The length of the tunnel echoed with hurried footsteps and uneven breaths - yet not a single word - as the group thundered down the only traversable path, a ball of light chasing after the tail of Naomi's split tunic. The centre of her face still throbbed quietly, but the worst of the injury had passed with the help of her ever-developing new magics - but she couldn't tell if the real pain was either the sting of betrayal, or the fact that she had been held out for it so strongly and still came out wrong.

Had it not been for Naomi holding him back, Cassien would've undoubtedly crucified Kaelen on the spot. Along with Darius's fury, Aryn's emotion control magic was pushed to its limits, holding back everyone's emotions from utter chaos - with his own internal battle to contend with, as well.

The silence had been deafening at the reveal, and Naomi was sure that the camp would've imploded into further infighting than what had already happened If it weren't for him. But Kaelen had been right about one thing: they had no time to waste.

So in the stillness of a shattered never-quite-there trust, they continued, lips sealed.

Naomi pushed away the tangible chill of Darius's bitter aura and Kaelen's guilty demeanor as they ran in front of them, and instead focused on the one thing that always grounded her: Cassien's confident demeanor and the warm touch of his hand at her back, guiding and steady.

The tunnel continued to slope downwards, and Cassien's touch moved to tighten around her hand. "Watch your footing."

But the ground became littered with gravel, and the red dirt began to shift into a mixture akin to dried mud, patchy and rendering their steps unstable. Eventually, the tunnel spat out into an open view of a spiraling pit, its path losing its last precaution of stone walls to prevent any of them from plunging into a black abyss. The path laid in a steep slope, with treacherous curves winding in a descending spiral; at the end of the visible path, it seemed to split into multiple possible exits.

"Sharp turn!" A voice yelled out from the front, the warning bouncing off a hundred times from wall to wall.

The warning registered in Naomi's mind as she rounded the bend, but turned too sharply. Her ankle nearly rolled, saved by Cassien's grip as he held her up. She threw him an apologetic look, swiping back her hair with a free hand. "Thanks."

"The ground's getting loose here," he said with a note of urgency. "We have to move quickly before it gets too unstable, but watch-"

Just then, a grunt sounded from behind, and the heavy drop of a body against gravel. Naomi's head whipped around to see Aryn's loss of balance from the sudden, steep curve, hurtling towards the edge.

"Aryn!" She cried - and without a second thought, she ripped her hand away from Cassien and lunged backwards.

"Naomi!" Cassien roared back at her, but the propulsion of his weight combined with the steep pathing delayed his ability to stop.

Bits of fragmented rock and gravel dug into her palms as she hit the ground, and Naomi reached Aryn's forearms just as he tumbled over the edge, fingers slipping from the edge and nearly in freefall if not for her intervention. The momentum nearly pulled her with him - and it would have, if she hadn't dug her boots into the gravel as hard as she could, legs flailing for any kind of grip or protruding stalagmite to wrap around. She could see the dark dots of the group on the opposite side of the chasm, too far ahead to notice their predicament.

"I've got you!" She gasped, straining with every fiber of her muscle as Aryn tried to regain his footing on the siding, chips of tiny rocks and gravel raining into the void.

Aryn's voice was breathless, a rare fear in his eyes. "The edge is too weak, you have to let me go or you'll go down with me!"

She shook her head vehemently. "I'm not letting you die!"

Her arms burned with his weight and the awkward angle that she laid in, and Naomi desperately wished her magic could invigorate her in the same way that Cassien's did. Instead, they trembled pathetically, and the ground beneath her shuddered under their combined weight. Still, determination and adrenaline surged through her, and she heaved upwards as hard as she could.

The ground groaned, and Naomi felt the lowered shift of the earth beneath her. Fear overrode all senses, and Naomi's lips parted just as a muscled body laid hovering above hers, and strong hands latched onto Aryn's wrists. A chunk of rock loosened from the edge, tumbling into the pitch black from below them.

"I thought," Cassien exhaled, breath tickling the tips of her ears. "We made a promise to run the other way."

"We did," Naomi panted in a small delirious laugh. "But you're here, too."

With their combined strength, the two of them pulled as one while they shimmied their bodies backwards as one - and with a final wrench, hauled Aryn over the ledge. He rolled to the cavern wall, hand pressed against the cold stone as he steadied himself. Cassien's hands tightened around Naomi's waist, shifting her body back with his.

"We have to move now," Cassien instructed in a firm voice. "But slowly. Stay on your belly, okay?"

Naomi nodded as she carefully mimicked his movements, his lower body pressed against her rear as they began to crawl backwards in sync. Her foot - pinned down by Cassien's leg - dipped in something sunken.

He couldn't see or feel it with her body under his.

She twisted her head back as far as she could to see a crack widening in the ground just beneath where her foot was. "There's a crack-"

As sudden as the strike of lightning, the ground gave way under the both of them in a shuddering roar, ripping away from the bulk of the path in an uneven split.

Gravity dragged them downwards in an unstoppable force, and Naomi barely had time to scream and to register Aryn shouting for them from above. From behind, Cassien's arms instinctively wrapped around Naomi's waist, pulling her flush against him as they plummeted into the abyss.

**

The first thing Naomi felt was muscled arms wrapped around her, her back pressed against something solid. Her body felt chilled, raised goosebumps riddling every surface of her skin. A tickle brushed inside her nose, and she sneezed herself awake.

Further ahead of her, there was a tall, thick mound of something powdery white that appeared to leak water, like it was melting. Square in the middle, there appeared to be an impossibly deep hole, outlined in the shape of a body.

Snow.

The barest trickle of light drifted in from the open air above, and Naomi realized they must've landed at the bottom of the chasm, with the snow breaking their fall.

Just like the night of the fire.

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The path's edges were visible from above, but it was impossibly far - to anyone above, they might've resembled ants. A cold chill rushed through her again, and she let out another sneeze.

"Still cold?" Cassien's deep voice clicked her mind, but there was something off about his tone.

She turned her head, eyes fluttered to the sight of Cassien holding her from behind, his upper body completely bare. Around her shoulders, his long-sleeved black chained tunic was draped like a blanket. She sat in between his legs, and it was then she noticed one pant-leg was removed to expose his bare leg; his shin was blooming with shades of purple and blue, the right kneecap was protruding awkwardly to the side.

Naomi jolted, eyes widened. "Your leg!"

"I made a mound of snow to break our fall, but I hit something on the way down," he said simply, as if it were only a minor flesh wound. "It's just a dislocation. Hopefully."

Naomi pushed herself forward onto her knees to reach towards his injury, and the tunic slipped from her shoulders. The cold air drafted around her skin, and it was only then that she noticed she was stripped down to her underclothes. Naomi's face exploded in a searing shade of red and dropped straight on her rear to cover her exposed pose.

"You removed my clothes?"

"The snow soaked through, but I promise I didn't do anything."

"Cassien!"

"What? I've seen it all already," He threw her a rare, cocky grin and she swatted him playfully.

"I know that! I meant that, what if someone sees us?" She protested, more embarrassed at the mortifying scenario than upset that he had helped to change her. She didn't mind at all - but she wasn't about to just give in so easily.

"I doubt it. We fell a long way, and the only tunnel up is blocked."

"How long have I been out?"

"Not long. The others went ahead - like I said, it's a long way down. It might be awhile before they get to the other side, if they can even find it."

Cassien reached out, gently touching the skin around her nose. It wasn't bruised or even reddened anymore, but Naomi wrinkled her nose at the memory. His brows furrowed deeply. "I should've killed him for hurting you."

"It was an accident," Naomi brushed off his concern. "And if you kill him, that means one less ally against Alistair. So maybe at least till afterwards."

He almost chuckled at her joke. "That sounds like a plan. You're sure you're alright, though?"

"I am. But let's focus on you now."

Naomi pursed her lips and turned back to face his injury. "We need to get this healed right away."

"Don't strain yourself. Feel free to lean forward if it's more comfortable."

Her cheeks blushed at his insinuation that her rear would be right in his face. "You hush, pervert."

Cassien's deep laugh bounced off her bare back just before she felt him wrap the tunic around her hips to avoid being shrugged off as she worked. "Sorry, dove. But you're a treat to tease."

Naomi shuffled forward between his legs, holding out her palms. She gingerly probed the protrusion to evaluate the severity, mind racing at what to do. She had healed her nose, yes, but she was certain it hadn't been broken, only jostled roughly, at least to her limited medical knowledge.

This was different - would she have to try and set the joint back before healing it? Would the magic somehow reposition it on its own?

She bit her lip. "How far can you extend your leg?"

"Not far - something might be torn."

"I.. I think I'm going to push it back in before healing. Okay?"

Cassien nodded. "I trust you."

Naomi took a deep inhale, adjusting her stance so that she sat straddled above his muscled thigh. Her hands shook, too afraid she might cause further damage.

She hesitated. "I think you should numb yourself."

He grunted. "That's probably the smart thing to do."

Cassien leaned forward as much as he could, and Naomi felt the sculpture of his exposed chest pressed against her bare back. Her cheeks warmed, and she inwardly scolded herself for the inopportune reaction. His arms scooped around her with a haze of cold radiating from his palm, numbing his kneecap and shin.

Had it not been for the glaringly obvious injury, their pose might've been suggestive, intimate. Naomi ignored the warmth between her legs as she tilted her head back to kiss the tip of his nose. "Sorry if this still hurts."

The gold of his irises were almost swallowed entirely by the blacks of his pupil, dark with heat. It was obvious he had the same idea. "Sometimes a little pain is a good thing."

Her breath nearly hitched at the velvet in his voice, but she shoved it aside.

For now.

She swallowed deeply, ripping her gaze from his lips and back to the popped joint. "On three, okay?"

His arms tightened around her waist in response.

"One," she whispered, shifting forward, the weight behind her hands readied.

One hand whispered up her ribcage, and a finger slid under the hem of her brassiere to trace the underside of her breast. "Two."

Her pulse skipped a beat at his touch, and together they exhaled. "Three."

She used her hand against his shin to twist inwards while simultaneously pressing with the whole of her palm on his chilled kneecap, feeling the cartilage wriggling beneath. With a pop - almost a snapping sound - it shoved back into place. Cassien's jaw clenched as he let out a sharp breath, and his grip squeezed on the flesh just above her hip.

Naomi placed both hands on his knee, willing a stream of golden light from her palms. It poured around the joint and his skin, domed like a shield. Some of the magic streaked downward to the heavy bruising of his lower leg, the ugly darkness receding from his muscle.

She held her hands there for a while longer, allowing the magic to fully seep in. By the time her energy began to wane, the flesh had returned to a healthier shade if not still a bit bruised. He tested extending his leg outward, moving it side to side - it still certainly couldn't bear his full weight yet, but it was already miles better than before.

Cassien tugged her back into him. She shivered at his touch, but resisted the pull; she twisted around to face him, parting her legs so that she was straddling both thighs fully.

"Better?" She breathed in a raspy voice, head tilted with a flutter of full lashes.

"Almost," he murmured.

"I'll try again as soon as possible,' Naomi promised, misunderstanding the distracted look in his eyes.

"Don't overexert yourself for me. We might as well rest while we can." He brushed aside a lock of her hair. "Is it tiring to do?"

"A little," she admitted, and it was true - the magic was still new and she was under skilled at wielding it in successive uses. "Plus, my arms are sore. Aryn's heavier than he looks."

Cassien cupped her jaw, guiding her mouth towards his. "I guess I'll have to take the lead, then, to show my thanks."

The kiss didn't start sweet - it began like an immediate roar of fire, flickering across every inch of her skin that he traced with his lips, his hands.

Naomi's fingers tangled first in his dark locks then to the cut of his jaw, thighs squeezing against his with her hips in a slow rock. His tongue gently traced the seam of her lips as if to request for an entrance, which she relaxed open with a whimper.

Cassien's throat bobbed at the heavenly sound, moving one hand to secure at the root of her hair and pulling her head back assertively. It gave him all the more access to the exposure of her; a gentle nibble at the soft flesh of her earlobe before making his way across her jaw, down her throat, and into the hollow crook between her collarbone and shoulder muscle.

Heat throbbed and pulsated all over, in between, in every trace of every touch. A seemingly stray brush of his hand against her breast turned into a tortuously pleasuring pinch; a low growl of which neither knew who it came from but the hunger of it was all the same. His hands moved to her hips, tortuously pressing her harder into his arousal. Her legs squeezed tighter around his in response, both unwilling and unable to pry away.

Naomi could feel herself getting embarrassed at their brazen act, but the shyness vanished as she felt the wet suckling of his mouth on the curve of her chest. She let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. His tongue stroked, teeth grazed, and hands clung to every surface of her skin in a inquisitive exploration, as if this were their first time again. Her shaky hands reached out for his stomach, feeling the exquisite hardness of his abdominal muscles. She could hear him suck in a quick breath at the touch, and it excited her even more.

The pleasure was immense, indescribable, unquenchable - and completely inappropriate.

"This is bad timing," Naomi finally broke free with a giggle, pecking the skin around his eyes, his cheeks, the thick muscle of his trapezius.

He let out a chuckle in between the bulge of her chest. "Is this your way of asking me to stop?"

She hesitated for too long - and felt his tongue trace a question in between her breasts. Naomi shuddered.

"...I don't want to stop," Naomi whined, but she pulled away slightly to stare at him, a playful smile on the corners of her lips. "...But yes. We really should try and figure our way out of here."

"As you say," Cassien kissed the tip of her nose. "But I recall that we didn't quite finish our business back on the ship either. I'll have to collect soon."

Naomi smiled so widely that the gleam of her teeth alone could've lit up the cave. "You're remembering more everyday."

"When it comes to you, I'll remember everything."

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