Enjoy!

Dave stood at the ready, only to see Equius carrying an injured Nepeta running towards them. Dave and John's eyes widened when they saw Nepeta and Dave ran to them.

"What happened?!" Dave asked.

"That angel from before… Pollux if I remember correctly… he attacked us out of nowhere…" Equius explained, carefully holding Nepeta. The rage built in Dave and he gripped the hilt of his sword tight.

"I'm going out there." Dave said, anger dripping from his voice like venom.

"Not alone, Dave." John said, putting his hand on Dave's arm.

"I'm going now, Egbert. You stay with Nepeta. No one hurts one of mine and gets away with it."

"B-But Dave-!"

"NO BUTS!" Dave yelled, looking John in the face. John's eyes widened and he pulled his hand away. Dave softened his expression a bit. "Stay here. I'll be back soon. Just stay out of site." Dave said before running to the exit of the sewers.

Dave ran to where he saw the angel, standing victoriously beside a lamppost.

"Hey, Thtrider." Pollux greeted with a smirk.

"You… Why did you attack Nepeta?!" Dave questioned, pointing his broken sword at Pollux.

"Why elthe? It'th night time and thhe'th a demon. It'th my job." Pollux stated. Dave growled at him.

"Did she attack anyone?! No! She was out roleplaying with Equius! Nepeta won't attack unless attacked first!" Dave yelled.

"Whatever you thay, demon. You, however, look ready for a fight." Pollux said.

"You attacked one of my demons. You're going down!" Save said, rushing towards him and swinging. Pollux pulled his lance out and blocked the attack. Dave took this opportunity to jump and kick Pollux in the gut. The angel backed up and held his gut before aiming and Dave and attacking his weak side. Dave gasped in pain as the lance cut his side, reopening the wound. Dave glared and slashed his sword, cutting Pollux's face. Pollux screamed and put his free hand on his face, looking at Dave with deep hatred. He swung his lance and slashed Dave across the chest. Dave gasped again and stumbled backwards, his back meeting the side of building. Pollux smirked and swung his lance again, slashing Dave diagonally down from his shoulder. Dave coughed, a bit of blood coming out.

"You can't beat me, Thtrider. Not with a broken thword and your crappy fighting thtyle." Pollux said watching Dave slide down the wall. "I'd have had more of a challenge against Dirk, but whatevth. I'm gonna give you one more chance. Where'th John?"

"N-Never gonna tell ya." Dave coughed out. "I'll never hand him over to you."

"That'th to bad." Pollux said, aiming his lance at Dave's chest. "Maybe Dirk will hand him over when they find your dead body." Dave closed his eyes, preparing himself for the pain. Seconds passed and no pain came, just the sound of metal on metal and Pollux gasping. Dave slowly opened his eyes and his eyes widened. In front of him, hammer at the ready, stood John, his wings out, protecting him.

"J-John?" Dave coughed.

"Hang in there, Dave. Rose is on the way." John replied, not looking at him. Dave just stared at John wide eyed, as was Pollux.

"Egbert, you idiot! What are you doing?! You know the cardinal rule! No helping demonth!" Pollux yelled.

"You're right. I do know. But they didn't do anything wrong. I can't let you, someone who is supposed to fight for justice and freedom, injure a few innocents like that!" John replied, his voice filled with determination. Pollux looked at John wide eyed. "I'm willing to face Signless and Summoner for this. I know the consequences, but you're in the wrong too." John stated, raising his hammer and pointing at Pollux.

"You're making a mithtake, Egbert." Pollux spat, raising his lance again.

"Dave!" Dave turned and saw Rose running to him. John rushed Pollux, swinging his hammer and hitting him in the arm. Pollux yelled and kicked at John and John grabbed his leg. Dave stared at the fight with wide eyes, even after Rose reached him and helped him up.

"J-John… S-Stop…" Dave said. Rose started to pull him away, Dave resisting as best he could. "N-No, I… I can't leave…"

"Dave, we need to get you out of here… John will be fine. You need help." Dave wouldn't take his eyes off John, who fought blow-to-blow with Pollux. He looked away only when John and Pollux were out of site and Dave and Rose made it to the sewers. Dirk and Roxy met them halfway and Dirk carefully picked up his brother carrying him quickly to the hideout.

"D-Dirk… J-John… H-He's fighting… H-Help him…" Dave begged his brother as he put him on his bed. Dirk looked at his brother and nodded slowly, holding his hand tight before grabbing his sword and running out.

Meanwhile, John and Pollux stared each other down, each panting. John had multiple gashes, cuts and scratches on his body and Pollux had a multitude of bruises on his body. John raised his hammer and ran at Pollux one more time, Pollux raising his lance and running to meet him. Both swung and both hit their targets as the two ran passed each other. Both stood still for a few moments before John gasped and fell to the ground, Pollux smirking.

"I win, Egbert. I win." He walked over to John and crouched next to him. John stared up at him. "You did your betht. But now you have to face Thignlethth and Thummoner." Pollux said, tying John's hands behind his back. He yanked John up and John felt dizzy from blood lose.

"Y-You know… I'm getting sick of ropes…" John muttered. Pollux tightened his grip of John's arms and John winced.

"Ropeth are the latht of your concernth." Pollux said, spreading his wings and preparing to fly. "Pollux!" Pollux looked and saw Dirk running towards them.

"Too late, Dirk Thtrider! He'th coming with me." Pollux replied, flapping his wings and lifting John and himself into the air and out of Dirk's reach. Dirk ran after them until he couldn't anymore and cursed under his breathe.

"Dave… What am I gonna tell Dave….?!"

Sollux sat next to Dave as Rose and Roxy patched Dave up. Despite his earlier arguments, Dave felt a lot more pain than any time before. Rose already said he'd be stuck in bed for weeks until his wounds healed more.

"Sollux, you have anyway of finding out what angel laws and consequences are?" Dave rasped to Sollux. Sollux looked at him for a few minutes, before nodding slowly and opening his laptop. Dave stared at the ceiling, wincing whenever Rose would clean or wrap one of his wounds. After a few minutes Dirk walked in slowly. Everyone looked at him and he took his shades off, never a good sign. He looked at Dave who sat up, all bandaged looked at him with wide, worried eyes. Dirk bit his lip and got on his hands and knees, shocking everyone.

"I… I couldn't save him. By the time I'd gotten there it was too late. I ran after them as far as I could. I… I'm sorry." Dirk said. Dave stared at him with wide eyes. He'd stopped listening after the first sentence. The angels had taken John back. Who knew if they'd see John again, if John would even be alive.

Sollux continued his research of the laws and punishments of the angels after this news more quickly. He, along with Dirk and Roxy, saw how close Dave and John had gotten. A bit too close, to where Sollux even wondered if Dave saw John as 'a friend'. Sollux finally found what he was looking for and he read through the rules quickly. "Tho… The motht important rule ith never help a demon, no matter what." Sollux said. Dave looked at him before looking down.

"Well, he broke that rule just now…" Rose stated.

"The punithhment ith…" Sollux froze as he read it.

"What is it, Sollux?" Dave asked. Sollux simply gulped and looked at him.

"It… It's not death is it?" Nepeta asked, curled up a bit, scared for John. Sollux shook his head.

"Will he be hurt?" Rose asked. Sollux nodded slowly.

"P-Permanently?" Eridan asked slowly. Sollux nodded again.

"What will be hurt?!" Rose asked.

"It… It'th not what will be hurt…" Sollux replied.

"What do you mean?" Dave asked, scared of the answer.

"It… it'th what he'th gonna lothe…" Sollux replied. Everyone looked at him with wide eyes, waiting for him to continue. "He'th… He'th gonna lothe hith wingth…" Dirk's eyes widened.

"No! I know what that does to an angel!" Dirk stood up quickly. Roxy jumped a bit, looking at her older brother.

"Wh-What does it mean? What does it do to him?" Roxy asked before slightly hiccuping.

"He'll… He'll become one of us…" Dirk said. "He'll be changed into a demon."

Pollux had dragged John back to the angels' headquarters and brought him to Signless and Summoner who greeted them with shocked faces. Pollux explained what happened and demanded John receive his punishment. When Summoner asked John if all Pollux said was true, John simply looked away from him, unable to see his trainer's disappointed face. Signless, begrudgingly, granted Pollux his wish, even letting Pollux be the one to pull John's wings out. Summoner begged for at least John be allowed to live on Earth, and Signless allowed it. Pollux went about with the punishment slowly and painfully, almost every angel in headquarters hearing John's screams. Jane wasn't allowed to see John, the separation already bring too much for the both of them.

After John's wings were removed, Summoner picked him up off the ground, looking at his recently unconscious form. He looked small now, even smaller than when he first met John 12 years ago. Summoner flew John down to Earth, to the same area that Pollux and he had fought. He gently leaned John against the wall and brushed the hair out of his face slowly.

"John Egbert. I want you to know… I'm proud to have been your trainer. You did something I wish I could have done years ago. Thank you. Strider better take care of you." Summoner said, petting John's head one last time before flying back to headquarters, not looking back.