The trek is agonizing. Their only other stroke of luck is when a few others reappear through the portal to look for the missing. Kahlil stays with Kell even after the the guards and healers take over, following them to the makeshift infirmary. He can't feel his own face from the cold, doesn't know how red his eyes are, or notice the cold trails down his cheeks. The healers push him away, and even though what they say seems far away and muffled, he knows it's not good.

When the door closes and he's standing by himself, it takes him some minutes to leave, guilt weighing in his chest like a sharp piece of metal.

He finds somewhere to sit nearby. Stays long enough to be healed himself when someone notices the wounds on him, so very minor in comparison. When that same person lets him know that Kell is stable, he can finally close his eyes for a second.

It's some hours later that he returns to see Kell, knocking on the door.