The sun finally got a clear path to the ground after what seemed like forever, but much too soon the dust and clouds overtook the light once again. I was sitting on the crumbling wall of the building we had spent the night in while I waited for Hyunsun to wake up. He had exhausted himself more than he let on during the fight, so I was willing to let him get a little more rest. I took that opportunity to see about using my powers, going for just a small flame attack. But my body wouldn't have that as I clutched at my chest in pain and dropped to the ground. Well, that was a bad idea. I struggled to get my breathing under control and my vision back to normal, shaking my head slightly to attempt to put things back into focus. After a moment, I was able to get back up, and just in time, too. Hyunsun was just waking up as I leaned against the wall. I put on my best poker face as he stumbled sleepily over to me.

“Why didn't you wake me up?” he asked, running a hand through his messy hair and barely cracking an eye to see me. I shrugged and smiled at him.

“You looked like you could use the extra sleep,” I said, pushing myself away from the wall and facing the sunrise. He put his arms around my shoulders and leaned against me as if he planned to use me to sleep standing up. I nearly toppled over, barely managing to catch myself on the wall, and poked him in the cheek.

“Five more minutes,” he muttered.

“Fine, but not on me!” I said, trying to push him off.

“But you're comfy,” he murmured, snuggling his face against my neck.

“And you're heavy!” I squeaked, using the wall as support. Reluctantly, he let me go and went back to curl up by the fire. I was reminded once again of a sleeping puppy and smiled softly at him. I knew that he had stayed up most of the night keeping watch, to make sure nothing caught us off guard, so I didn't mind him getting a few extra minutes of sleep now. I went over to sit beside him, facing the entrance in order to keep watch as he had done during the night. He must have heard me come over because he scooted over and put his head on my lap, his hand resting lightly on my knee. I hadn't noticed that I was running my fingers lightly through his hair behind his ear until he shivered softly. That slight movement surprised me into stillness. He reached up sleepily and barely touched my hand, which had frozen above his ear.

“Don't stop,” he muttered. Hesitantly, I resumed the rhythmic motion through his hair. And while he rested, my mind went back to the fight. And that was when I realized...that the Demons were getting stronger. As the days passed, they grew stronger. It didn't used to be so hard to defeat them. But what about us? What about the Guardians? I knew for certain that I personally wasn't getting any stronger. If anything...was I getting weaker? What if I was getting weaker? Would I stop being useful? Would they...toss me aside?

“You stopped again,” Hyunsun murmured, breaking me out of my thoughts. He sat up and looked at me, smiling slightly. And as I looked at his smile, it hit me, and I was more certain than ever that even if the Captain tossed me aside, ChAOS would never do so. He saw my expression and frowned. “What's wrong?” Before the words could fully leave his mouth, I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, burying my face in his shoulder. Even if I lost my powers, they would still be my friends...right?

“Let's go home,” I muttered softly, slowly pulling away and smiling sheepishly at him. He nodded and took my hand.

“I can use my powers again. Let me show you what the angel granted me,” he said, grinning cryptically at me. Before I could even look at him funny, a strange sensation filled my body. It was like...movement, and time, and something of stars, all colliding into one terrifying yet exhilarating experience. I hadn't noticed that I closed my eyes, nor had I noticed that my hand clamped in a death grip around his, until he nudged my slightly. I opened my eyes to see that we were at the pier.

“W-wait, did we just...?” I stammered, trailing off at the end.

“She gave me the ability to teleport two instead of just one,” he said, grinning widely. His grin faded a little as he looked at his hand. “Can you, um...let go? It's starting to hurt.” With a small nod, I managed to relax my fingers enough to let him go. “It's a little scary at first, but you get used to it.”

“Easy for you to say, you've been able to do it since you were little,” I mumbled, trying not to shake so hard. He took me by the elbow and grinned again.

“Come on, we're home,” he said, leading me down the pier. I wasn't sure what to expect once we got back inside the submarine, but I never expected what happened next... As soon as my feet touched the metal floor of the submarine, a nurse ran up to me, a panicked expression on her face.

"Thank goodness you two are back," the nurse said, taking me by the hand and pulling me towards the infirmary. I let her, mostly out of confusion, and Hyunsun followed. When she opened the door and I saw clearly what was waiting for me, my heart shattered. Taeyang was in one of the beds, his eyes closed, covered in wounds. He looked...dead. I choked on a sob and covered my mouth with my hand. Hyunsun stared at his broken leader in shock, as if he stopped functioning the moment he saw Taeyang like that.

"He's still alive...but barely," one of the doctors said. I walked cautiously over to Taeyang and held his hand.

"How much longer...?" Hyunsun asked, trying to make sense of things.

"Not much," the doctor said.

"Hyunsun, you know I have to..."

"But what if you...?"

"I'll be fine," I said, giving him a weak smile. I didn't wait for him to protest or agree, instead taking a deep breath and calling upon my powers, even though I didn't have the energy for it. My hand glowed, a dim blue in the dull grey room. For a moment, it seemed to go well. I didn't feel pain, and his injuries were healing nicely. But, then, blood spurted from my mouth and my knees collapsed beneath me. The pain almost caused me to pass out. I can't stop now... I thought, keeping my hand linked with his and continuing despite the doctors calling my name and telling me to stop. I held myself upright with my other hand, which shook violently in protest. I... He can't die...not now... Broken bones, so many broken bones, internal damage, external damage, his heart... His heart...! I kept going, I had to keep going... Finally, I smiled, feeling the blood spill over my lip, as the last wound healed. For a small moment, it was as if the pain wasn't there anymore. All I felt was relief. I knew he would be okay now. He had to be. I healed everything. I healed everything. I did it... I let go of his hand and didn't even feel myself hit the floor before everything went dark.

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Bit of a short chapter this time around... Sorry. Also, next chapter, I'll post a sketch of Yuri that I did (out of boredom).