Five

 

The map Kris had, from the time before the Final War, named the place as Shanxi. It was a coal-mining region, but had several cities, including Taiyuan. We reappeared on the side of the mountain that overlooked the city, and almost at once, Jongin collapsed, exhausted from the distance traveled.   “Set up the tents,” Kris called, immediately. “Get him some water, and Yixing? Stay with him.”    “Can Yixing fix him too?” I asked Sehun curiously.   He nodded, reaching into a backpack for the camping supplies. “Not completely, but he’ll recover his strength faster around Yixing.”   By nightfall, the boys had set up five tents, and made a campfire to cook sausages with. Jongin had recovered fully by then, and was once again sulking, face shrouded in shadow as light from the fire danced around it. I wondered what he was looking at, or thinking.   The glow gave off an eerie feeling, but the crackling of the fire was strangely comforting. The sky was clear that night, and hundreds of stars dotting the dark sky glittered. I looked up at them, wondering who else was looking at the exact same night sky.   Chanyeol had a hand out and was lazily playing with the camp fire, forming weird shapes and tendrils, snaking up before turning in smoky wisps. Minseok was watching with annoyance, and I could tell that he was about to snap at any minute, and envelope the bonfire, or maybe even Chanyeol, in an ice cube. Baekhyun seemed to notice as well, and reached out a hand to stop Chanyeol from messing around any more.   I sat next to Yixing, leaning against the trunk of a fallen oak tree, and eating a beef sausage speared on a stick. Jongdae tossed me an apple from the backpack he had been carrying, and I accepted it gratefully.    It was then that Kris and Joonmyun decided to finally tell us where they had been and what they knew.   “We’ve been kept near the Doctor most of the time, under constant watch,” Kris started, slowly. “But that also meant that we heard everything, and know of things that we shouldn’t know about.”   “Oh yeah, Min! We meet your brother. He was the one who told us of your ability,” Joonmyun added.   My brother?   “Where is he? Is he okay? Why wasn’t he with you guys?” I asked, horrified, as the words came tumbling out. Had I been tricked into leaving Moonkyu behind at the compound?   “He escaped, Min, don’t worry.” I wondered whether Kris was the one with the mind reading ability or me when he replied, patting me on the shoulder in a comforting manner. "He got out way before any of us. From I heard from the guards, someone disguised as one of the labcoats broke in and got him.”   But that meant nothing to me. For all I knew, he could have been kidnapped by yet another group of evil scientists.   “Where is he?” I asked, already knowing the answer. I could feel a sinking feeling in my stomach, and I wanted to throw up.   “We don’t know,” Kris admitted.   I think Yixing could tell that I was upset by the news, and he wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me to lean against him carefully. “It’s going to be okay,” he whispered. “At least he was still alive.”   Was still alive. Who knew what Moonkyu was facing now?   “Dr. Evil was hired to recreate our powers,” Joonmyun continued. “I don’t know how he found out about us, or who he is taking orders from or why. They only referred to whoever is behind all this as ‘the Bos