The electronically-controlled metal doors slowly opened with the gears grinding to pull the heavy material apart. Sunny’s footsteps echoed through the thick walls despite wearing sneakers. The entrance itself felt like the gates to hell, and in some way, it was. 

Sunny walked up to the small podium which had a few buttons. She pressed the green switch and waited as more machineries whizzed. She groaned as she tried to haul the solid metal cover of the cage before her. With the metal frame absent, all that was left was a thick glass room which detained one single person. 

“I presume you are comfortable, Miss Lee Miyoung,” Sunny mocked. The lone soul inside the glass prison flickered her gaze to the shape shifter standing outside. She rolled her eyes and brought her knees up against her chest, ignoring the watchful eyes of the other person behind the confines of the crystal walls. 

Ever since she was casted into this jail of solitary confinement, she has not spoken a single word to any inquisitor who tried to provoke whichever type of intelligence from her. Usually, they would only attempt to uncover where she had received the anti-immortal drug but she was not going to give them that information. She didn’t care about the safety of the drug makers, she simply didn’t want them to break her effortlessly. 

“The afterlife is still contemplating on what to do with you. It’s against all our laws to take life away from something that is living,” Sunny sighed as she sat down next to the glass. Miyoung buried her head into her knees and continued to disregard all distractions. Sunny wondered what was going through the immortal’s mind but decided to stop the speculation there. She was positive that her thoughts were severely dark. 

“They say that everyone compensates for their own misdeeds. You’re here atone for your own and just like you, those who have sinned against you would have had to pay for its price,” the shape shifter said in a comforting manner. Miyoung scoffed and hoisted herself up to stand at the furthest side of the room away from Sunny. 

“What would you know?” Miyoung finally spoke. Sunny rested her back flat against the wall and trained her eyes up at the ceiling. She knew a bunch of details and it was by no means a good thing. But that was her life. As a servant of the underworld, you are greatly informed about many different souls and it was unfortunate that Miyoung was one of those beings she knows a LOT about. 

“I know that you have your reasons for doing what you did. But I also recognize that you were blinded by your hatred throughout your actions and now you’re regretting the fact that you lost control.” Sunny paused and observed at Miyoung to witness her reaction. Not much to her surprise, Miyoung didn’t seem to respond at all as she just sat back down in her foetal position again. Sunny sighed and stood up to the podium once again to end her visit. 

“Could you...” Miyoung suddenly voiced before Sunny could press the button. “Please tell her... that I’m really sorry?” Her voice dropped to an undertone. Sunny heaved a sigh and tapped a finger against the podium. 

“I don’t think sorry would suffice to cut it. I mean, you did try to kill her.”

“I would have followed her,” Miyoung answered immediately. Sunny knew Miyoung wouldn’t try to kill Taeyeon alone. It wasn’t even Taeyeon she was aiming for in the first place.

“Well, all I can say is... She doesn’t actually hate you completely,” Sunny declared. Miyoung peered at her with a confused expression. “With her being in charge of the Legion now, it would have been easy to just kill you. In fact, the Legion DOES want to kill you... but Taeyeon prevented that. You should count your blessings because the afterlife sure as hell don’t want you back as it is.”

“But she doesn’t see me the same way anymore. Not after what I did,” Miyoung mumbled. Sunny scoffed and gave the immortal an incredulous look. 

“Well no dur. You killed an immortal and used psychopathic methods to try and get back with her. It would have been so much easier to just show up and say ‘Hi, I’m alive!’” Sunny huffed. Miyoung gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. 

“She adores the humans too much. I needed her to detest them too!” Miyoung growled. Sunny let out an even heavier breath of air when she grasped just how well Miyoung would have fit in with the Legion. If only she didn’t murder their leader, she would have been a part of them with no problem. 

“Well, that’s not happening any time soon. Try not to ruin yourself too much in here. You would want to be somewhat presentable for Taeyeon’s eventual visit.”

“That’s if she even wants to come near me again.”

Sunny shrugged her shoulders casually and slammed the button to put back the metal case that shielded the glass to block all outside interactions from it to the one lone prisoner inside. She glanced back briefly at her before the metal case concealed the detainee and swore that she noticed a tear glistening down the side of her cheek. 

It was three o’clock in the morning and the soon-to-be ex-Elites were all gathered in Yuri’s lounge, trying to busy themselves and pass the night faster. Yuri was still sorting out the finances whilst Yoona was inspecting some real estate. Taeyeon on the other hand, was looking into Seohyun’s background. It gives her the impression that Sunny knew things that involved her quite a bit and she was chary as to what Seohyun would add to her already complicated life. 

She then glanced down at the corner of her laptop and decided to conclude her search about Seohyun there for the night. 

“Yuri, Yoona,” Taeyeon called as she spun her chair around to face them. The two peeked up from their devices and waited. The night had been completely quiet so far and it was odd for Taeyeon to be the first to break that stillness. Usually, it was Yoona claiming that she was bored. “I’ll be flying over to Japan to settle some business with the Legion. The full moon is coming in three days and I need to be there this month.”

“Want us to tag along?” Yuri offered, giving Taeyeon her full attention and locking her phone. Taeyeon shook her head and stood up to grant her body a stretch. 

“I don’t want to risk the Legion doing anything to you guys whilst my back is turned. One of the members will me through the flight.”

“But isn’t she going to be there?” Yoona gritted. Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders in feigned indifference and walked over to the table to retrieve her phone. 

“I’m not going to lie. I will see her, but only to check up on her,” she admitted. She didn’t like lying about anything anymore. She realised that it only causes trouble for the future and she wasn’t even sure that she would be able to resolve everything she had now by the time the deception came back to bite her. 

“But she—”

“Nothing is going to happen, Yoona,” Taeyeon assured in an unusually composed tone. Yuri decided to back down and trust the Legion who would take care of Taeyeon in the meantime. However, Yoona did not hear a word of it. 

“She can inject herself for all I care! She nearly killed you! She already killed the last leader of your Legion club or whatever it is!” Yoona yelled, throwing her phone down to the floor in pure revulsion. Taeyeon glowered at Yoona and gritted her teeth. Yuri was about to go calm Taeyeon down but it was all too late when Taeyeon’s eyes flared bright blue and left the building with a loud slam of the door. 

“Jesus Christ, Yoona!” Yuri cussed with a dramatic throw of her hands. “Control that psychotic of yours!”

Guilt suddenly hit Yoona like a tidal wave when she fathomed she had pissed Taeyeon off. As if the azure eyes weren’t a clear indication, Taeyeon had just broke their curfew by storming out... and Taeyeon would never flout that curfew. 

“It’s not my fault. That Miyoung naturally brings out the worst in me,” she retaliated though she knew that she was in the wrong. She presumed her insane mode hadn’t completely disappeared yet. 

“Well, it is. You know you’re not supposed to be saying anything about what happened at the festival!” 

“But I was just worried about her! Miyoung almost killed her, Yuri. We don’t have a soul as a ticket to be permitted into the afterlife anymore so God knows what happens once we die!”

“Well, Taeyeon actually lost someone! You think Taeyeon doesn’t comprehend the dangers that Miyoung poses? The former leader of the Legion took care of her properly!” Yuri yelled back, towering over Yoona who had reverted to her usual self. “How would you feel if Taeyeon had literally died and Jessica kept reminding you about it?”

“Don’t say that!” Yoona barked as loud and shoved Yuri back using both her hands. 

“See? You’re sensitive at something that COULD have happened. Think about how it ACTUALLY happened to Taeyeon, so stop being an insensitive brat and get your act together!” Yuri continued to take a step forward and invade Yoona’s private circle to get her point across. Yoona sighed deeply and stagger back a few steps to sit down on the bed.

“She’s important to me, Yuri. I dare say even more than Seohyun,” Yoona confessed softly. Yuri let out a heavy breath of air and sat down next to Yoona silently. “When she just dropped onto the floor lifelessly, I honestly thought it was the end. She and you are not bound to die in my life. You’re never meant to. It scared me to imagine that Miyoung was so close to killing her. If she did it once, what makes you think she won’t do it again?” Yuri looked over to see Yoona fiddling with her fingers. She knew exactly what she was feeling but she was just a little more tolerant to this kind of thing. She owed Taeyeon everything and Yoona probably does too. 

“At least we’re not alone now. The Legion is overprotective of Taeyeon because she’s the only one who can lead them. I trust that they will do everything in their power to make sure their group doesn’t fall into chaos because of the alpha blood dying,” she tried to reason with the younger. Yoona turned her head towards the door which Taeyeon left through and started to feel her eyes sting. 

“I love Seohyun, but I need Taeyeon. I don’t want her to abandon us for the Legion and especially not for Miyoung. It’s not fair to Tiffany who is suffering because she just so happened to be a reincarnate.”

“I know. But if Taeyeon wanted to leave us, she would have left with Miyoung long ago. She’s juggling both us and the Legion right now. She could have just packed up and left to be safe with the most guarded organization in the world but she decided to stay with us whilst adding to her list of hassles. That should be worth something, right?” Yuri nudged Yoona’s hip with her knee playfully. Yoona merely nodded and wiped her eyes. Yuri didn’t have to check to know that Yoona was starting to cry. 

“Taeyeon, you and I are always going to be together, right?” Yoona’s voice cracked at the end. Yuri released a spirited laugh and lifted up both her legs to rack them onto Yoona’s shoulders. 

“Of course. Taeyeon picked us up and now it’s time for us to carry her. She won’t be able to run if we’re holding her,” Yuri boasted confidently. Even if Taeyeon decided to run, she knew that the two of them would continue to follow after her. She felt Yoona move under her legs subtly. She peeked down and saw her trying to secretly wipe away the tears that were definitely falling. Yoona rarely gets emotional so it was nice to see her bare her true self instead of veiling behind her dark persona all the time. It made her think about how emotionally detached she was herself. 

But she knew that she did not care for Taeyeon any less than Yoona did. The moment someone threatens to hurt Taeyeon or Yoona and now Jessica, hell would break loose for sure.

Gikwang punched the code in to open up the metal gates with the phone held up to his ear. He waited for the doors to fall silent again before continuing his conversation because they were so loud that neither he nor the other person on the line would be able to hear their voices. 

“Yeah, I’m here now,” Gikwang spoke into the phone once it was quiet. He then pressed the green key to reveal Miyoung in her prison. “I’ll be sure to tell her. Are you sure you don’t want me to you instead?”

He paused and glanced over at Miyoung who was ignoring him as if his entrance didn’t just shake her glass prison. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. 

“Okay. I’ll stay here until you come. I’ve told others who I trust where I am so if anything happens they will come find me,” he continued. It stilled for a moment again before he bid farewell and pocketed his phone into the front of his jacket. 

“What do you want?” Miyoung sneered when she saw Gikwang staring at her with an innocent smile plastered on his face. 

“I’m here to stand guard.”

“Like the countless layers of metal and glass weren’t enough?”

“I’m guarding you, my darling,” Gikwang winked. Miyoung grimaced in disgust and turned away, causing Gikwang to chuckle. “I’m not lying. Taeyeon called and said she found out that they put that death pill around your neck. Apparently, it wasn’t meant to be there.”

Miyoung reached her hand up to touch the device in the junction of her head and shoulders. It was the remainder of the anti-immortal drug and they hooked it over her collar, ready to be injected into her blood stream the moment she tried to escape.

“What do you mean it’s not intended to be here?”

“Taeyeon only wants you in custody. She doesn’t plan on threatening to kill you but she realised that a lot of our members would be happy to do the assassination in her place. She’s arriving here tomorrow night and plans on setting some ground rules.” Gikwang shrugged his shoulders and sat down to lean against the glass next to Miyoung. Miyoung thumbed the death sentence around her neck and wondered why it would matter to Taeyeon if they lashed this to her or not. She had infused this into her mercilessly before, so why not do the same to her?

The prisoner then scoffed with a smirk. The obvious reason had just hit her like a train. 

“She’s too nice,” Miyoung whispered. Taeyeon definitely had no feelings left for her anymore, so why keep her alive? The only logical reason was that she was too kind for her own good. 

“I know. And not all of us appreciate that compassion from her. Only person you should trust is probably Sunny. The Legion is just waiting to execute you outside.” The immortal laughed. 

“Then why should I be believing you now?” Miyoung growled. Gikwang merely raised his shoulders to dismiss her question and fiddled with the opening of his jacket pockets. 

“You perhaps shouldn’t. I’ve murdered humans before. I hate them as much as the next Legion member but I’ve gone past the phase of seeking to slaughter them. I’ve ended those who mistreated me, there’s no point in killing innocent people anymore,” he admitted casually. Miyoung mused about how many people he killed to have been able to say that so flippantly.

“Then what’s stopping you from killing me? I’m not human anymore.”

The room fell silent. Gikwang stood up and gave his body a stretch before walking over to the other side of the glass, closer to Miyoung. Miyoung flinched and moved away but Gikwang didn’t seem to mind.

“You were once human. A good one too. But like the rest of us, there were people out there who changed your view on their race overall and turned you to who you are as a person now. You made Taeyeon happy. That in itself is an achievement of impossible measures, but you made the mistake of being overly consumed by your hate to see what mattered. Now, you pay for the consequences.”

Miyoung balled her hands into closed fists. Gikwang could see them practically shaking with the tension.

“How does everyone know what happened?” She gritted. Gikwang smiled sympathetically and knocked onto the crystal mechanically.

“We don’t. We went through the same thing so we perceived it in you,” he simply stated. Miyoung crossed her arms and tucked it under in her curled up position. Gikwang took the hint that it was the end of their conversation and decided to sit back down on the furthest side again. He wondered about just how much the prisoner suffered during her years of growing hate with no one to calm her down. 

He knew one thing for sure though. Miyoung had taken the wrong path during her journey because she didn’t free the dismal hatred from her senses. Carelessness could have devastating effects. 

Taeyeon reached for her passport and carry-on bag. She didn’t bring much because it was going to be a short trip and she couldn’t be bothered sorting it out. 

Knowing that a drug had been strapped on Miyoung’s neck had just pushed forward her flight plans and now she was getting the first plane she could find. She sent Yuri and Yoona a quick message about the change of plans despite still being annoyed at Yoona. She just hoped that the two weren’t foolish enough to go off alone after she left them. 

The leader of the Legion paused before she left the door. She contemplated whether she should leave a message for Tiffany as well. Yuri and Yoona would surely notify her in her place but it just didn’t seem fair to disappear out of nowhere like that. The human was already anxious about her leaving as it was. 

“Yo,” Yuri suddenly hollered from the driveway. Taeyeon raised her brow when she saw Yuri and Yoona getting out of the car. 

“Listen, I—” Yoona started off awkwardly. She rubbed the back of her head nervously and bit her tongue to try and motivate herself. Taeyeon couldn’t help but grin when she saw how guilty and remorseful Yoona looked. 

“You’re forgiven,” she said before Yoona could bite her tongue off. Yuri nodded her head sideways to Taeyeon with a smirk. She knew Taeyeon was tolerant of Yoona’s temper but Yoona was working up a sweat over the apology all night because she assumed she really had pushed Taeyeon’s buttons to the point of no return. 

“But I was wrong and I—”

“It’s okay. It shows how much you’re worried of me so I understand. I just wish you would do a bit about that dark Yoona inside you,” Taeyeon interrupted again. “I know you want to apologise but I actually don’t have the time right now. I start boarding in half an hour so I have to run.”

“We know. So hop in. We can get you there in fifteen.” Yuri beamed. Taeyeon glared at Yuri for a moment. 

“You guys have been playing with your cars again, haven’t you?”

“Well it’s fun. Besides, it comes in handy if you want to get somewhere quickly,” Yuri defended. 

“You know racing not endangers other people. It’s usually at times like this when drunkards are loitering around,” Taeyeon scolded. Yuri rolled her eyes and walked over to pick up Taeyeon’s carry-on. 

“Yeah, yeah. You can grill me out about that later. Right now, you have a plane to catch.” She groaned. Yoona laughed at the two older immortals. She felt like they were indeed a family with the way they converse to each other. 

“I call shotgun!” Yoona yelled and rolled across the hood of the car to hop into the front passenger seat. Yuri grinned and hastily threw Taeyeon’s bag in the back before jumping in the driver’s seat. 

“I’ll show you this new trick I learnt. Stop pretending to be a goody-two shoes. I know you like this type of thing too,” Yuri called out to Taeyeon. Taeyeon sighed heavily and rubbed her temples in exasperation. Although she showed a gesture of impatience, she really hadn’t noticed the small smile she was wearing. 

With a click of the door, Taeyeon not so hurriedly walked to the back seat and hopped in. As she predicted, the car shot off quick and sped down the roads with ease. 

Yuri showed her drifting skills and gear shifting control to Yoona who was excitedly watching the roads which were just a blur of lights whizzing by. Taeyeon had to acknowledge she enjoyed the ride but her phone suddenly felt scorching in her pocket, pulsing as if it was begging her to text a certain someone.

Taeyeon decided to drop just a quick message and pulled out her phone. Yuri glanced at the rear view mirror when she saw a light turn on at the back of the car and smiled when she saw Taeyeon seemingly in deep thought. She already knew who Taeyeon was texting by then because Taeyeon never really thinks about how to send someone a message unless that person was Tiffany. 

“YURI!” Yoona suddenly screamed as she spotted a bright light unexpectedly much too close in front of the car.