo once, and he was not willing to let it happen a second time.

Kilo's eyes softened when he saw the desperation in Castyr's gaze. He understood the star's worry, but he still did not want Castyr to compromise himself when they had just fallen to who knows where. Kilo let out a breath before relaxing and nodding in understanding. "Okay. Just don't do it again. Using a large amount of energy like that is dangerous. Especially when we're unprotected."

"I can't promise that." Castyr gazed into Kilo's eyes as he delivered his response. Kilo fell silent as he heard the star's solemn tone. Castyr was serious. This was something the star was not willing to compromise. However, that did not stop Kilo from trying to persuade Castyr otherwise. "Castyr, my life-"

"Is my everything." Castyr was quick to halt Kilo. "You are my everything. That is why I cannot promise that I will not choose you. I will always choose you."

Kilo was silent. While his heart raced in reaction to Castyr's steadfast love, it also shattered at the thought of Castyr sacrificing himself for his sake. Sensing the conflict within Kilo, Castyr took Kilo by the back of his neck and pulled the two together so their foreheads were touching. Kilo closed his eyes as he felt Castyr's lips touch his, and the two shared a sweet kiss that relayed the sadness filling each of their souls.

As the angel and star broke for air, Castyr observed their surroundings to try and gain a bearing of their location. They were seated on the bank of a river that wound through a large city situated a few miles from the pair.

Realizing that they had fallen from the Heavens and were now in an unknown location, Castyr suggested, "Let's head into the city and find out where we landed." The city in the distance was not one Castyr recognized. During his several decades of fighting and training, Castyr had traveled to many a planet in search of Kilo, so he was fairly familiar with most of the major cities nearest to the Heavens. But, this city was completely foreign to Castyr; he had no idea where they had fallen.

Kilo winced internally as he stood to his feet and began following Castyr toward the city. While Castyr had sealed the wounds created from Aklys' arrows, he was not aware of the internal damage that had been dealt in result of the fall. Kilo hid the pain that was growing in his abdomen by keeping his heart rate low and instead focused his energy on healing his internal wounds. Castyr noticed Kilo's rigidness, but since he had not felt a spike in the angel's heart beat, he did not prod.

After roughly an hour of treading the planet's terrain, Kilo and Castyr finally arrived at the city's edge. The angel and star kept close to the river as they entered the dense jungle of skyreachers. Pulsing neon lights lined the narrow streets of the crowded city as unknown persons shuffled about. We must be in the poorer district. Castyr assumed they had entered a less-fortunate section of the city as he observed the run-down buildings, flickering lights, and dirty faces.

Despite his current state, Kilo made sure to keep a look-out for any suspicious activity. While Kilo and Castyr did not stick out from the city's habitants due to their rugged appearances, it was also very clear they were not human, and thus, were susceptible to being trafficked. "Let's find a place to stay the night," Kilo suggested quietly. He wanted to get Castyr out of the open, and he needed to rest to finish healing.

We don't have any money. Castyr pointed out through their link while scanning his surroundings. Their odds at finding a decent place to spend the night were less than favorable.

"There may be a shelter nearby. This is an impoverished district." Kilo refrained from opening up his end of the link too widely to mask his pain, so he stuck with verbal communication. Kilo's intentions did not slip past Castyr; the star had clocked the angel's pain the moment Kilo had stood up. So, when Kilo insisted on talking aloud, it only confirmed Castyr's suspicions.

This caused Castyr to begin a frantic search for a nearby shelter. He needed to get himself and Kilo to a place where he could heal Kilo without drawing too much attention. Even though Castyr kept his eyes peeled for a shelter as he and Kilo roamed the dark streets, his search was unfruitful. And, to make things worse, they had picked up a tail.

The hair stood up on the back of Castyr's neck when he sensed someone following behind him and Kilo. After taking three lefts, Castyr confirmed that they were being tailed. Kilo had picked up on the stranger as well, and the two prepared for the fight that was to come.

How many? Castyr inquired through the link as he and Kilo continued to stroll down the street as nonchalantly as they could.

Six. Kilo relayed the count he had taken for Castyr to confirm. The timing could not have been worse; Kilo's energy was running low, and he had yet to heal his internal wounds.

Confirmed. Castyr verified Kilo's count before inquiring on their stalkers' make and model. Dendrum?

No. Kilo disagreed. They don't fit the description. Their followers were not large and bald like the dendrum who had captured Devyn all those years ago.

Castyr and Kilo quickened their pace as the six men approached from behind. "Shit!" Castyr cursed under his breath when he rounded a corner only to find it was a dead end alley. Kilo and Castyr swiftly spun around to see the six men blocking their path. Their escape route had been cut off. Had Kilo had the energy, he would have spread his wings and flown Castyr out of the alley. However, his hands had begun to shake when the two turned into the alley, so he knew he did not have the strength to lift off the ground much less carry Castyr.

The six men each sported a gun and slowly backed the angel and star into the dead end, trapping them in the alley. Castyr's brows furrowed when he noticed the men's weapons. Their guns are on 'stun'. His observation did not bode well.

Kilo nodded in confirmation. He had heard them make the switch from 'kill' to 'stun' and knew their intention was to traffic Castyr and him.

Why is it always traffickers? Castyr's tone was one of pissed-off annoyance. Other than demons, Castyr hated traffickers most. He despised those who made a living off another's pain and torment. Although these men were not dendrum, Castyr viewed them as the same trash that deserved to be wiped off the face of the universe.

"Well, look what we've got here," one of the traffickers sneered as he looked the two up and down. "Two beautiful specimen. They'd fetch a pretty penny."

"I think one of them's an angel," another commented when he saw Castyr's silver hair. It was a correct observation, but for the wrong target.

"Ooh hoo! An angel? We just hit payday! How much do you think we can get for its wings?"

While the traffickers were arguing about what amount they should sell Castyr for, Kilo began setting their plan of attack. I'll distract them. You run. He figured if he revealed his wings, it would be enough to draw the attackers' attention to him and would allow Castyr to escape.

There's no way in hell I am running. Castyr could guess Kilo's plan and was not about to let his love sacrifice himself yet again.

Castyr-

No, Kilo. There's a reason I joined the HDD. I'm not leaving you. Not again. Castyr had had enough of not being able to defend his love. He was not about to let anyone take Kilo away from him. Not again.

By this time, the attackers had settled on an amount and were preparing to fire. Having no time to persuade Castyr to run, Kilo pulled the star behind him as the six men fired their stun guns. The angel staggered as he took four shots to the chest. Castyr was quick to catch Kilo as he fell to his knees. The star instinctively sent out a burst of light as split second before he took a shot to the head. Mind spinning, Castyr found himself looking parallel to the road with the side of his face on the hard street.

Castyr's vision faded in and out as he struggled to remain conscious. He could make out bodies lying on the ground as the sounds of heavy footsteps reached his ears. A specific scent caught the star's attention as the footfalls grew nearer. Castyr's eyes drooped closed as he watched black boots walk up to him a moment before he recognized the scent of a demon.