♫

Yifan talked too much, at least for Zitao’s likings. The raven haired kid was never good at making new friends and the last hours he spent with this Yifan guy had been really, really, awkward. They headed over to the wide field located just behind the camp to follow the training with the other hybrids. Zitao was welcomed with stares directed at him at first, and Minho—the trainer—needed to take away their attention from Zitao to get start. Zitao, eventhough Jongdae said he was very untrained, was actually quite experienced in close contact combat. Thank’s to years of living in Volans where he had to hunt animals to make a living and make it as his dinner. So when Minho told them to get their sword at the other side of the field, he was more than happy to comply.

“So, you’re the guy from the prophecy?”

Zitao was too focused on Minho, paying attention at how the older moved his sword in the air. He had been ignoring the other’s rant for the entire day whenever he started a conversation.

“That’s pretty cool.”

“I’m so afraid. Are you afraid of this? Do you know how the prophecy goes?”

“This moment where we train for the war with the opposition, is it mentioned in the prophecy?”

“Wow this sword is really heavy. How can you hold it for such a long time?”

“Can I cut down a tree using—“

Yifan was quick to dodge Zitao’s attempt to cut his head off. The raven haired kid was now staring deep at him with raging emotion and anger. Had he done something wrong? Yifan soon found himself beneath Zitao’s figure and he swore he could tell from the way the young hybrid looked at him it was as if Zitao would kill him. Yifan moved again and dropped the other, their swords clashing each other.

“Get back here, you coward!” Zitao cursed, grabbing the entire camp’s attention.

And that was the first time Zitao talked to him, directly. Zitao hadn’t said anything to him since they were left as a team in the training and Yifan was almost surprised, if the attack over his head that was being thrown at him wasn’t surprising enough already. He ran far from the younger and Zitao was trailing behind him in a high speed, one sword each in his hand (the other one belonged to Yifan).

“Zitao, stop this already!” Minho shouted at him, but Zitao was too angry to hear anything.

The entire trainees were now looking at them playing ‘hide and seek’. Most of the time it was Yifan who screamed and Zitao would hiss at his failed attempt to catch him.

Yifan suddenly slipped on his own foot and fell face-first to the ground. He was about to stand again when Zitao’s weight came atop him.

“I’m so tired of listening to your ramblings.”

“What?? Is that all? You chased me down just because of that??”

“I hate your voice. God damn it how can a hybrid from Vega has such voice?” Zitao’s sword came dangerously close to the man’s throat and Yifan was unable to flip the younger off of him. The sun’s light radiated itself to the sword being held high above Zitao’s head, ready to kill.

“Zitao!”

The said boy didn’t answer.

“Zitao, that’s enough. Put it down. Now.”

He was hesitate for awhile.

“Young hybrid, I warn you.”

And the next second, the sword fell down from Zitao’s tight grip. His breath grew heavy and hitched. His entire body couldn’t be moved. He was frozen in place.

“Thank’s Lu, glad you’re here in time,” Minho tapped Luhan’s shoulder.

“Glad I make it in time. Bring the raven haired kid to my tent. I forgot to tell you that he needed some special training,” Luhan winked secretively at him. Minho then grabbed Zitao’s arms and threw his frozen body over his shoulder. Yifan just laid there with laboured breath, watching the younger staring into blank space and didn’t react at all.

“Sick guy,” he spat, grabbing the swords beside him and walked back to the crowds staring at him.

+++

Sehun was not so dangerous, if anyone judged him by his looks. But maybe that was his biggest traits. Being born as a pure Tricheur from Junmyeon’s bloodline gave him a ‘tricky’ look. If it wasn’t because of his typical-Lyrae hair color, platinum blonde, he would be able to travel across Vega and pretended as if he was born there. As said earlier that he was the best tracker in the entire Lyra, Sehun was able to track anything and everything throughout the constellation, and even between the two stars. Sehun has a strange connection with every single hybrids in this world, and only the trained ones were able to do that.

The skies were always dark in Lyrae. Sehun couldn’t tell if it was night or morning but he no longer cared about that. The skies were always dark, afterall. He danced down the stairs in his usual pace, gaze directed into blank space in front of him. Jongin said the younger kid’s mind was always occupied with everything. He had something similar to a world’s map with every targets located precisely where they were in his mind. That was why Sehun’s face was always stoic.

After the attack they launched to Corvus—the largest and most developed city in Vega—last night, Sehun was soon transferred back to the City of Caelum in Lyrae to watch things out by Junmyeon. He looked outside the large window glass and closed his eyes, waiting.

The voice came in whisper, brought by the wind from miles away.

Zitao is safe – but he won’t be, in no time.

He’s here, with the other hybrids –

They’re amplifying.

The Forbidden Forest protects them –

Was what Sehun told Junmyeon afterwards, before the blurry images of the camp disappeared again from his mind. Now he knew why he hadn’t been able to track the Élu, because he totally had no access to get inside the Forbidden Forest. But now that he had received a view of what was happening there, he was sure that his plan was working.

How did you know that?

Sehun opened his eyes and took a sharp intake of breath, before exhaling it.

Brother told me so. He has found him.

+++

Zitao heard a a soft sound of wine being poured into a glass and the way the bottle clashed with the table, and then he heard a satisfying moan from the person who drank it in one shot. He opened his lids just to be met with a figure of a man standing before him with his broad back facing him. That person turned at him. And Zitao remember he was the man from before.

“Oh, hello there,” Luhan greeted him with a cheeky smile. “Here, have a water.”

And Zitao took the glass in the other man’s hand and drank it all, before returning the glass again.

“What happened?”

“Well, I had to stop you from trying to kill other trainee back there.”

“Who are you?” Zitao asked coldly. The other man looked at him with gaze full of sincerity.

“My name is Luhan. I’m the former general of the Fortre, before that young kid took my place.”

Zitao saw how Luhan’s expression suddenly turned cold and sad. Either he really meant it or not, Zitao couldn’t find himself interested with the man’s story about the Fortre. He hated Eridanus and all its organization and its people (except Yixing’s parents), his earlier meeting with Jongdae wasn’t a good one and when the memories of what had happened earlier started flooding in, his body moved on itself away from Luhan.

“Y, you… s-stay away from me…”

Luhan cocked an eyebrow, barely catching what the younger was saying.

“What is it?” Luhan looked around him, and then back at the terrified Zitao.

“Zitao, what’s wrong?”

“Don’t you dare coming closer. Stay put,” Zitao warned him through his gritted teeth. And Luhan decided to follow his order, to make the younger calm and relax.

“Listen, whatever bad thing you have heard about me, they’re wrong. I came here all the way from Crux for you. Because I have to train you. Nobody from the Exodus can do that.”

“Exo… what?” Zitao tilted his head.

“Yeah, bet that little , Baekhyun, hasn’t told you anything about the rest of us.”

Luhan sat on the bed and motioned him to do the same. Zitao was hesitate at first, but he complied.

“Exodus is a secret organization. Its work is similar to the Eridanus, except the part where it chooses new hybrid to fill the empty chair or replace someone in the Grey House, Exodus don’t really do that. It consists of me, Chanyeol, Jongdae, Baekhyun, Yixing, Kyungsoo, and Jongin. And now we have you.”

“Jongin is with us? But he attacked us before.”

“Well, he was. Not until the rumors about the prophecy came around and he suddenly left us and yesterday you and Yixing saw him again, fighting for Junmyeon,” Luhan pinched the bridge of his nose, the frowns on his forehead was too clear to be seen.

“To put it simple, basically Eridanus tries to stop the prophecy, while Exodus tries to make it happen.”

Zitao was unexpectedly silent. Or so Luhan thought. Sharing the same title with Heechul, The Hypnotique, it was easy for him to read the other’s mind. That was why he could make Zitao to release the swords in his hands earlier this afternoon because Luhan had somehow took over his mind and body.

“I’ve never heard about the prophecy. I’ve never heard about the attack, never heard about your secret moves, never thought about any of this at all. How can you be so sure about it?”

“So sure about what?”

“That I’m not gonna destroy Lyra. Someone told me that it will only transform itself into a whole new constellation. And to be honest, I, myself, not really sure can do that.”

“That’s why I’m here!” Luhan said, almost too cheerful for Zitao to handle. The raven haired kid buried his face in his arms, confused with who to trust and what to do with all this thing. He only trusted his mother in such a long time, and now she was gone, probably captured and being tortured. Even imagining the images made him shiver.

“If you want to see your mother, you have to make sure the prophecy takes place. The chances are very little for Eridanus to stop it, but still, if you don’t believe in yourself. They win.”

Luhan then got up from the bed and walked pass him. “It’s your choice. Meet me at the outside if you’ve decided it.” Zitao was soon left with silence in the tent. The extravagant decoration in it was so ‘Luhan’.

But Zitao had made his choice since last night, that he didn’t want to give the victory for Junmyeon.

He got out from the tent to see Luhan, arms crossed on his chest.

“I don’t even know how to save this constellation. Don’t blame me if I destroy it by accident.”

“Oh don’t worry, we all die if that happens anyway,” Luhan chuckled, and Zitao’s eyes grew wider at the other’s words. Luhan apparently had a thing for dark humor.

“I’m starting to hate your jokes,” Zitao snickered.

“Fine, fine. No more jokes about death. Are you ready?” Luhan offered him his hand.

Zitao shrugged. “As if I had a choice.”

+++

They were on the other side of the camp, an even bigger field this time.

“You should be grateful for being an Élu.”

“Yeah? Why?”

“There are no other hybrids in this constellation who are blessed with the power… to kill.”

Zitao frowned at that. “Yixing told me that Tricheurs are dangerous enough.”

“Dangerous doesn’t always mean deadly. Tricheurs have the ability to trick their victims and even apply the tricks on themselves, but they can never kill a hybrid with their tricks. The tricks will only kill once they’ve got their victim’s trust, then they execute them. Simple as it is, but I tell you again, even Tricheurs can’t really kill a hybrid with its power. Not to mention that they can’t really sing.”

Zitao witnessed how the trees and pebbles around them were now floating in the air. Without he realized, Luhan had moved them all while they talked. Zitao stared in awe. The older must be really strong and powerful for being able to use his power only by using the talks. Zitao had heard it before that there were these hybrids who didn’t need to sing or whistle to use their power. They only had to talk, simply a talk, letting out syllables out of their mouth, giving the nature a sign that they were there.

Zitao’s little heart envied him. So many hybrids with amazing powers. And yet here he was…

“Each living things in Lyra has an aura. Even the dead ones too. Just like these trees and pebbles. I know the way you see this world is different. The colors of the aura replace the figure.”

Zitao could feel the ground beneath him started shaking.

“I want to see your greatest power. Destroy these trees and pebbles into dusts or even better—nothingness.”

Zitao took a few steps back because somehow the pebbles were starting to crash themselves on Zitao’s body. It didn’t hurt, but it bother