Warning: Somewhat disturbing death related content in the first part of the chapter. I'll mark it in case you want to skip.

***

The smell of blood hung heavily in the air, suffocating him.

Each of Jisoo's quick, shallow breaths seemed unbearably loud in the otherwise deathly quiet kitchen. They rang in his ears.

Numbly he reached for Hansol's cold wrist to pull him closer - a sad attempt to feel less alone in this madness - but the limp body was too heavy and after a few futile attempts the Wielder gave up with a choked off sob, tears dripping onto Seokmin's lifeless face. Jisoo remained motionless for a long moment, just tracing the Healer's features with his gaze. It took effort not to look at the bullet hole in his forehead, almost hidden by his fringe but still glaringly obvious and terrifying.

The blood that continued to trickle from Jisoo's hairline stung in his eyes, pulling him out of his daze, an unwelcome reminder that he was still alive. With a jerky hand movement, he tried to wipe it away but only smeared it further down his cheek. He froze at the thought of Seokmin's disapproving frown. The Healer would probably say something along the lines of "dirty fingers" and "disinfectant" - but the fact that now his voice would only remain as a fading memory made the situation all the more crushing.

A scream burned in Jisoo's chest, caught between his struggling lungs and his shattered heart. He could feel it trying to claw its way out.

It hurt.

He wanted to rip it out, rip everything apart; the kitchen, the lifeless bodies, himself. But he was utterly helpless and stuck. Stuck in a situation he could neither change nor take control of, and nothing apart from quiet sobs left his mouth.

Once again he looked around and took in the sight that would forever be burned into his mind, haunting and tormenting him.

Jun was curled up in the corner of the kitchen, his back towards the Wielder and his formerly grey hoodie dyed crimson. Not too far off were Jihoon, Jeonghan and Seungcheol, huddled close together even in death, surprise frozen on their faces. Jisoo's eyes wandered to Mingyu whose neck was bent at an unnatural angle, empty gaze returning his. Before the Wielder could turn towards Chan's mangled form, a flicker seemed to run over the dead face of his Bonded.

To his indescribable horror, the corpse opened its mouth.

***

"Jisoo!"

Everything flashed white and the crying Wielder found himself once again in the kitchen, this time face to face with a very much alive version of Mingyu. The tall Warrior was the only one who didn't look shaken - even Wonwoo was paler than usual - and Jisoo immediately buried his face in Mingyu's chest, his whimpers muffled by his thick jacket.

"It wasn't real; it was just an illusion! I noticed it too late, I'm so sorry!" The Warrior awkwardly petted his hair, guilt radiating through their bond, and the Wielder had just lifted his head to ask what exactly was going on when he got grabbed and harshly pulled backwards, a frightened squeak leaving his lips at the sudden movement. Mingyu's protests got drowned out by Jun, Hansol and Seokmin, who smothered Jisoo with almost painful hugs, small kisses and a flood of questions. Even while touching every part of the Wielder they could reach to assure themselves that he was okay, the eyes of the brothers remained suspiciously wet and Seokmin's fingers kept shaking.

They weren't the only ones acting off either: Shownu's group was huddled together as well, some crying, some visibly disturbed, while Minzy held onto Zelo's trembling hands and looked like she would never let go again.

"What an adorable sight." A deep voice cut through the turmoil, causing everyone to fall silent at once and to turn towards Seunghyun who had watched the scene unfold with a smile, a hand gun loosely directed at them. "Abilities that mess with the mind are always my favourite. I'll never get why you don't use yours more often, Mingyu."

"I'm not a sadistic motherer for a start," the Warrior snarled, stepping protectively in front of the others, and Seunghyun's smile grew wider.

"Well, it brought me quite far in life."

"You bas-" Before I.M could finish his insult, Wonwoo had already raised his own gun and fired twice, the sound deafening. Seunghyun had to jump aside in order to not get hit. Still, his ear got grazed and a thin trail of blood ran into his collar when he looked back up, his gaze dark. In one fluid motion, he aimed at I.M, everyone's eyes widening at the sight.

"Changkyun!" Kihyun was the first to cry out.

"Kihyun, no!"

"Don't use it!"

Pots, pans, knives and cutlery seemed to come to life, bursting out of the kitchen cabinets with enough force to tear the doors off their hinges. They sped towards Seunghyun while his gun got ripped out of his hand - but he only grinned, intently focused on the weapons of Wonwoo and Shownu's group. With a horrific screeching sound, their barrels began to bend, rendering the guns useless, before the kitchen utensils came to an abrupt halt mid-air, only centimetres in front of him. His grin widened when they turned around and hurtled towards the group at the door, his own weapon returning to its owner.

"Duck!"

Everyone followed the command and suddenly they were surrounded by replicas of Hyungwon, which blocked Seunghyun's sight, while the kitchenware went right through the images and clashed against the wall behind them. Seunghyun seemed unimpressed and with one nod, all of Hyungwon's images stepped aside, clearing the way. Jisoo could hear Hyungwon curse next to him, almost drowned out by the sound of clothes ripping, and his copies vanished like smoke just when a massive tiger charged at Seunghyun. The Forcebearer lifted his gun.

The sound of a shot made them flinch and their ears ring loudly, but the bullet went right into the wall thanks to Kihyun, who took it upon himself to take Seunghyun's gun away once again. This time he made sure to render it useless as well.

For the first time this night, the Forcebearer in front of them looked genuinely angry and Jisoo hid his face in Seokmin's shoulder when Shownu transformed mid-jump into a small bird and got hit by one of the heavy cast-iron pans with a sickening sound. While his group looked on in horror, the Shapeshifter tumbled to the floor together with the pan and remained there motionless. It took the combined strength of Mingyu and Hyungwon to stop Jooheon from dashing forward.

Dusting off his jacket, Seunghyun didn't even spare him a glance. "That gun was a very expensive gift from my Wielder, Kihyun."

The metal-user blanched when the Forcebearer addressed him directly but I.M immediately moved in between them, one hand hidden behind his back. "Tough luck, ." With one quick movement, he threw a fork with as much force as he possibly could muster, forcing Seung