CHAPTER 21

“Bom?”

“Mm?”  Bom rubs her face gently on the pillow before turning her head to face Seung Ho.  He was leaning forward from his chair next to her bed.  He laces his hand in hers and squeezes it.  She smiles, “I feel better now.”

Seung Ho smiles, “Good.”  He squeezes her hand once more, “My suspicions were right about him.  I knew he had some sort of special ability that King Kim was so keen on hiding from the vampire community.  He would be an outcast in their community for being different.  They would think of him as freak and not believe he too is a Seer like us Guardian.  This has never happened before in all the years they have existed on Earth.”

Bom slowly pulls herself up and leans back against the wall, “But shouldn’t it be a good thing on their end that they have a seer of their own?  Why waste their time chasing after me if they had their own seer within their reach?” Tilting her head up at the ceiling she sighs.

“I don’t think his seer powers are as strong as ours.  The vampires would question if his ability is even accurate enough for them to even use.  I guess King Kim did not want to exploit his son or maybe he doesn’t want to embarrass himself that he has an odd son.  I don’t know…” Seung Ho’s eyes divert from Bom’s eyes to the bottle of water by her bed stand table. “Between the 3 of us, your power is the strongest I follow second and lastly him. But something is happening to us.”  Seung Ho let’s go of Bom’s hand and stands up.  He starts pacing back and forth.

“There was never supposed to be 3.”  She sighs.  “Earlier I felt it…”  Bom closes her eyes briefly as she remembers Jiyong’s evil grin, “He does have our ability to see what’s to be expected but his powers is not very strong.  He was there earlier when we were talking to Sang Hyun after we landed in the clearing.  His presence was in that Guardian.  He was having a vision - an odd kind of vision from another person’s point of view.  I rather think of him as a parasite leeching off of our powers.  That’s what happened to us during our ride here and then back in the forest before you and Mir came.”  Bom subconsciously rubs her wrist where Jiyong grabbed her.

Seung Ho growls, “He won’t be able to do that again.”  He stops pacing and sits next to Bom on her bed, “I’ve transferred a protection charm over your powers.  It was my fault for not sharing you the knowledge of my ability.”

“How?  Our powers were pretty much the same when we were children.  I know some of yours stopped when you turned into a Dark Angel.   Is it even possible for you to develop new powers?”  Bom looks at him with a confused expression.

Seung Ho shrugs his shoulders, “It just came to me.  My new ability appeared about a decade ago.  One night I was dreaming of when we were children playing out in the field when suddenly I was struck by lightning.  It hurt a lot when I woke up and then I was seeing words floating all around me.  When I read them out loud I felt a new surge of power radiating within me.  The words disappeared but they were engraved in my mind.  I tested the chant out on G.O. when he was sparring with Joon.  It was a simple chant to move G.O. a few feet away from Joon.  Just when Joon was about to pounce on G.O. I moved him.  There were other more chants in my mind but I couldn’t use them until an hour ago.  The protection charm only works for you.  It was made for you and me.  I’m sorry I didn’t put that charm on you sooner.”  He grabs Bom’s hand and rubs his thumb on top of her hand.

“I GET IT NOW!” Bom smiles brightly.  Her smile scares Seung Ho as he loosens his grip on her hand.  She pulls his hand back into hers, “Sorry to scare you but I get it now.  Thank you for the protection charm!  But I think Jiyong has an ability you have too.  Maybe not the chanting charms but he can move people like you.  I think he has telekinesis.  That’s what he did to Sang Hyun!  I want that power too so I can fight against him equally.”

“You do have that power too hidden in your mind.  You just have to free it.”  Seung Ho takes the bottled water from the bed stand, “Drink up.”

Bom takes a few sips and places the bottle back down, “We’ll work on that later…. Um, Seung Ho?”  She looks down at their link hands.

“Yes?” Seung Ho looks at her bowed head.

“3 is not a good number.”  Bom mumbles then starts nibbling on her bottom lips.

Seung Ho takes Bom’s chin and tilts her head up to look at him in the eyes, “You’ve seen something.  What did you see?”

“You saw it too.  When we were younger….the night before you disappeared…” Bom blinks her teary eyes, “Before my family and I left your home.  We hugged each other before saying ‘Good bye’.  Don’t you remember that vision?”

Seung Ho has a flashback of that memory.  It was foggy.  He could hear voices.  They sounded like they were in agonizing pain.  He shook his head from that memory, “I can’t remember the vision.  My transformation into a Dark Angel has blocked that old memory.  But I did hear voices.  They were in so much pain.” He cringes as if he heard the residing cries in his mind.  “So much crying and screaming…it’s unbearable to even listen to.  Tell me what we saw?  Please?”

Bom’s eyes were focused back at their linked hands, “It was a really brief vision.  A glimpse of the future which I think is happening now…”

Seung Ho and Bom suddenly were jolted off the bed and lands ungraciously on the floor.  Their aircraft is descending pretty quickly and the pair manages to get back up onto the bed.  Bom turns her head at the window, “Why are we landing so soon?  I know I wasn’t out that long.”

Seung Ho places a hand on the wall to steady himself as the aircraft slants downward, “We’re meeting up with Sandara and Seung Hyun.  We’ll be transferring into their aircraft.  For Sang Hyun’s safety.”

Bom nods her head and repeats Seung Ho’s words, “For Sang Hyun’s safety.”

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“Sang Hyun!”

Sandara pulls her brother into an embrace and squeezes him tightly in her arms.  Sang Hyun dramatically coughs like he can’t breathe, “Noona.  I.  Need.  Air.”

Sandara gasps and releases him quickly, “I’m so sorry baby brother.”  She pats his cheek softly, “You are never to leave my sight.  You hear me?”

“I don’t think that’s possible especially when we’re in combat.  But I’ll try my best to stay within your sight.  I know you’ll miss my handsome charming face.”  Sang Hyun playfully winks at Sandara then quickly ducks behind Seung Hyun.

“I’m serious!”  Sandara stubbornly pouts with her hands on her hips.

Sang Hyun sticks his tongue out from behind Seung Hyun, “Love you noona! But seriously I’ll be fine.  See this?”  He steps away from Seung Hyun and stands beside him.  He brings up his right arm and flexes his bicep then pats his muscle, “I’ve got strong muscles here.  I’m not that scrawny little brother you used to pick on.  I’ve grown up.”  He flashes his pearly white teeth at her.  “Please have faith in me noona.”

Sandara appears in front of Sang Hyun with the bat of his eyes.  She pouts once more before hugging him again, “Love you too baby bro.  Sorry again for worrying.  It’s part of my instinct to protect you.  You’re my only family.”

“How sweet!  I just love family reunion!”  Mir coos a few feet away from them.  He hops down the opening of their aircraft and walks to the middle of a small clearing between the two aircrafts.  “I’m happy to see your both still alive.”  He slightly bows his head at the couple, “I was only a tiny bit worried for you two.  But phew!”  He pretends to wipe an imaginary sweat from his forehead and jokes, “you two made it out there without causing so much damage.”

Sang Hyun steps forward and lightly pushes Mir’s shoulder, “You’ve just ruined a nice moment here.  Anyways, has Bom noona woken up yet?”

Seung Hyun grabs Sandara’s hand.  It has become a habit of his since they’ve been reunited for him to hold her hand to assure him she’s real.  And that she won’t disappear when something bad might be happening.  He thinks he may have turned into a paranoid person but who could blame him.  He lost her before and he can lose her again but he will try his best for it not to happen.  Sandara voices out his question in his mind, “What’s wrong with Bom?”

“Super long story to tell you out here…  It’s not safe for us out to be in the open.”  Mir looks back up at their aircraft, “They’ll be coming out soon.  She’s awake and has her energy back.”  He looks at the couple then stares at Sang Hyun.

Sang Hyun stares back at him with an annoyed look, “What now, Mir?”

“When did your hair turn back to black?  It was blonde a few minutes ago before you stepped out.”  Mir stares at Sang Hyun’s hair then turns his head back up at the aircraft, “I wonder if his hair turned back to blonde.”

Seung Hyun protectively pulls Sandara behind him, “How long will they take?”  Sandara rubs his back to calm his nerves.  She knows he’s worried but tries her best to keep him calm.

“Not long.”  Mir cheerily says, “See!  There they are!”  He points at the pair standing at the entrance of their aircraft.

Bom waves happily at Sandara, “Dara!”  She jumps gracefully down from the aircraft while Seung Ho follows with a soft thud on his landing right behind her.  Bom prances toward the group while Seung Ho trails behind.  He halts mid stride and abruptly turns around.  The baffled group looks back at him as they see him jump up in the air and back inside the aircraft.  Bom is just a feet away from them when her eyes glow, “He’s awake.”  She looks worriedly up at the aircraft then looks directly at Seung Hyun, “Come now!  We have to get inside your aircraft.”  She grabs Sandara’s hand with her right hand and with her other hand she grabs Seung Hyun, “My favorite couple and Sang Hyun must be kept safe.” She looks back at Sang Hyun, “Come along!”

Once they’re inside the aircraft they hear the door’s entrance shut closed.  A bewildered Mir looks at Bom and the door, “What about Seung Ho hyung?  We’re just going to leave him there?”

Bom calmly walks up to Mir, “We’ll meet up with him at our base camp.  Don’t worry about him.  We have to keep them safe.”  She nods her head at the couple.

Lieutenant Hahn appears in front of the group, “Welcome aboard Bom and little squirrel.”  He messes Mir’s hair while he pouts at him, “Seung Ho will be fine at the other aircraft.  He is indeed a Dark Angel.  He can handle a vampire.”

Sang Hyun shakes his head disapprovingly, “But in strength amongst their kind vampires are superior to dark angels.  Are you sure about that?”

Bom proudly smiles, “You’re underestimating Seung Ho, dear boy.  He still carries our Guardian strength within his Dark Angel powers.  He will be fine.  Now back to our agenda.  We have a lot to discuss with you two!”  Bom steps forward and grabs the couple by their arms toward another room.

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Seung Hyun buries his face in Sandara neck and inhales her scent.  He slightly turns his head and listens to the pulse of her neck.  Meanwhile Sandara worriedly looks at Bom and waits for her to tell them the bad news.  She subconsciously reaches her arm around Seung Hyun’s back and rubs a soothing slow circle on his back.  He nuzzles his head even closer to Sandara at the kind gesture.

Bom hums an unknown melody for a few seconds then stops and smile at the couple “Don’t worry.  The crew on this aircraft won’t hear our conversation.  I put a little spell in their minds that omits them from hearing our conversation from this end of the aircraft.”  She raises her hand to stop Sandara from speaking, “Also Sang Hyun and Mir won’t hear this conversation too.  I’m sorry but they can’t know about it until the right time comes.”

Seung Hyun moves his hidden face from Sandara’s neck and sits up straight.  He takes a deep breath and speaks, “Please tell us what we need to prepare for.  I know King Kim’s eldest son will be out for our blood once he finds out we have his little brother.  We not only killed their father this evening but we also kidnapped his other living family.  I really want to end this madness of theirs for power, greed and revenge.  I just want us all to live a peaceful life.  I’ve never wished to be the ONE.  But only I can end this with your input and guidance Bom.”

Bom walks toward the couple sitting on the love seat couch.  She kneels in front of Seung Hyun and places a hand on his knee, “I want to stay optimistic about our whole situation especially for the both of you.  But from what I’ve seen it gets pretty ugly from here on out.  Seung Ho and I are trying our best to change your path.  The best thing about our ability is it allows us to see the future which means we could change it before it can even happen.  Or we can allow it to go the way it’s supposed to happen in our vision.”  She looks at Sandara, “As long as you two continue to love each other unconditionally.  Your impermeable power will not falter.  We’ll use that to our advantage.”

Sandara nods her head and reaches a hand out to Bom.  Bom takes her hand and smiles.  She then stands up and sits on the opposite chair from the couple.  Sandara looks back at Seung Hyun, “Since Bom assured us our conversation will stay private amongst I guess we can talk about the myth I was saying earlier.”

Seung Hyun has his undivided attention on Sandara, “What is the impermeable power you both speak of?  Is it that unexplainable protection barrier we experienced earlier with King Kim and also his sons?”

“Yes it is.  Not only does it protect us from danger but it also gives us unlimited power and strength.  It is a lethal weapon.”  Sandara sadly looks away from Seung Hyun and gives Bom a look seeking for help to explain their situation.

Seung Hyun gently turns Sandara’s head to look back at him, “Why do you look sad?  Is it bad for us to have this kind of power?”

Sandara shakes her head and slightly lowers it down.  She avoids looking at Seung Hyun’s worried eyes, “It’s not that bad because it saved us from getting badly hurt.  But…” She feels Seung Hyun’s hand squeeze her hand. She then looks up, “I’m afraid of the uncertainty of this new power we hold.  No one has ever had this power.  Everyone only assumed that we could only possess the infinite protection, power and strength.  But what if there’s more to this newly acquired power?  In exchange for the impermeable power is the death of one of us at the end of this chaos.  It’s a scary thought but what if?”  Tears begin to build in her eyes.  She blinks it a way and a tear escapes her eye.  Seung Hyun quickly wipes it away with his thumb then pulls her into an embrace.

Seung Hyun looks at Bom for affirmation.  Bom stands up once again to speak to the couple, “You’re right for the uncertainty of your new power but I’ll keep an eye out for any changes.  But for now like what I said earlier we have an advantage against the vampires with the impermeable power you two possess.  No one will mess with you guys.  They’ll be planning a careful attack on us but they will not succeed.  Seung Ho and I have something to suggest to the Elders in our council.  We could try to negotiate a peace treaty with the vampires before the chaos occurs.  This is the only way we could try to settle it but if not then there will be an ugly war.  Which I really wish we could avoid…”  Bom turns her head away and stares out at the window.

“Does it really look bad?  What you saw of our future?” Seung Hyun looks down at Sandara’s watery eyes then looks back up at Bom.  “You said you really want to change it….You saw our death didn’t you?”  He holds Sandara tighter in his arms.  Sandara presses her face on his chest and quietly cries.

Bom presses her lips before speaking, “I’m an optimistic person.  My ability was given to me for a reason and I will do my best to do the right thing.  Goodness always prevails no matter what life throws at you.  Remember the goodness you have within yourself.   At the end of all this I’ll make sure you two have a happy ending.”  She smiles brightly at the two even though her eyes look the opposite.

“I get the meaning of your little speech.  You tried to avoid the answer to my question.  But in the end the answer is ‘yes’.  Sandara and I will die when this is all over.”  Seung Hyun sadly kisses the top of Sandara’s head.

Sandara untangles her arms from Seung Hyun and looks up at him, “Tabi, let’s not make it happen.  We’ll change that vision.  We’ll make our own path that will lead us to a peaceful life.  We promised each other our love is for eternity.  We haven’t lived our lives for eternity yet.”

Bom suddenly claps joyfully and prances back and forth, “Let’s all be optimistic about your future.  We have to be in order for the change to occur.  Let’s make it happen!” She taps her chin thoughtfully.  “Now we need to do something about Jiyong.”

Seung Hyun growls after hearing his name, “Why are we holding him hostage?”  He leans back on the couch and pulls Sandara to rest her head on his shoulder.  “Please enlighten me.  He threatened Sandara back at the head quarter and I really don’t want him near us.”

“I don’t know why we’re holding him hostage but the Lieutenant believes we could negotiate with King Kim’s oldest son, Jaejoong in signing the peace treaty in exchange for his brother.  We will present Jiyong to our council and the Elders will decide if that’s a good idea.  But for me I don’t think we should go forth with that.  I believe Seung Ho and my plan is better.”  Bom taps her chin once more then sits back down, “3 is not a good number.” 

Sandara finally calms down from her little cry earlier, “What do you mean by that?”

“Don’t mind me.  I’m just thinking out loud.  I really don’t like 3.” Bom’s eyes glaze gray.

Sandara rushes to Bom’s side and touches her shoulder, “Bom!”  Seung Hyun is by her side in an instant.  They both look down at Bom.  They hear her mumble incoherent words.  She suddenly jumps up from her seat.

“Their aircraft will crash!”  Bom frantically runs out of the door.  Sandara and Seung Hyun are tailing right behind her.  They enter the front compartment close the pilot pit.  Mir and Sang Hyun are lounging on the couches while Lieutenant Hahn is on the laptop.  Bom was about to bust open the pilot’s door when she suddenly loose conscious and falls hard on the floor.

Mir runs to her side and picks her up.  He gently places her on the couch, “What wrong?  What happening?”

Sandara looks at Lieutenant Hahn, “She said their aircraft will crash.  Could you please contact the other aircraft and check on their status?  Please check if their prisoner is securely in his prison hold?”

“Yes ma’am.”  Lieutenant Hahn immediately enters the pilot’s pit.

Bom gains conscious and screams her lungs out, “It’s happening!  We’re too late!  This is not supposed to happen!”  She begins to sob.  Mir wraps his arms around her to calm her down.

“Noona, you said Seung Ho hyung will be fine.  He can handle it.  We’ll turn back around and save him.” Mir holds her tighter to stop her from sobbing so hard.

Bom shakes her head, “We have to leave him behind.  We can’t risk their lives.”  She looks at Seung Hyun, Sandara and Sang Hyun, “He would want us to take them to safety no matter what happens.”

“Noona, we can’t leave him… I know I don’t like him because he takes your attention away from me but he’s a good guy.  We can’t leave him to die…”  Mir pouts then looks at the others, “I’m sorry if I sound selfish but you do understand I don’t like leaving a member of our team behind.  If we had a chance to save them I would grab it and not run away like a coward.”

“We’re not running away.  I believe Seung Ho saw this too even if it was last minute.  There’s more to it and we both agree that we will give all our strength in protecting them.  Because in the end it will be worth the fight… Please don’t argue with me Mir-eu.”  Bom pats his cheek then wipes her tears with the back of her hand.  She looks at Seung Hyun, “I know what you’re thinking.  It’s the same as Mir but please understand it on my part.  We have to go forth without him even it hurts me I will remain optimistic.”

Lieutenant Hahn emerges from the door with a sullen face, “You’re right their aircraft has crashed.  Before they crashed I was able to speak to their pilot.  It was utter chaos going on in their aircraft.  He said Seung Ho and Jiyong we’re in an intense fight and they broke everything in their craft.  They made so many large holes in the craft that it lost control and descended at a rapid pace.  We’ve lost contact with them.  I’m so sorry.”

Seung Hyun looks down at Bom, “We will win this war and Seung Ho’s heroism will not be forgotten.”

Sandara takes Seung Hyun’s hand, “Together until the end.”  Seung Hyun kisses Sandara’s temple in agreement.

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Jaejoong surveys the area surrounding the crash site with a sorrowful impression.  Scattered pieces of an aircraft lay haphazardly around him.  His teams of vampires are thoroughly searching for the lost prince.  He is trying his darn best to control his rage of anger that is currently bubbling up in his system.   He must keep a cool head while leading his kind.  He can’t let himself loose.  I will avenge their deaths.

A male vampire dressed in a rugged black leather jacket hastily walks up to Jaejoong, “Prince Jaejoong.” He bows his head and looks back up at him, “We’ve found Prince Jiyong.”  He quickly leads Jaejoong out of the crash site and farther into the woods.

Jaejoong sees a gathered group of vampires surrounding something.  They immediately dispersed once Jaejoong’s presence was known.  Lying almost lifeless on the ground is Jiyong.  He looks at the vampire who led him to his brother, “Is he alive?” His eyes briefly darts down at Jiyong face and back at the vampire in front of him.  He does not want to display his emotion of relief out only to be crushed that his brother is dead.

“Yes, he’s alive.  But barely…” The vampire kneels beside Jiyong and places his hand on his forehead, “I’ve tried using our medications to heal him but they’re not working.  It’s like someone out the life from him.  We have to leave immediately maybe our resources back home will help him.”  He abruptly stands up and nods at the other members to carry their young prince.

Jaejoong sadly closes his eyes for a moment then steps forward.  He halts the team members.  Stepping up beside them he places a hand on top of Jiyong’s blond hair and gently ruffles it, “You will not leave me alone in this fight. Get well little brother.”

The rest of the team members darts out of his sight and runs back to their air craft.  He looks around feeling like someone is watching him.  After a minute of looking around he gives up and gracefully runs after his team.

A soft cough is heard from a tall tree several feet above.  Suddenly a figure lands softly on the ground and stands up from a crouch stance, “I have to stay close to him.  I won’t allow his strength to return.”  Seung Ho could feel Jiyong’s power tensing to break free from his control in his mind.  He coughs out the tension and growls, “Stop fighting me!”   He hurriedly runs after the group of vampires.  He plans on sneaking into their aircraft to stay close to Jiyong.  Seung Ho figured out he can control Jiyong’s strength as long as he’s within range.  His mind found the power to suppress Jiyong’s power. 

It’s my turn to leech off your power.  Seung Ho smiles proudly as he disappears through the thick forest.