Chapter Thirty Six

A light breeze caressed Ileana’s cheeks, making her smile contently. Something brushed against her face and tickled her jaw. Blinking her eyes open, she found herself laying down on a bed of grass. Realizing the unfamiliar scenery, she urgently sat up.

There majestically stood a tree that could not compare to any other tree she’d seen in her life. She tried to tear her eyes away from the tree, but they remained glue to the swaying image before her.

“Hello there!”

 A voice echoed in her head. She froze before looking for the source of it.

“Up here, Miss.”

She slowly turned her eyes up and looked at the tree. No, no… a tree did not just talk to her.

“Not just any tree, Miss! It’s a pleasure to formally meet you Ileana. I am the Tree of Life.”

She squinted her eyes up at the tree. She was having a hard time believing that a tree could talk.

“I believe you’ve experienced stranger things on EXO, Miss Ileana. No need for fright or suspicion.”

Well, the tree was right with that point.

“Um, hi.” She awkwardly waved to the tree.

“And she speaks! Wonderful!”

“Yeeeah…But I’m confused.” She looked at her surroundings once more, “Where am I and what happened?”

“Ho ho, so full of questions! Even more wonderful!”

She blinked up at the tree, waiting for it to continue. But it didn’t. “Not to be rude, but are you going to tell me where am I?”

“Not rude at all, Miss. You, at least parts of your conscious, are currently where I secretly reside on EXO.”

“And why am I here?” She egged on. 

“I suppose to congratulate you on successfully completing the first half of your mission. So, congratulations!”

She had to say that this tree had one heck of a personality. “You suppose? And what do you mean by half of my mission?”  Wasn't she was done with her mission? The war was safely prevented and heck, she even broke the crystal…Did that not qualify for extra EXO brownie points?

“Well, you did destroy the crystal, and we thank you for that, but you still have the task of fixing the issue between Sector K and M.  Otherwise, war will still eventually break out.”

“And how do I go about doing that?”

“Oh, don’t worry Miss! It’ll come naturally.”

Yes, Ileana remembered being told/lied to about that before. “So…you’re telling me that I have to still stay on EXO until the whole political warfare calms down?”

“No, Miss. You have to fix it. Goodness, I hope you didn’t injure your head too bad when the crystal combusted…”

Ileana paused for a moment and retraced her memories. Yes, she remembered all those emotionally, mentally and physically exhausting tests now. “Again, not to be rude but…could you please tell me why I had to tested and what the others had to do with all this?”

“Well, the test is a sort of 'set-in-stone' kind of tradition.”

“And the others?”

“Hmm, where to begin. Well we, being the other gods and I, foresaw your arrival and your purpose to save EXO. However we understood that, with you being unfamiliar with EXO, would need some guidance upon arriving. Thus, D.O, Suho, Chanyeol and Lay would come into the picture. The others, on the other hand, were fatefully chosen to help you on your mission.Also, to keep you motived, we slowly took the messengers one by one and of course, when the time came to test you, we used them against you. Terribly sorry for that but what is done had to be done.“

“But… why would you even use them against me?”

“To prepare you for the second half of your mission.”

“Prepare?” She squeaked.  If the tests were to prepare her for the second half of her mission, she didn’t even want to think of what it would consist of. She figured she wouldn’t be able to survive through it.

“Yes, prepare. You’ve been sheltered quite nicely by the messengers. Although, some more than others though I suppose it is to be expected. You see, Miss, you are now going to support them. That is your ultimate task for the rest of your mission.”

“O-Oh.” She stuttered out,. “I guess I get why the others are involved. But…what about Kris? What’s about the connection we had?”

“Ah, good lad, that Kris. We foresee him being one of the main figures who help resolve the current problem between the Sectors. However, we also foresaw that he could also be the Sectors demise if he wasn’t given, let’s say, a push in the right direction. That push would happen to you, Miss.”   

“Okay…” She murmured, “Um, why did the connection not work all the time though?”

“Because your will not to see him was strong enough to prevent us from forming the connection. Oh! But the two previous nights were because of us… we wanted to make him sweat a little. We figured he would be more persuaded by you if he hadn’t seen you in a while. I daresay it worked out quite well.”

“Sure…” She said slowly, nearly in disbelief about the tree's character.

“Any other questions, Miss? You’ll have to be going back soon.”

 She directed her eyes to the side as she ransacked her mind for more questions. She didn’t think of anything except for one question.“Why me?” she asked, “Why me of all people in the…universe?”

“Very good question, miss! You see, we knew when we found you that you would have the tool that could overpower and erase the resentment and hatred that would destroy EXO.”  

“And what tool is that?”

“Love, Ileana. Love is the most powerful tool in the universe. Do remember that.”

Before Ileana could say anything, her vision faded to black and her body was violently pulled back.

“Her vitals-”

“I don’t underst-“

She could hear a murmur of two voices in her ears. She nearly used all her eyelid strength in order to open her eyes just a few centimeters wide. Her vision was blurred and her body was starting to ache. To make a long story short, she felt like complete crap.

“I still don’t understand how she could have survived that! Are you sure she’s nearly recovered? Shouldn’t you do more tests-“

“Mr. Wu, I assure you Miss. Ileana is on the fast track to a full recovery. Although, in comparison to others, her case is a little bizarre.”

“Yes, if that’s what you call surviving a blast of energy that not one normal person could ever dream of filtering properly. I wasn’t even in the direct pathway of the blast and I was in critical condition for several hours due to my filter being ruptured.”

A sigh was released into the air, “I don’t usually say this due to the privacy of our patients. But, since it appears you care very deeply for this patient, I will let it slide just this one time. There is a reason why she could take on the energy when no one else could, Mr. Wu.”

“And that reason is?”

“She has no filter to speak of. We couldn't find any traces of any sort of filter in her body. She functions just fine and doesn't seem to need EXO's energy in order to survive. Ultimately, only the force of the blast caused her harm. Fortunately for her, she didn’t hit her head hard enough to kill her or even cause permanent damage.”

“But…how is that even possible?”

“I’m not sure, Mr. Wu. Perhaps you can ask her when she awakens.”

“I will. Thank you, Doctor. Is this…going to be off the record like we discussed?”

“Yes, of course! Wouldn’t want the high officers sticking their noses in this. By the way, I did ask the board of medical directors for Sector M about your idea and they were for it. And with good reason too, it’s about time for change.”

“That’s great. Thank you. I’ll keep you informed on further progress.”

“And I’ll see if I can get other boards in on it. Good day Mr.Wu.”

“Good day Doctor.”

She watched a blur walk away and out of the hospital room she presumed she was in. The other blur sat down on a chair next to her and gripped onto her hand.

“Ileana…” They whispered, “Please wake up.”

“All ready on it.” She spoke in a hoarse voice that surprised her. How did manage to get so dry? After a few seconds with no reply, she tilted her head and looked to the shocked Kris. As soon as she moved her head, she groaned a little as a headache hit her.

“I-Ileana, don’t move! I’ll get the doctor-“ Kris went to stand up but she gripped his hand hard, preventing him from doing so.

“No, not yet. I’m fine.” She whispered, “How long was I out?”

“Two days.” Kris muttered as he sat back down and rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand.

“Wow, looks like you’ve been busy.” She said, her chapped lips smiling, “You already got the medical board onto your long list of connections now.”    

“Along with a few others.  But, I’ve been constantly visiting you and checking up on your progress. I had your doctor’s number on my speed dial and always left my communicator on.”

“Naw, how nice. I appreciate it.” She smirked, “But I’m more happy for your progress.”

“I’ll agree to keep progressing if you get out of here quickly.” Kris quickly replied back, squeezing her hand.

“Hmm, I think that’s an agreement I can fulfill. You got a deal, good sir.” And she squeezed his hand back. Her vision was clearing a little and she felt a little more strength coming back to her body and mind.  They remained in silence for a while before she finally decided to break the ice.

“I guess I owe you an explanation.” She sighed.

“You don’t have to tell me anything.” Kris reassured her, “I can wait however long you want me to.”

“No, don’t be ridiculous. It’s something you should know now that the crystal fiasco is done. So, I heard the discussion between you and the doctor…regarding my filter or, I guess lack thereof.” Kris remained silent with his eyes on her, showing that she had his full attention. “I know this might be hard to believe but I’m not from around here, Kris. I’m not from Sector K, I’m not from Sector M or any other Sector. I’m not from EXO or any planet in this solar system either. I might not even be from this galaxy.” She took a deep breath in and continued, “I’m from a planet called Earth, which is quite similar to yours though a little less advanced and we don’t have to worry about energy and filtering it.  I was basically sent to EXO with the purpose to help resolve the problem that’s happening between the two Sectors.” One more breath, “God, it feels wonderful being able to finally tell you this. And I swear I’m telling the truth. I did not hit my head that hard!”

There was a small silence between them once more, though the atmosphere was definitely heavier. She was not liking it. “And this is the part where you say something…” She urged him, forcing a smile. She was ready for him to storm out, get angry and accuse her of lying.

“I was always told by my past superior to beware of trees.” He whispered, staring down at her arm. She looked down at it and saw that her tattoo, now a small tree, was in full view. “But, they were too old fashioned anyways. I do believe your story, I know you’re not lying to me.”

“Thank you.” She whispered. “I just…I’ve been wanting to tell you for a while but I didn’t want to jeopardize the mission.”

“It’s okay, I understand. But…are you…going back? Once this mission of yours is done?”  Kris asked her, staring into her eyes with inexplicable emotions running through them. It took her off guard because she never even thought about that. Was she ever going to go back home? EXO was nice and she grew to care a lot about the people on EXO, but it wasn’t home. And what would happen when she finished her mission?

“I don’t know, Kris.” She looked away from him and stared at the white wall ahead, “I really don’t know.” 

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Oh heyyy, thanks for tuning in for this chapter. 

And as you guys can see, I still have a while to go before I finish. I gotta get Ileana to finish the mission and tie some loose ends up (And yes, have her deal with Sehun you silly Sehun shippers). 

Btw, I didn't realized I trolled you guys THAT badly with my author note last update. LOL, I feel somewhat apologetic (lies) I think it's funny. I mean, I did the typical line thing and changed it to my author notes format....Oh well. Maybe I'll do a spinoff about the rich old man and Ileana's love story. (JOKES, NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN).  Oh well, haters gon' hate.

I hope this chapter cleared up some stuff for you guys. If you guys have questions or need clarificiation, ASK AWAY IN THE COMMENTS. I will try hard to make it more understandable. I also might forget to explain other stuff 'cause... well, I sometimes think everyone knows what I know about the story, which isn't true at all ahahaha. 

Ummmmmmmmmmm, I watched the episode of EXO-M on Happy Camp! LOL soooo funny. I loved how comfortable the boys are now. God, Tao...he's having an identity crisis with the whole Kung-fu Panda and Peacock (plays katy perry's peacock, not allowed to judge guys...) thing. Oh well. 
I LOLED SO HARD AT KRIS' TALENT. Spoiler: He did a cat walk. Cause if you're good looking, you walking and gracing everyone with your presense is a talent. And you know what, IT IS. Looks at this boyyyyyy!

 

And we move on,
THANK YOU TO MY SUBSCRIBERS AND COMMENTERS. You guys make me so grateful. Gahhh, all the comments gahhh. Love you all

And for the giveaway of the day. It's been something that I've been gifted with a lot recently and I love it. 
*throws image of the backside of Chanyeol* Cause that is a gift for our eyes in itself. I'm sorry, but I find the back view of Chanyeol friggin amazing. 

Buhbye now<3