“LAY!” Lu Han cried.

His friend had already turned purplish. Madame retracted her fangs and Lay’s body toppled lifelessly against the chair. Lu Han rushed over towards Lay and started shaking him vigorously but the body was dead cold. His friend was gone. Lu Han turned around to glare at the 2 other people in the room. He could not believe that Chanyeol, a strong fire-user could allow this to happen. However, Chanyeol returned the stare with widened eyes. He came towards Lu Han but his legs were shaking so much that he could only manage to walk a few steps. His face was of agony, reflecting the very emotion that was fuelling Lu Han’s anger. Madame smirked. Lu Han felt something crack within him. He lifted his arm with his fingers bent tightly and clenched his teeth. Though he was tired, his fury was his impetus. Madame slowly rose, as Lu Han held her with his telekinesis. She could feel the bones in her neck beginning to give way as an invisible force began to strangle her. She was shocked because she thought that the sacrifices she had placed in Lu Han’s path had used up most of his energy but she would never have predicted the power of an angered royal. Hatred shone in Lu Han’s blood red eyes. The only thing burning in his mind was revenge. However, a familiar gasp came from behind him, dissolving all his rage.

“Mari?” he turned around, puzzled. 

The said girl came out from her hiding place which was placing her back against the wall of the corridor beside the entrance of the room. There were dried tear trails from her eyes to her chin and her body was still shaking when she entered the room. Lu Han felt his heart clench upon seeing her like that and realisation dawned upon him that his identity was revealed. Madame fell to the floor and coughed painfully.

“Why are you –“ Lu Han began to ask but in a flash, Madame had already dashed forward and held Mari in a headlock. Madame’s lips began to curl up to form her trademark smirk but Lu Han’s attack had taken a toll on her and the illusion was fading away. Madame’s lips started to droop and her whole face began to sag. Her true form was emerging. The tattoo on her back faded into nothing whereas the tattoo on the back of Mari’s shoulder started to stretch and decolourise. A faint red and enlarged tattoo was now spread across her back.

“Like mice…” Madame spat. Lu Han felt goosebumps all over seeing her true appearance.

“You have walked into the trap without knowing anything,” she sneered while tightening her hold on Mari. Mari groaned and struggled but to no avail. Lu Han felt his heartbeat accelerate – he would not let her kill another important person in his life. However, his breath was shortening from exhaustion and he could not concentrate sufficiently to use his telekinesis. Chanyeol’s eyes darkened. His racing heart slowed to a calm pace and he growled.

“Stop with all the crap.”

He snapped his fingers and a small fireball appeared above his fingers.

“I’m afraid I have the upper hand here boy,” Madame replied fearlessly.

“If I take her, there goes your last clue to Savant.”

Mari gasped. Her tattoo began to burn up and snippets of memories began to flood her mind. She struggled in pain and started to grunt. Lu Han paled and tried to use his telekinesis to pry Madame’s arm off Mari but it did not work. Chanyeol warned in his baritone voice,

“Stop wasting my time woman.”

Madame was using Mari as a shield and it would be difficult to launch a direct attack.

“I’ll hold her down,” Lu Han nodded at Chanyeol.

However, Chanyeol did not bother to look at Lu Han and simply ran behind the duo. Madame tried to turn around but Lu Han had held her stationary with his remaining energy. Her face faltered upon realising her predicament – trapped.

“Venire Flamma,” Chanyeol chanted.

A string of fire appeared in midair and when he stretched out his palm, the string coiled itself together to form a large fireball. Without hesitation, he threw it at Madame. The impact caused Mari to be flung forward and Lu Han leaped to catch her. Madame screeched as she tried to roll on the floor but Chanyeol had been lethal. It was fire made out of pure magic and there was no way to extinguish the flames apart from his will. Even after the illusionist was dead, the corpse continued to burn, to char until there was nothing left but dark ashes. Throughout the whole process, Chanyeol just watched, expressionless.

Mari was still trembling and she was slightly delirious. Lu Han held her in his arms and looked down at her with a concerned expression. However, once her vision began to clear up, she pushed him away and tried to stand up.

“V-vam..pire…” she whispered.

Lu Han retracted his fangs and his eyes turned back to normal. He pulled her close, into a hug and murmured,

“I’m sorry…I’m so sorry.”

A pulse went through Mari and something clicked in her mind. She slowly got out of Lu Han’s grip and stood up to pick up the wine glass on the table. She smashed it on the floor and picked up one of the glass shards. Using the sharp edge, she approached Lay’s body and cut his finger. Slowly, a dark purplish liquid started to flow out and she pressed his finger against the tattoo on her back.

“My memories…they are all coming back…”

Her initially distraught expression transformed into a demeanour of serenity. She smiled softly at Lu Han and said,

“I will now tell you the last clue… ‘where things are made out of nothing’.”

“What…?” Lu Han asked. Madame had said that Mari possessed the last clue but he did not actually believe that the girl he had spent so much time with was their source for the last tattoo. Chanyeol came forward and listened to Mari intently.

She started to pale and she repeated herself again,

“The clue to Savant is ‘The far east of the East Sea, where things are made out of nothing’”.

When her words were once again met with silence, she took a deep breath and said gently,

“Lu Han, I have the last clue.”

“Mari…” Lu Han did not know what to say and he simply reached his hand out to her because he wanted to caress her face. However, she started to cough and blood sputtered out of .

“Mari!” Lu Han shouted.

Footsteps could be heard from the corridor and Hae Ri and Baekhyun finally arrived. They stood mute for a few moments upon observing the scene before them.

“Lay!” Baekhyun cried. He rushed over to the corpse and fell onto his knees.

“What happened in here?!” Hae Ri demanded. She observed the room: Lay was dead, Mari was coughing up blood and there was a pile of black ashes on the floor. Her heart was pounding loudly, it must be a nightmare and she hoped that she would be waking up soon.

“Don’t worry,” Mari told Baekhyun.

“We’re doing an energy transfer,” she said while gripping tightly onto Lay’s finger. Her tattoo was heating up so much that it felt like her skin was being burnt off but she remained brave. She had to, for them.

“The goddess of flowers – the lotus, symbolises the sublime. When the lotus tattoo comes into contact with blood, an energy transfer would be carried out,” she continued.

Baekhyun looked at her with a look of realisation.

“The first clue…it was revealed to us via sound energy,” he evaluated.

Mari nodded and smiled.

“And right now, I’m transferring my life energy to him. He didn’t have to die…he was caught in Madame’s illusion as well,” she stated before more blood sputtered out of and her nosebleed started. Hae Ri reached forward and grabbed Mari’s hand. Hae Ri was trying to give her strength. Lu Han looked at Mari with a pained expression.

“Why…why are you doing this?” Lu Han asked while gently wiping the blood away from her face with the back of his hand. He looked like he was on the brink of crying.

Mari looked into his eyes and a tear slipped from her eye.

“Lu Han…” she began.

“I was dead before Savant gave me this mission.”

Hae Ri and Baekhyun’s eyes widened when Mari mentioned Savant.

“Now that I’m no longer in an illusion and the blood ritual is finally being carried out, I remember everything…There were strong men…they robbed my family shop and killed everyone. I was always the useless one…and I stayed at home so I survived. However, they found me within a few days and they came after me. I didn’t want them to come near…to touch me…so I took my own life,” Mari explained with a faraway look in her eyes.

“However I was revived. When I woke up, I saw an old man. He inscribed the lotus tattoo on me and gave me a reason to live. He told me to stay right here at Donghae, for one day there will be people who need me, but I was discovered by Madame. She put me in an illusion; she made me forget what I had to do. I’m sorry that it took so long for me to reveal the last clue…” she finished with her face pale. Her grip on Lay loosened and her upper body started to fall to the floor. Lu Han caught her before she hit the ground.

“Thank you…Lu Han,” she croaked. She looked deep into his eyes and saw a tear threatening to fall. She reached out slowly and wiped it away.

“Please don’t cry…I’m just a medium, Lu Han,” she murmured.

“Your affinity towards me is just the affinity you have towards the inscribed tattoo,” she finished.

Lu Han did not care about the reason for his feelings. He was simply tired and emotional. He squeezed her hand softly and in that moment he felt that his heart was going to break into a thousand pieces. Mari squeezed back gently and a sweet smile was on her face as her eyes began to close. She fell into an internal slumber with a blood-streaked face. However, in that moment before her eyes closed, she was happy.

Lu Han slowly laid Mari on the floor. Hae Ri smoothed Mari’s hair slowly and commented,

“She was a good girl.”

She thought that it was noble of Mari to have given up her life energy for Lay. Mari had outdone herself and remained strong. Even though Hae Ri was clueless of what had happened, it seemed like everything was resolved properly. She was utilitarian and believed that at times we have to sacrifice ourselves for the majority. Moreover, she wholeheartedly believed that Mari was in a better place and that is why she could be happy for Mari, who is finally at peace.

However, it was a different case for Lu Han. He stood up and clenched his fists before declaring bitterly,

“The war that we are trying to stop is not the only one you know…Humans kill humans too.”

Hae Ri looked up at him, surprised by his words.

“And yet we are trying to save them,” he finished.

Ok well, things are starting to get a little dark ><

Anddddd thank you to my lovely new subscribers <3

Sarahabee , Corinnna and pendulum :D

ohmigosh EXO COMING BACK TOMORROW (aka a few more hours) xD