It had been three days since the Other World locked from outsiders. Reapers who perished in the Palace could not stay as ghosts. There were soon rumors of hauntings between the ruins, fueled by peculiar figures and strange sounds. Insanity captured those that crossed the Palace and soon, their families ended up butchered or with the same symptoms as the affected: black eyes, skin as white as chalk powder and bone chilling laughter. Years of living as a reaper, more exactly a Seeker who rarely returned to the Other World, taught me that a reaper fallen in duty can only do two things. The first would be to force their spirits back to the Other World and live happy within memories before they’d be reincarnated or recycled. The second option was brutal and it had only happened once. It also gave birth to creatures that humans, fairies and even vampires, in their hidden lairs or running across the desert, do not approve of.

Worse, the Carriers in the rain of fire were doomed to the same fate, a gruesome one I had almost given up to as well four years before.

New breeds of demons threatened the take control of the Capital City.

My orders were clear: do not do anything else, other than instructed that is. Those demons were not something I should meddle with, even if they glanced suspiciously the moment I decided to check out the Palace grounds. After I left them in full sunlight, the golden eagle eyes bestowed upon me during the transformation were useful in hunting down Byung Hee’s team.

It was the last remaining Keeper team: three Warriors, two Seekers and Byung Hee, their leader. They used to have a Watcher too, one I was afraid to confront due to their telepathic abilities capable of weakening me before the actual fight. Since he attended and died at the Palace ball, my mission became easier. The two Seekers were weak after countless encounters with stronger reapers. Their wings were in bad shape, so they were the best target. The Warriors were agile and powerful, though they separated from the group after Byung Hee found it necessary to conduct a mission together.

They left their Seekers alone. It was either a terrible mistake from the Keeper’s side or a trap for fools like myself, ready to impale their chests with the reaper blade in my hand.

With no other choice – or a better plan – I searched for the Seekers through the ghost forest. They shouldn’t be far, their wings would not allow it. After I had experienced firsthand that, something told me they couldn’t transform in their bird equivalent either. The two cornered Seekers tended to their wounds as I watched them from between branches.

It was normal to act paranoid, to look around every second for any enemy ready to kill them. There was a war going on for years and only those last couple of days had they felt it on their skin, burning with the same intensity as Yuri’s words.

Ah, Yuri…

I wonder how they were. They should have relocated by then, without me. Nevertheless, they were safe and Jessica, injured and all, proved a good replacement.

They no longer needed me.

Leaves ruffled when my body bolted through the branches and stabbed the first reaper. The second stopped to analyze the danger and before he could make a decision, the blade slipped out of the steaming reaper and into his partner. Those two were too easy, their moves too slow and I had been truly a fool not to see the Warrior leave his raven form and punch me in a tree.

Of course, no leader could leave the wounded behind without protection. The green-eyed reaper drew his own blade and took a defensive stance. He was not ready to battle me.

Two of his four wings had no feathers. They were skeletons made of coal, fragments dropping every time all four wings moved. He winced.

He was in severe pain.

I had been there when they pulled my wing out of my back. I understood how he felt.

I felt the way the Warrior’s healthy wing cut my cheek, felt the way Sooyoung’s blood boiled inside me and gave my spirit a new set of abilities. In the Palace, I used them to clear our path and no matter on what side the reapers were, they all fell. Thankfully, Sooyoung fainted back then and hadn’t seen me go bare handed on some and slash other’s necks with the blade. The same happened with the Warrior – he died by my hands before he could send a help signal to Byung Hee and the remaining two.

I wasted my energy in that ambush.

Limping out of the forest, the moon greeted the evening with its pale smile.

“Where is smelly man?”

That voice… why couldn’t I pick Sooyoung’s?

“Who the heck is smelly man?”

Byung Hee… he was there… he was with them. I forced my wings to work faster.

“Ya! Don’t talk like that around the kid!”

Sooyoung… I was getting closer.

The feather at her neck pulsated. I could hear Sooyoung’s heart beating louder and louder. I wasn’t far from them.

“Jung Min. It’s Jung Min.”

They were after the mountains, I was sure of it.

“Bird brain!” someone called from the forest, someone with blond hair and a stern expression, which melted in a huge grin once I landed in front of him.

“Hyung Soo,” he frowned and showed me a finger.

“It’s Daesung now, remember?”

“Ah, yeah.”

Before I could ask why he was there, he cut in with a question.

“We’ve been friends for a while, haven’t we?”

It was… rather odd for him to bring up that subject. With a low chuckle and a simple nod of my head, I hoped they were not suspicious. They couldn’t be, I had taken enough precaution.

“And we’ll still be for years to come,” when my hand reached to pat his back, it hit an invisible wall.

“I doubt that,” he spoke softly. The wall materialized in red flames. Rosary beads were hanging from the trees around.

“What is this about?!”

Daesung pulled out a sword with engravings I had not seen before.

“I’ve been sniffing you for a while now and I prayed it wasn’t true,” he hissed and the flames intensified “you’re a traitor and I’m taking you down. Sooyoung will hate me after this, but at least I saved her and our child.”

“You know that I will never harm her!” how could he believe that? Even in my deepest nightmares, Sooyoung was alive and kicking.

“Yeah, well, I knew a lot of things before. Guess I was wrong.”

“Hyung Soo!”

“DAE---” he lifted the sword above his head… and above mine “---SUNG!” and . 

I'm listening to Moon Hee-joon's Legend album again and G. 선상의 아리아 (Silent Conflict) works so well on battle scenes 8D
Anyway, Daesung vs Jung Min~~~ who will survive?