“Damn it.” Johnny closes and reopens the briefcase but there’s still nothing inside. There should be two serum needles and one of the company cassette tapes. The tapes weren’t a big deal, since he had hundreds of copies stored in the library. Instead, it was the needles that caused him to stare intensely at the empty velvet lining of his briefcase. The best-case scenario is that he forgot to make two extra – which he knew wasn’t true. He never failed in his job and was certain that today wasn’t an exception. The leaves the fact that he had lost them. He cradles his head in his hands. They could either be lying around on the empty plains or – what he fears the most – be in the hands of one of the Subjects.

True, since the needles were creations of his, he could just make them vanish. But according to the rules he has to have them in his line of sight to do anything. And that would be the hardest part. First, he’d have to re-enter that horrid dream world and then he’d have to find out where the needles were.

Of course, there was the option of ignoring the entire thing. Pretending it didn’t happen.

But… he glances back at the computer with a swallow, he’s never not reported anything to Headquarters. If they found about his mistake would they punish him? Would his first reply from them in years be them firing him?

He paced around with his hands on his head. What’s the worst that can happen? Those boys won’t know how to use it, they’re not that intelligent yet. But… Johnny’s thoughts travel back to the raven-haired boy that only glared at him from the corner, the boy who was glowing, Ten. He shouldn’t underestimate those boys. They were already showing signs of becoming dangerous. If anyone of them could figure it out, it’d be him wouldn’t it? That subject made him unsettled, because out of all of them, he was the most unpredictable. But it was then that Johnny got a marvelous idea: the monitor room.

He had almost forgotten. Each subject is continuously monitored throughout their lives in the dream-world so that every second of their existence is logged in the memory of their own computer. Johnny raced down the sterile hallway and pushed his way into the monitor room. All eighteen of the blue screened computers immediately powered up. Monitors stacked upon monitors. And they all reflected the crooked smile on his face as he glanced around. If any one of the Subjects picked those needles up, he’d find out.

***

Taeyong launches his fist at the wooden door of the ruins, that squealed on its rusty hinges. His nostrils flare and he tries to keep the every threatening tears from falling down his face. It’s his fault. One of his friends is… and he couldn’t do anything to help. He slumps to the floor, hanging his head between his knees. Just like always. It was all he could to do to just run away as far as possible in order to cool down. If the others knew what a mess he was inside, they’d lose all hope too. Some leader he was.

The warm drip of a tear landed on his arm and he angrily wiped it away with the back of his hand. Don’t fall apart, Taeyong. He can’t. Not now. Not when everyone needs him the most. He takes a good look around at the rusted, run-down barn that he’s in. What they called The Ruins.

One of the window shutters suddenly flies open and Taeyong jumped to his feet but no one was in sight. It was just the wind again probably. He went to pull the shutter closed when his eyes caught something moving along the plains. Instinctively, he pulled back into the shadows but stays close enough that he could watch. A black figure that moves like blowing fabric glides across the sand. The figure stops periodically to glance around before moving again.

When the figure is close enough, Taeyong stretches his neck to get a better look.The figure turns so that the moonlight hits him just right and reveals the face hidden beneath the wide brim hat. The experimenter.

The experimenter holds his hand out mid-air and within a blink a long clinking chain manifests in his grasp. Taeyong’s eyes go wide in shock. The chain hits the dirt with a thud. But it was another sight that made Taeyong stagger back further into the shadows. No more than a few meters between him and the experimenter is a pile of discarded wood and between the planks, are two pairs of darting eyes.

He didn’t have to think twice to know who those eyes belonged to. He knew everyone of his friends like the back of his hand. But why were Mark and Haechan hiding out here in the dark? The experimenter’s chains rattled as it slithered across the rocky ground. His black polished shoes inching closer and closer to the two boys. Mark closes his eyes and huddles further into his hiding place. Taeyong hesitates. His eyes darting back and forth between the younger boys and the dark clothed figure. There’s no reason for them to be afraid of the experimenter. He’s done us no harm before.

Taeyong’s gaze lingers on the thick heavy chain and the fear in the two set of eyes peeking out of the dark. But there must be a reason those two are hiding and there’s definitely a reason Taeyong himself instinctively hid from sight.

Taeyong keeps his eyes on the three as he bends down to the ground, his fingers wrapping tightly around a rock. Whatever is going on. His first priority is always his friends. And he wasn’t going to let them down anymore.

The experimenter’s face spun so fast that his figure blurred when a ping of a rock soars past him. A sharp crack echoes throughout the night as the rock splits into pieces. In mere seconds the experimenter's chain had already slithered back to the ground like a snake after striking.

Taeyong’s heart thuds in his chest as he does the second craziest thing he's every done. He steps out of the ruins and toward the experimenter. For a second, he stops breathing as he hears the chain tense in the experimenter’s grasp again, but nothing happens. Instead the chain vanishes, immediately as if never there. But before he can relax the experimenter rushes toward him, so quickly that in a hearbeat, he was suddenly standing only a few feet away, his empty eyes scanning over Taeyong.

“What are you doing out here so late at night?”

Taeyong swallows and straightens up his back. “Just clearing my head. After all that’s happened, I needed some space.”

“I nearly got hit. Was that you?”

“I heard something outside. Thought it was a wild animal.”

That reply seemed to appease him, because he nodded and tilted his hat up so that his black eyes looked directly into Taeyong’s. “Then let me ask you something. Have you seen any of the other boys lurking around this area?”

Taeyong thought he heard a whimper from the direction of the woodpile, so he quickly spit out an answer.

“All of the boys were still in the clubhouse. Last I heard.” Taeyong hopes the darkness conceals the drip of sweat that hung to his brow. He clears his throat. “I would have known if any of them were around here, why?”

“No reason.” A smile that seemed out of place broke on the experimenter’s face. “Just didn’t want anyone out here by themselves. You too. I know you’re a capable subject, but these are still dangerous areas.”

Taeyong nods obediently, trying not to glance behind him at the two boys and their hiding spot.

“Well then, I better get going-”

“Where?” Taeyong spit out without thinking. “Where did you come from?”

Even in the dark he could see the deep lines that began to etch into the experimenter’s brow as he tilted his head back at the young leader.

“I-I just never see you around.” Taeyong stutters back.

The taller man pauses before pursing his lips. “I live far away. Past the horizon. It’s a long way to travel, but why do you ask?”

“No reason.” Taeyong repeats back the same answer that the experimenter had given him earlier. Maybe he was overdoing it, but he knew he needed to get the experimenter to focus on him and not on the two boys behind them. But maybe getting his attention wasn’t the best idea after all because now those eyes were locked on him, as if calculating something.

“It’s in your best interest not to worry about things like that. Trust me. Now, I’ll be headed off. See you boys in a week for another dream session.”

And before Taeyong could reply the experimenter was gone. Out of sight. As if never there.

Taeyong lets out a heavy sigh as he moves through the night. He stops by the woodpile and knocks on it before bending down to face two boys who nearly screamed at the sight of him.

“Shhhh.”

“T-Taeyong?” Mark looks up at the leader inquisitively. “Where’s the experimenter?”

“Gone.” He stretches out a hand towards the two. “Get up and follow me.” The three head back into the ruins but not without throwing a few glances around the night out of paranoia.

“Now, one of you tell me what’s going on.” Taeyong turned to face the two youngest boys in their group. Mark and Haechan were not usually seen together unless they were fighting so it’s strange enough that they’re near the ruins at night, just the two of them.

“Were you crying?” Haechan playfully points out but he quickly retreats when Taeyong shoots him a cold glare.

“Don’t try to get out of this. Why were you hiding from the experimenter? What did you two do?” They glanced at each other. Mark mouthing something and giving Haechan a nudge. Finally, with reluctance Haechan unclenches his fist to reveal two glimmering needles.

“Are you crazy?” Is all Taeyong could think to say. He’s tries his best just to keep him voice down. “You guys took the dream session needles!”

“He stole them, not me.” Mark chimes in only to be shot down by another one of Taeyong’s looks.

“I already went through this with Mark. I didn’t steal them. They just fell out of his briefcase and I found them.”

“And what were you planning on doing with these?”

Haechan sighs. “I was going to use them. To try and find Doyoung.”

Taeyong tries not to pace around too but his frustration is rising dramatically. He pinches the top of his nose before speaking again. “And when were you planning on telling me? If you ever were. Do you know what I just did for you? I lied to the experimenter because I thought you too were in danger. But now I found out that I just covered up your crimes.”

They stay silent.

Taeyong shakes his head. Honesty, being straightforward, caring for each other. That’s what he tried to teach and show them all as their leader, but it seems he failed, again. He shouldn’t have doubted the experimenter, he was just looking for something that he lost. But…. His mind roams back to the image of the two huddled behind the wood, the clink of the chain dragging across the sand, and the dark gaze that the experimenter wore. Why does he still feel like he did the right thing?

“And you, Mark?”

Mark pops his head up.

“What’s your role in all this? You’re usually the level-headed one. You must have a reason for hiding this.”

Mark pauses before speaking. “You see. I don’t really trust the experimenter either. There’s…too many inconsistencies. I’ve been making a mental map of everything and what he’s been saying to us is incomplete information. ”

“Incomplete?”

“The way he showed up one day. Did you realize that he knew all of our names even without asking? And then he knew about the basement which none of us had ever known about. And the cassette tapes he plays for us. About Force Co., about being an employee, he never told us what that meant. Every session he takes footage but what does he do with it? Do you hear what he says after every recording? He talks about what phase we are in. What are the different phases and why are we not in the same one? Ever since he got here, nothing makes sense.” Mark pauses. “We've been running from him all afternoon. If he's chasing us that means he is scared of us, of what we might find out with these needles. So, that mean's there's something going on and he is not a reliable source of information. Meaning we need a better way to figure things out.”

“By exploring first hand. Figuring it out for ourselves.” Taeyong adds. 

Mark nods.

Taeyong's mouth twists as he tries to run through all the information Mark just told him.

“We know you trust the experimenter, so we weren’t sure you’d go along with it.” Haechan joins in.

Taeyong walks over to them and slumps to the ground beside them, his head resting on the old wooden wall. These days it’s been a lot harder to be a good leader to them. And he hardly knows what the right thing to do is. But at the very least he shouldn’t have made the younger ones feel like they can’t rely on him. There is no right answer. Is what he thinks. Every step, whether that be toward the experimenter or away from him will be dangerous. But he should, as a leader, at least walk alongside his friends.

“You know I only want the best for you all, right.” He finally breaks the silence.

The two boys nod.

“Then let me think about it. But if we do this. If. Then it won’t be you guys. I’ll do it.”

"You'll go alone?" Mark asks.

Taeyong pauses as his mind drifts toward one of the older boys. The one who he was sure knew something about all of this. The one who distrusted the experimenter from the moment he walked into our door. The only one that he had been at odds with because of their conflicting views. But why was he so sure, why did he know, that Ten would be important in figuring this all out.