“I still can believe this year went so fast,” Jeongyeon told Jihyo as they drank Jack Daniel on an Adirondack chair in the balcony.  “I mean, it’s spring already. How did that happen?”

Jihyo cleared . “Well, time sure ticked really fast. A couple of years were kind of . . . intense, if you know what I mean.”

Jeongyeon sipped her beverages. Jihyo’s right, she thought. A couple of years were definitely years of changes for them. Jeongyeon travelled almost all states in USA before went to Europe and finally stopped in East Asia to find her Master. Followed her behind was the best teammate that she ever had, loyalty in followed her around. Jihyo, Sana and Nayeon.

Throughout their journey from the West to the East, Jihyo found her Master in Taiwan, diligently applying moisturizer on her face before slept when she was firstly discovered. Nonchalantly Tzuyu trusted and followed her and that was how they were a pair. Her parents calmly let Tzuyu went with them even though Jihyo informed them how dangerous their mission was. Guess the serenity flowed in the family tree, Jeongyeon assumed.

Then, Sana found her Master in South Korea while she prayed in the church on late evening Sunday. Dahyun’s expression were priceless at that time as long as Jeongyeon remembered. She ran and went back to the church, praying that God forgave her sins as Sana calmly changed herself from a wolf to a human. Sana will never change and never stop, Jeongyeon thought. Sana even watched Dahyun through the window of her bedroom when she applied Aloe Vera on her face before slept. She still remembered Dahyun almost fall on he knees because of Sana.

Japan, she whispered the name of the country. Jeongyeon, Jihyo and Sana met Nayeon when they were in Japan. At that time, Nayeon was matched up with Momo, definitely an outstanding combo. Momo was an excellent katana player. She learnt the martial art since she was five, obviously a great and well prepared fighter compared to other Master. Nayeon and Momo were the perfect duo, Jihyo claimed, but because of the unknown incident, their relationship seemed to be falling apart and Momo decided to travel on her own.

Jihyo once asked Nayeon and Momo the reason why behind Momo’s decision. Sana played around and joked, mentioning that either one of them need to fall back because they were in love with the same person. That was the last time they met Momo. Nayeon became more quiet and reserved after her Master went to her own way.

“Maybe they’re clashed,” Tzuyu voiced out, “Just give them chance to calm themselves.” Possibly because they’re still uncomfortable with each other but the incident happened about two years ago. Unlike the rest of the Werewolf, Nayeon did not seemed care to look after her Master before they travelled back to South Korea.

Jeongyeon pushed her blonde, short hair behind her ears. “Hopefully this year will be a little less eventful for us,” she told the leader.

“Speak for yourself,” Jihyo said. “You need a little action in your life.”

“So, what are you trying to say?” Jeongyeon asked her.

“Mina,” Jihyo replied. “She’s right in front of you. She’s right in front of us right now and you don’t even make a move.” Jihyo propped her chin on her hand and gave Jeongyeon an intense look.

“I do,” Jeongyeon sipped her drink. “It’s just a little hard to ask her right now. I mean – it’s too hard to tell her who she really was. I don’t even know how to start.”

Even from the distance Jeongyeon could see the flaming of fire engulfed everything in her way to the town. Thick grey smoke billowed into the skies. The once pale orange sky was now shielded by a veil of darkness as the smoke swallowed up the whole sky. Fierce fire could be seen sneaking their way out from the rows of trees.

The Guardian were present to save the Master, the village and the forest. Jeongyeon only watched as they burned. Her home, her family, everything. She could imagine the flesh turned black as fire ate greedily at their mangled faces and torn backs. There was no escaping it, the pain, and death it caused, and the dreams it stole.

The town that was once so alive now chilled anyone who survived from the attack. The trees that sheltered so many with their spreading canopy of green and provided so much were now lifeless sticks of charcoal. The unfettered light illuminated the scorched ground and still that smell of burning lingered.

Who will stand in the way of their progress now? If Jeongyeon were to close her eyes she would still see the puff of clouds above, she could feel the humid air and heard the sounds of the frogs. But she won't, she can't. This reality was cruel enough the first time when she stood mute before the flames, she don't think she could survive that again.

Jeongyeon remembered the way to the Hall of Guardian very well even though the town was completely burnt. The wall, the dungeon, the village, the castle. Everything. Everything was completely charcoaled. She needed her father to be here. She needed real comfort, strong arms and reassuring words. Even though the flames engulfed the surrounding of the Hall of Guardian, scorching her skin and singeing the surrounding trees, what she needed was to make sure that her father was okay.

It was too painful for Jeongyeon to look for her father. After changed into a human form, stepped and stamped on the rock burnt to a crisp was hot enough to scorch her skin. She screamed, calling for her father but the air was too smoky to breathe. Her eyes watered. She felt dried, as coarse as the sandpaper. She barely passed through the flaming dungeon until she reached the heart of the Hall.

“Jeongyeon!” Through the burning sound of the wood came tender voices of an old man. “Jeongyeon!” The call was not continued. It was the call of desperation. The call of urgent. The call in pain. Jeongyeon followed the track of the call. She felt the need to move almost without end. The uneasiness in her feelings flowed in her heart.

Her instinct spoke the truth.

 “Appa!” Jeongyeon ran towards her father, lying beneath the pile of scattered wall of the hall. Her father opened her eyes slowly. Bloody cough escaped from his mouth. Jeongyeon stood up, trying to lift the rock on her father.

“It’s no use,” the voice of her father barely heard. “Even though you could pick up the rock, my legs are crush into pieces.” He cleared his throat before continued. “Come here, Jeongyeon.”

Jeongyeon kneeled in front of her father, sobbing. It was more than crying, it was the kind of desolate sobbing that comes from a person drained of all hope.

“This is the only thing that I could give to you, my precious daughter.” He gave a necklace with a ring as the pendant to Jeongyeon. “This ring will help you to find your next Master. We were trying to break the curse on you, dear, but we were attacked by the Vampires. This Hall was the first building they attacked.”

“How do I want to find her? I am not who am I. I am completely useless.” Tears formed in her eyes and eventually fell, dripping like a rain into the floor. Jeongyeon was devastated. Thoughts mingled in her mind wildly. Why did they gave unbearable task for her? How will she find her next Master? Why didn’t they pulled out the curse before the attack? Why must her father? Why not her?

 “Please forgive Jung Nam’s father. He didn’t meant to put the curse on you. He was driven by his feelings, but he knew that it was not your fault.” More thick dark red liquid escaped from his mouth as he coughed.

“Appa,” Jeongyeon chocked in between her word. Things she felt she should have done, coupled with her perceived failures dominated her mind. She thought about her actions and words, finding them inadequate. She could not imagine to carry on such responsibility in the future, not when her father won’t around anymore.

“Remember, dear. No matter how much one tries to stop someone, they can't when the one is brave at heart. You are brave, Jeongyeon. I believe in you because you are my daughter, my precious daughter. You are the apple of my eyes, and you will always be.” He clamped her hand and kissed it softly.

His breathe slowly escaped from his mouth before he finally closed his eyes forever.

“Appa!”

“The only thing that my late father gave me was this,” Jeongyeon took out a necklace from her shirt, showing the ring to Jihyo. She rolled the ring between her thumb and point finger and read the writing at the back part of the ring.

Sacrifice

Jihyo nodded, understanding the struggle Jeongyeon had to face, looking for her Master. Jihyo always by her side from the time when they met in the Hall of the Guardian, ever since Jeongyeon saw her father disappeared, turning into a sparking bright dust and vanished right in front of her eyes.

Jeongyeon were always the tough one in the team. She did not even cry after the loss of her parents. She concentrated on the search with the hope that she could find hers fast. “There was no time to be wasted,” she claimed, “and I need to get my job done.”

But Jihyo knew that it was what Jeongyeon had was the reason why they kept moving on that forced the biggest change in their lives.

As Jihyo searched for any possible survivor, she discovered the strange beam of light glimmered through the piles of rocks in the library – once before the Hall of the Guardian was attacked by the Vampires. It was nearly compacted, except for a large book resting at the bottom.

Jihyo lifted the book from the pile. It’s heavy, she thought as she tucked it under her arm and closed the lid of the trunk. Then she sat on top of the trunk and gazed at what she had found.

The book, covered in brown leather, looked ancient. Jihyo blew the dust from the cover and brushed it with her hand. She opened the ancient book and gazed at the first page. She stared at the title page of the book with a jolt of recognition.

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