The air was pungent as the meeting commenced.  The head of the New Empire’s W.O.L.F. branch had lead them to a quiet corner to talk.  Yixing took his place at Yifan’s side and surveyed the group.  His comrades were alert and attentive, whereas Junmyeon’s sentinels were more relaxed.  Yixing eyed them, hoping they would realize their foolishness.  The Void had poisoned Luhan’s mind once, and there was no evidence to claim it would not do it again.  

Yixing and the others had heard of the organization W.O.L.F. in the passing during their time on Earth.  They had been told it had been formed shortly after their arrival and yet it was not exactly clear what the organization was.  Yixing sat quietly without speaking, his body still sensitive as a result of his revival.  Usually, it would take a few moments to recover but this time was different.  Kyungsoo and Life had been weakened by the yehetrium and Yixing suspected that was why he felt that way this time.

The W.O.L.F. representative was speaking quite excitedly.  Yixing kept his eyes fixed on the man, taking in every action to anticipate any potential threats.  As the Sky Force’s leader, Yixing was sure Yifan would be doing the same, but it was Yixing’s purpose to pick up on anything Yifan missed.

“We were mostly concerned with how the balance of the universe would be affected.  It grows closer to Earth everyday, but we have no conclusive evidence it poses any threat,” the representative said.

Yixing could feel a genuine concern for the man.  He cleared his throat and all eyes shifted towards him.  

“The Void presents a danger that Earth will not be able to counter.  There is no defense or weapon on this planet that can overpower it,” Yixing said.

A hand touched Yixing’s arm and he looked over to see Yifan’s eyes flashing down at him.  Perhaps the leader did not want the specifics to be revealed. Yixing looked over towards Junmyeon, who nodded in agreement with Yixing’s actions.  Yifan relaxed, allowing Junmyeon to lead the conversation.

“You call this anomaly a Void.  What makes it a Void?” the man asked, fascinated.  Yixing watched as Junmyeon carefully chose his words to speak.    

“The Void is a destructive force that has been existent from the beginning of Time.  It’s not a black hole or an anomaly in the sky.  It’s an entity that cannot be touched or seen if doesn’t want to.  It has a mind of its own.  It’s able to think for itself, expand and grow,” Junmyeon informed the W.O.L.F. representative.

The man had become ecstatic within a matter of seconds from the new information and began to pepper Junmyeon with questions.  Yixing’s attention had gone to Luhan, his face had gone pale and he seemed to be struck with fear, confirming Yixing’s suspicions.  

“Why is the Void coming to Earth then?” the female spoke.

Yixing watched Junmyeon’s cheeks tinge red in embarrassment.  Yixing did not approve of telling the humans anything.  The Sentinels themselves, had not talked anything over after regaining their memories.  Yifan seemed to agree with this and called attention away from the question.

“We are tired.  I believe we should rest before continuing this type of heavy conversation,” Yifan spoke.

A couple of the others nodded and faced their respective leaders for further instruction.  The W.O.L.F. man had stood up and began leading them to a far alcove on the side of the wall, allowing them to take their rest.

~

I watched them go, unable to shake the feeling they were hiding something.  All twelve of them seemed to be in sync with each other.  Their behaviors were slightly different from when they had been in the maze.  Despite having left all my notes back in the control room and rescuing the Subjects from their captivity, I felt the need to continue monitoring their actions.  It had become a habit that I hoped would fade away. The W.O.L.F. representative had gone with the Sentinels to guide them to their alcoves that would serve as their temporary home for as long as they were there.

I began to scan anywhere my eyes could reach for signs of Chunji and Jaehyo.  The two of them had not sat in on the conversation between the Sentinels and W.O.L.F.  A congregation of women seemed to have a place on the opposite side of the room and so I walked over, hoping to glean any information from them. 

There seemed to be six of them as I did a quick headcount.  Thankfully they were not the type to discriminate as I sat in on the conversation they were having.  A girl with short hair was speaking quite passionately about the war.

“Now that they’ve been rescued, the country will most likely turn to the U.S. and blame them.  They’ve been the most vocal about letting them go free,” the girl said.  “They won’t target W.O.L.F. since they think we’re a bunch of psychos.”

“We should ask the prince what his father’s next move would be.  It’s lucky you were able to capture him when you had the chance,” another girl spoke up, looking straight at me.

I sighed, “I’ve known the prince since I was seven.  He’s absolutely clueless when it comes to foreign policy.”

The girls all sat back.  The short haired girl rolled her eyes.  “Figures.  We pay taxes for retards to run the country.”

I bit my lip, uncomfortable with the open bashing of the government.  If any of us had been out in the open, we would all be taken into custody and executed for treason.  I played with my fingers and forcefully changed the subject.  The girls looked at me after I cleared my throat.  

“In any case, I believe they will be looking for Chunji and I.  Especially me.  I shouldn’t have come.  My relationship with the prince would make it quite obvious that it was an inside job and that I was involved,” I said.

The fact had been burning in my mind ever since the whole plan had set into motion.  I had no doubts the Chancellor would have the entire army after us by this point.  Jaehyo was far too precious to him for him to just sit still and wait for us to release him, which was definitely not going to happen.

“We’ll figure that out when the time comes.  Everything that goes on in W.O.L.F. is pretty much planned on the go,” the girl said.

This statement clearly was not very reassuring but I had to remind myself that some of the world’s brightest scientists and religious leaders were a part of the organization, which brought me to another thought.

“I’ve actually been curious about something.  Does ever