Note— this chapter is 4,290 words long. It's my birthday (28/2) so, I decided to give a gift to all of you! Enjoy!

Gavin, overwhelmed with shock, stiffened as he stared at the swarm of enemies suddenly enter his room. He stumbled backwards, nearly tripping over a bag on the floor. Luckily, his pain was dulled and mostly numb from the painkillers. He was fucked. He was so fucked.

There was no escape. No way out. At least Nines got out.

How the hell did he get out?

Gavin shoved his thoughts away as he looked at the androids. "W-Who the fuck are you?"

"Gavin Reed, we have been ordered to take you back into custody, along with Hank Anderson. Connor will be killed for his treason, and your punishments are yet to be revealed."

"No. No fucking way am I letting you killing Connor."

No. I won't let that happen. I will not let anyone die and I will not put Connor in the way of harm.

"Fuck yourself!" Gavin yelled as the androids slowly advanced. "Just let me live! I want to be free! Let me fucking be free!"

An android came close with a gun and handcuffs, and Gavin quickly darted his hand forward and grabbed the gun, yanking it from the android's hand. He then shoved the android to the ground and kept it pinned down with a foot. Gavin pointed his gun at the group of androids.

"One step closer and he gets it," Gavin hissed.

The one who had spoken responded to this by pointing his gun at the android on the ground and shooting his head. Gavin screeched and receded, staring at the android corpse in horror.

"Y-You, you're… You're fucking heartless!" Gavin screeched out. Now he was truly starting to panic - his only possible leverage was nothing to the group he was trying to get away from.

"Give up, human," the leader said. He had his gun pointed directly at Gavin's forehead. "You are coming with us."

Gavin realised he did in fact have leverage.

Gavin pressed the gun to his own temple.

"No. No I am fucking not."

"Put down the gun!" The leader of the group of androids demanded.

"No. I'm not putting down the gun, and I'm not going with you. Let me go, or I'll shoot," Gavin threatened.

They didn't want him harmed. Using one hand to keep the gun pressed against his own temple, he slowly walked over to where his and Nines' bags were. He paused before quickly grabbing them and running towards the window.

Gavin heard yelling and gunshots behind him as he ran towards the window. He opened it in one swift movement, then jumped out of it. Thank fuck for the lack of a fly screen.

Gavin was falling. He was falling and he had no plan. He stretched his feet out as he clutched onto the bags he was holding.

Gavin screwed his eyes shut - he was done for. He was definitely about to die. He had suffered all this pain and had come so far, grown so much, all for nothing.

"I love you, Nines," Gavin whispered into thin air.

Gavin landed directly on the shoulders of an android walking by, it was an unbelievable fluke, even more so that Gavin was uninjured and did not even have aching balls. The android gasped and stumbled, toppling down and landing on the ground on, with Gavin bouncing back to avoid hitting the ground. Gavin was stunned but got off the back of who he fell onto.

"Hi. Thanks for saving me a painful landing. Bye," Gavin said before dashing away. This left the android man to stare onwards at him with confusion.

Gavin ran back into the hotel and up the first flight of stairs. He skidded to a halt when he saw none other than Nines who was holding a blanket in his arms, and seemed painfully unaware of the surrounding events.

"Gavin, are you okay?" Nines asked. The question sparked at immediate notice of Gavin's frantic expression.

"Connor and Hank are in huge danger. We need to go, now."

Gavin grabbed Nines' wrist and went up another flight of stairs, then down the hall towards the room shared by Connor and Hank. He barely stopped to think about how he had survived a fall from a two story building, and landed on someone's shoulders. Unharmed.

Androids that were in Gavin's room were filing quickly out of it, and Gavin pulled Nines into the closest room.

"Who the hell are you?"

Gavin and Nines looked at an android who was staring at them. The android spotted Gavin's gun and screamed.

"Er…" Gavin peeked out the door. The androids who had cornered Gavin had passed.

"Sorry, wrong room!" He said with a quick glance thrown in the android's direction. Gavin dragged a very confused Nines out of the room, and quickly pulled him down the hall to room 68. Gavin burst into the room that Hank and Connor were staying in. Inside of it, there was a group of androids surrounding Hank and Connor, who were knelt on the floor with their hands behind their heads.

Oh fuck. Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuuuuck, we're screwed.

Gavin stared at the pair and the crowding androids. He had no plan. His mind couldn't think of anything due to the overwhelming panic and the impending doom that was clouding his mind. It was like the swirling rivers in a huge storm, waters rising and causing destruction in its path. He felt Nines squeeze his hand. As Gavin looked onwards, he saw Connor move his head and his LED flickered yellow before going red again. Connor knew that Gavin was present, and that he was armed - Gavin was holding the gun still in his hand.

Connor looked at Gavin for a second before he looked back at the androids, and his dear friends kneeling on the floor.

"Gavin, what do we do?" Nines asked. His mouth was right next to Gavin's ear, and his whisper was the ghost of a breath. So gentle, it would have been a perfect tone for any romantic situation, but this was not that. Nonetheless, it sent a shiver down Gavin's spine. Nines' icy eyes gazed gently at Gavin. Those eyes of frost, a thick sheet of ice coating a once powerful river, so full of secrets and misery yet so enticing and calming to look at. Gavin was slowly breaking through the ice, ranging from gentle taps to violent smashes, but whenever he believes that he has almost broken through, the ice rapidly increases in density and freezes back over again. Time after time, it would hit Gavin that he didn't truly know Nines.

"I-I don't know, Nines, I'm not smart," Gavin whispered back after forcing his mind back into the present.. "You're a robot, android, you have all of the brains! Well, not brains, but you know what I mean. You think of something."

Nines nodded and hummed in thought. "I have a plan, but it would result in executing all of these androids," he replied. "I need not let out the secret that I am on your side."

"Are you actually stupid?" Gavin whispered back. "We can't just go around ki- shh." Gavin saw an android turning towards the door, so he shoved Nines back with an arm, before receding as well.

Gavin saw more androids coming down the hall, so he quickly threw Nines against the wall and pinned him to it. Gavin leaned in and, as a cover, began to make out with him.

So this is how tops feel, Gavin thought as he kissed his boyfriend. The three androids walking past were dragging along a thrashing and yelling Aspen. That crosses out the possibility that they snitched.

How the hell did they find us? Gavin thought. As soon as the androids went into the room, Gavin pulled away from Nines. The two of them were red in the face.

"So, you decided to try being dominant?" Nines said, raising an eyebrow. "Thanks. I hate it."

"Me too, but also shut the fuck up, I had to do it or we would've gotten caught," Gavin replied. "So, any plans?"

Nines nodded. He removed his android skin, leaving his face a robotic white and grey. It was unsettling to see his lover like that. Nines then took off his android jacket and discarded it on the floor, and Gavin set their bags beside it. He was wearing a button-up shirt beneath it.

"Let's storm them," Nines said.

"You need a weapon," Gavin said. Just as he spoke, the same three androids that delivered Aspen to the room were leaving.

"Perfect," Gavin said quietly. The androids started walking the opposite way to where Nines and Gavin were standing.

"Sup, fuckers," Gavin said louder than he was previously speaking. The three androids turned around then instantly charged for him., due to recognising him instantly. Gavin and Nines took a few steps back, and as soon as the the first android reached them, it instantly grabbed Gavin who gasped. Nines quickly knocked it out with a punch directed at the right area. He took the android's gun, then proceeded to knock out the other two androids before they could react.

"You are so hot when saving my ass," Gavin said.

"I'm always hot," Nines replied as he knelt down. He took the guns from the androids, one had a pistol and two had shotguns. Nines also grabbed their ammunition before grabbing their arms individually, one by one, connecting and wiping their memory.

"What did you just do?" Gavin asked. "You did wipe their memory, right? I've seen you do shit like that before, but to steal their memory."

"Yes. They will not remember what happened, and that I was here. I'm afraid they could've recognised me."

"You should've stolen their memory to see who sent them."

"I did not think of that," Nines said. "It is too late now."

Nines stood up, handed Gavin a shotgun, then held the other shotgun and the pistol. Now they were both armed. Gavin looked at the unconscious androids before going back to the room, standing against the doorway.

The androids were insulting Connor and calling him names. Because he was a traitor, they turned on him in a heartbeat. Connor, who had had enough of this belittlement, spat synthetic saliva seethingly, showing strongly sour sentience.

One of the androids grabbed Connor roughly by the neck, and Aspen responded by standing up and throwing the android onto the ground, forcing her to lose the grip that she had on Connor. Aspen looked up and saw Gavin and Nines, and gave them a tiny nod.

Gavin and Nines exchanged a glance before entering the room, guns pointed at the androids who somehow have not yet noticed their presence. Gavin quickly put the safety switch on the pistol then slid it across the floor through the legs of the androids, right in front of Hank. Hank grabbed the gun, turned off the safety, then stood up, pointing his weapon at the androids. Gavin got a clear view - there were seven in the room. Some of the androids must have left; he could have sworn there were previously more.

Gavin and Nines used the grip of their guns to knock out two of the androids, and Hank forward did the same. The rest of the androids instantly surrendered, dropping their weapons and raising their hands. Aspen, now free, grabbed Connor and Hank's wrists and pulled them forward to Gavin and Nines. Gavin threw Hank his shotgun, and Nines threw Connor his shotfun

"Thank Ra9 for you!" Aspen exclaimed, their face dripping with relief.

Connor walked forward and pulled both Gavin and Nines into a tight hug. Gavin stiffened, for he had not been expecting such affection from his friend, but he hugged back.

"I felt so scared," Connor whispered, barely enough for Gavin to hear.

Hank walked forward and joined the hug, while Aspen walked awkwardly. It was a sweet moment of affection shared between friends. Friends who had come a long way, but still had a long to go.

"These dumbasses really should have kept an eye on the door and been less cowardly, " Gavin said. "This was too easy."

Too easy.

Shit.

As soon as he spoke, Gavin realised the suspicion of the situation. How and why did the group of androids give in so easily? He did not trust this at all. There was a feeling deep down in his gut, screaming for them to get the fuck out.

"We have to go, now," Gavin said with urgency.

"Gavin, what's wrong?" Nines frowned.

"I-I just, I have a feeling. We have to get the fuck out of here!"

Gavin grabbed Nines' hand and quickly pulled him towards the entrance, with the other three people following close behind them. Gavin ran out into the hallway where he immediately skidded to a halt. His eyes seemed to boggle out of his skull as he stared onwards.

At least ten androids were facing them, all armed and aggressive. One was holding Nines' android jacket and Gavin's bags, and her face bore a wicked grin.

"Nines himself is on the side on a traitor-" she looked at Connor, "- an idiot-" she looked at Aspen, "- and two worthless sacks of shit." Her eyes landed on Gavin, and seemed to pierce directly into the veil of his soul.

"Don't you fucking dare insult them like that," Nines snarled dangerously, stepping in front of Gavin protectively.

"Oh, Nines. I almost pity you. You are throwing everything away to stand up for such worthless people." She took a step forward. "Give in, now. Or I might have to reveal your little secret."

The determination instantly faded from Nines' eyes. His eyes went wide and he seemed to freeze up. Gavin watched in astonishment as Nines instantly became stricken with fear.

"Nines, what the fuck is she talking about?" Gavin asked, worriedly glancing at his boyfriend. "What secret?"

She laughed. "They seriously have no idea? Just when I thought you may have a heart of gold," she smirked.

"How do you know?" Nines managed to gasp out.

"That doesn't matter. How about I give them a demonstration of your secret? Lucinda, the remote, please."

"No, no, please, no," Nines begged.

Gavin had never seen Nines beg like that. What the hell was he hiding? Gavin watched as another female android stepped forward and handed a remote to the leading female. She grabbed the remote and grabbed a button, and Gavin watched Nines in a cold anticipation.

Nines looked at Gavin, his jaws agape as if he was trying to say something to him. Nines' eyes flashed black, then red, then black again, before settling for dark blue pupils. Gavin took a step back.

"Nines…?"

Nines lurched forward and punched Gavin in the face. He grabbed him by the throat and began to choke the life out of him.

"Nines, what are you doing!?" Connor screamed, running forward and trying to tear Nines off of Gavin. Nines turned around and shoved Connor away. Connor did not give up - he grabbed onto Nines' left arm and tried to pull him away from Gavin.

The android leader was cackling maniacally as she watched the scene unfold. Hank raised his gun and shot her without hesitation. More androids pushed forward and began to shoot at Hank, but Aspen joined his side and began to shoot at them as well.

Gavin gasped and tried to scream, but he couldn't. He could barely breathe. In his chest, his heart was shattering to pieces as the one person that he trusted most was choking the life out of him. Gavin's vision was beginning to show splotches of black. He trashed around but was getting weaker by the second as his oxygen source was cut off. Gavin felt a single tear slip as he fell limp in Nines' grasp.

Hank darted downwards, sliding across the floor, and grabbed the remote. It fumbled around in his hand but he got a fair grip. Hank pressed the button again, and Nines dropped Gavin, just as he passed out.

Hank looked at Nines with disgust. Nines was staring down at the body of his lover, body trembling as he stared at what his own hands had done to the very person he loved.

"Snap out of it and fight!" Hank hissed. "We have to kill these androids. They know too much!"

Sombelry, Nines nodded. He raised his gun and began to kill without mercy. Hank did the same. Connor and Aspen hesitated, but eventually they joined the pair too. The enemy androids were quick to fall, screams escaping their throats. The hallway was painted a deep blue that streaked across the once monochromatic floors and walls, and thirium was still pooling from the bodies that were now a new decoration. The remote that the enemies had used to turn Nines lay on the carpet among the corpses.

"Never again am I killing," Aspen said. Their eyes were full of sadness - they were not at all adjusted to the life of killing "Where do we go from here?"

As they spoke, Nines walked over to Gavin and crouched beside him. Desperate for any signs of life, he did a full and in-depth scan of his body. Gavin was barely breathing, but he was alive. Nines was filled with newfound hope. He placed his hands on Gavin's chest and began to press against his ribcage rhythmically, performing CPR on him. Nines filled his mouth with oxygen, as he was technically unable to consume it due to his lack of lungs, and pressed his mouth against Gavin's. He breathed into his mouth before continuing to press down on his chest.

"Wake up, please just wake up," Nines mumbled.

Connor carefully crouched beside Nines. He would be lying if he said he wasn't afraid of Nines now.

"Carry him and take him with us," Connor said softly.

Nines looked at Connor. There was pain glinting in his eyes. "You want me with you even after what I did?"

"Of course I do. You'll always be like a brother to me," Connor said gently. "But you have to tell us what the hell happened. What you did to Gavin was terrifying."

"Hurry up your stupid chick-flic moment," Hank interjected sharply. "We can't stay. Remember there are other people here who probably called the police."

Nines nodded and he carefully picked Gavin up, cradling him in his arms.

"Follow me, I have access to the work elevator," Aspen said. Once they spoke, they headed directly for the elevator area, with the rest of the group following them. Aspen used their worker keycard to open the work elevator. The ragtag group mixed with androids and humans squashed into the elevator - it was smaller than a normal elevator so everyone was uncomfortably close.

It was painfully obvious that Hank, Connor, and Aspen were pressed themselves against the wall to be as far away from Nines as they could manage. Nines tried to make himself believe that it was to give Gavin space. Gavin's neck was badly bruising, and even unconscious, his face seemed paralysed in a state of terror. Trying to deceive himself didn't work - Nines is an android, after all. His friends were terrifying. Why wouldn't they be? Nines tried to kill his boyfriend. He should have said something sooner. Nines' thoughts were bringing him more pain by the second.

The elevator stopped at underground parking that was below the hotel. As soon as the doors opened, everyone quickly filed out.

"I figured this would be the easiest place to get out," Aspen said.

"Alright," Hank said. "Let's get the fuck outta here and I can continue leading you bunch of bastards."

"Are you sure you want me to come along?" Nines asked. All eyes fell on him.

"Of course," Connor said. "You didn't hurt Gavin on purpose."

"When he wakes up," Hank added, "You have to tell us what the hell happened back there."

Nines didn't reply. Once Hank realised that Nines would not be answering him, he rolled his eyes and began to walk towards the exit of the subterranean parking lot. They escaped the area without any trouble. The day was spent in almost silent walking.

Around sunset, Hank announced they were close to the mansion. His face was full of excitement and anticipation.

Nines had carried Gavin the whole way throughout the day. He hadn't woken up yet, but he had twitched in his slumber. It was like a normal sleep, if you look past the fact that no speech came from him at all.

Hank stopped at the bottom of a hill. "We are definitely resting before climbing that cunt," he said. Hank plopped down onto the ground and got his water bottle that he had given to Connor.

Nines sat down and sat Gavin down on the ground beside him. He put him in a comfortable position and watched over him, watching his face for any signs of consciousness.

Wake up, Gavin. Please, please just wake up.

Nines waited. His heart ached so, so badly. Nines very gently tilted Gavin's head backwards and looked at the bruising. Gavin's neck was a mix of red and deep purple.

Just as Nines was examining the bruises, Gavin's eyes shot open and he hoarsely gasped. He sat up, saw Nines, and tried to speak, but all that came out was incoherent rasping.

"Lay back down," Nines said quickly.

Gavin tried to get away from Nines. He was terrified. Realising what was happening, Nines let go of his boyfriend. Connor quickly came over, whispered something to Gavin, then lay him down slowly. Gavin passed out again. Nines frowned and bowed his head. Gavin was terrified of him.

"Don't you need to go back to protect your reputation or whatever?" Hank suddenly asked sharply.

"Gavin's more important than my reputation, Hank. I'll just say that I needed to go on a break."

"Are you kidding? You choked him out of his goddamn mind!"

"Don't fight," Connor interjected. "I have something that may help."

Connor took his bag off his back and opened it. He pulled out a syringe that was filled with teal liquid.

"Nines, you gave me this two years ago," he said. "You said it will give a speedy recovery to a human with the one dose, but you only gave me one dose."

"Oh, yes, the Cearem that I gave to you," Nines said.

"Excuse me but what the fuck are you talking about?" Hank asked.

"Cearem is a discontinued experiment created in secret," Nines explained. "Before The Uprising, there were government-hired doctors and scientists working on this special medicine that could cure anything in an instant. They didn't quite get there, but they did create a medicine that significantly boosts the immune system and helps with a swifter recovery of wounds. I managed to smuggle this out for Connor, as he would be closer to Gavin than myself. I agree that this is the time to use it."

"Jesus Christ, that could've solved a lot of problems," Hank said. "How the fuck is it even possible? Eh, whatever. Were you in love with Gavin before The Uprising?"

Nines was surprised, but he gave an honest answer. "Not in love, per se. But I've always had feelings for Gavin. I'm the reason why he wasn't killed on the day of The Uprising."

"Gay."

Nines rolled his eyes. Connor handed Nines the Cearem, which Nines carefully positioned right on Gavin's collarbone. He didn't have any supplies to clean the area, so he had to inject the liquid with lots of caution. Nines slowly injected the medicine into Gavin's skin.

Once done, Nines yote the syringe far away with one swift arm movement. He then looked at Gavin, hoping he would wake up. He didn't. This isn't normal, is it?

About five minutes later, Gavin's eyes opened up. He saw Nines and started to panic.

"Get him away from me!" Gavin gasped. His voice was very raspy, but at least he could speak.

Aspen quickly sat in front of Gavin. "Gavin, what Nines had done to you was unintentional on his part. It may be hard to be around him right now, but he won't attack you again. I promise. We are almost at human Jericho. Okay?"

Gavin nodded, swallowing softly before flinching. His throat was in so much pain. Gavin cast a petrified glance at Nines.

One moment he loved me, the next he was killing me.

"I'm ready to go. Welcome back to life, Gavin," Hank said before standing up.

"I need to carry you," Nines said to Gavin.

"I'm perfectly capable of walking," Gavin replied. "Let's go."

The group packed up and kept walking. Gavin's breathing was audible the whole way, and it was the only thing breaking the silence apart from a soft gale gently stirring the long grass. The grass brushed against Gavin's thighs as he travelled in silence with his companions and… Nines. What the hell was Nines at this point? Still a lover? Gavin felt like after the whole incident at the hotel, he'd need at least a year's worth of therapy.

Before they knew it, the group was standing in front of a large gate. Just beyond it stood a huge mansion. Gavin felt his jaw drop.

Gavin led the way, pushing open the gate then walking up to the mansion. He stopped in front of it to stare with absolute disbelief. This is what they had spent so long trying to reach - a place where Gavin could rest. A place that Gavin would be safe.

"We finally made it," Gavin murmured, his words being gently carried by the wind. "Human Jericho."