“Okay,” Baekhyun said definitively, hands deep into his pockets. “This is odd.”

Luhan took a step forward to stand next to him. “Really? I find it all fascinating.”

Luhan probably would, but for Baekhyun, the sight in front of him was odd. It was odd and unfamiliar and maybe it even made him feel a little uncomfortable. It all probably came with the territory of being completely lost as to where he was, or even what was going on around him.

“What is this place?”

“It’s called Seoul,” Luhan said cheerfully, rocking back on his feet. “It’s a city in a country called South Korea.”

“Huh.” It was almost breathtaking, the amount of chaos around them. People were zipping about everywhere, there were loud, offensive noises every other second, and space to simply breathe seemed so horribly limited. If this was a city, it didn’t look like a very comfortable one. It looked like a terrifying place to be, let alone live.

Luhan continued on, “Population almost ten million. That’s bigger than M and K put together. Far bigger.”

“Where is this place?” Baekhyun asked, spinning around. “Seoul you said?”

Easily, Luhan said, “It’s on Earth.”

“And where is Earth?”

“I’m not exactly sure.” Luhan shrugged, no seemingly bothered in the least bit. “Somewhere important.”

Baekhyun took a steadying breath, then asked, “Are you dreaming, or am I? Which one of us is caught in the other’s dream?”

With a laugh, Luhan replied, “It’s more likely to be Chanyeol’s dream, than either of ours.”

“What?” Baekhyun’s head cocked.

Luhan made a flourishing gesture. “This is the place that Chanyeol has been dreaming about almost obsessively lately. Earth. Only, he didn’t know it was Earth. And for clarification purposes, I think he only believed he was dreaming because he didn’t understand what he was seeing. I’m convinced he’s been having visions the entire time.”

“Visions,” Baekhyun said flatly.

“Visions.” Luhan nodded. “His connection isn’t as strong as mine is to Mama, and he spent a good portion of his life being separated by a great deal of distance from her life tree. It only makes sense that she’d be able to reach him when he went to sleep, and was the most defenseless.”

Baekyhun took another look around. “So you think this is what Chanyeol’s been dreaming of? I mean, having visions of? But that doesn’t make any sense. This is no place I’ve ever seen before. It’s clearly not on Exo. You said Earth, right?”

“Better brace yourself.” Luhan took a visible step back, pulling at Baekhyun. “And try not to freak out on me, okay? I know it’s going to be jarring.”

“What--”

A voice cut through the heavy traffic of the street before them, muddled with people of all sizes and looks, “Baekhyun! Don’t be mad! Slow down!”

Baekhyun felt air catch in his throat as a carbon copy of himself came into view, striding angrily down the street, a bag hitched over one shoulder. And trailing after him was Chanyeol, or at least someone who looked a lot like Chanyeol. Identical to Chanyeol, even.

“Mad?” the other Baekhyun asked. “Why would I be mad? You only decided to crash the most important interview of my life!”

“I did not crash it!”

“Breathe,” Luhan reminded Baekhyun, pulling him after them.

“What is this?” Baekhyun demanded, forcing himself take in long breaths. “Why is there a copy of me? Why is there a copy of Chanyeol?”

“Because I imagine this is our future.”

The other Baekhyun hissed, “You said you were okay with me going. You promised you were.”

“Explain,” Baekhyun demanded of Luhan. “How can this be out future?”

“Not really sure about that either,” Luhan said, “but I’m starting to understand why Chanyeol’s been so upset about this for a while. It’s disconcerting.”

“To say the least.”

“Oh.” Luhan pointed across the street. “There’s everyone else.”

True to the words, a few steps more and Baekhyun could make out an identical Kai, an identical D.O., and actually, all of the other guardians. It was easy to see they were friends and overly familiar with each other, and there didn’t seem to be any formality separating them.

Baekyhun found himself questioning, “How can this be our future? Here? On this strange planet?”

“Sometimes,” Luhan said, “Chanyeol told me he dreams about different situations. We’re almost always here, on Earth, in Seoul, but sometimes the variables change. Sometimes only some of us are friends. Sometimes we seem to have and know about our abilities, and other times we don’t.”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened. “Is that other you making out with that other Xiumin?”

“Our relationships change from time to time as well,” Luhan said, seemingly not at all bothered by how their doppelgangers were acting. “However Chanyeol swears that you and he are constants in whatever scenario he sees. You two always seem to find your way to each other.”

“So this changes?”

Luhan hummed his agreement. “I think Chanyeol keeps seeing different futures for us because of how we’re changing things now. The variables change, so the end result changes. I like this one. Look.”

Baekhyun looked back at the twelve boys who were crowded into a single booth at the noodle house nearby. It looked like the other Baekhyun had forgiven the other Chanyeol, and they were all laughing at something the other Sehun had said.

“You like the version of the future where you and Kai don’t get to be together?”

There was a pinch of sadness in Luhan’s features. “It beats the future where no one knows who I am, like I never existed in the first place. Or the one in which Kai and Xiumin are hunted down for their abilities. If this is the only sacrifice made for a future where all twelve of us are safe and sound, then it’s one made without hesitation.”

Baekyhun didn’t know if he quite believed Luhan about that, but he could understand. But he had more questions, and the one off the top of his head was, “How can our future be on another planet? How does that make sense in the least bit?”

“It doesn’t,” Luhan offered, “but I don’t think we’re meant to understand what we’re seeing right now. We’re only meant to use it as hope.”

“And why is Mama showing this to us?”

“Maybe it’s not intentional,” Luhan reasoned. “Maybe it is. It’s hard to say. Oh, and I apologize.”

“For what?” Baekhyun asked, trying his best not to look over at the group anymore.

“What were you doing before you started having this dream?”

“I …” Baekyhun stopped, trying to draw up the memory. It wasn’t often that he had to think about what he’d been doing prior to sharing any sort of dream with Luhan. And if he did, the chances were it was just going to be his nighttime routine. “I was ….” He thought harder, concentrating by blocking out the sounds around him.

“You weren’t getting ready for bed,” Luhan volunteered. “Or at least it’s very unlikely.”

“I was going to dinner,” Baekhyun eased out slowly. “Chanyeol had gone ahead with D.O., and I was going to get Chen. It was time for dinner … and then … nothing.”

Apologetically, Luhan said, “I thought we were only connected when we were sleeping, but it may be more than that. I know for certain that I’m asleep right now, and I think with the way I forced a vision, I ended up doing the same for you.”

“What?” Baekhyun demanded. “You know better than to force something like that.” Also, he’d never experienced a shared vision before with Luhan. They dreamed together all the time, but visions were Luhan’s realm. None of Luhan’s visions had ever bled over into Baekhyun’s sleep.

“I actually wasn’t trying to force it! Not really!” Luhan demanded. He asked, “Kris--his majesty, is keeping you up to date with the things happening in M, right? You’re aware of the seed that Sehun pulled from inside the life tree?”

“Yes. The king forwards most news to Commander Suho, and I read everything that comes our way. I thought the king was putting that thing under lock and key, especially after Sehun practically lost control of his body, trying to get to it.”

Luhan pointed out, “Mama was pushing him towards it for a reason. That’s the same push I felt every second I was separated from the seed. I know this sounds stupid, Baekhyun, or at the very least doesn’t make any sense, but I knew I was supposed to keep the seed safe the second that Sehun had it in his possession. I knew it was mine to protect. Kris trying to keep it away from me was … concern that I appreciate, but ultimately foolhardy. I had to get to it.”

“And this is what happened?” Baekhyun reasoned.

“So like I said, maybe this is something Mama wanted to show us for whatever purpose, or maybe this is what we just ended up seeing. I just know I had to have that seed in my hand, but I didn’t know you’d get pulled in too. So I’m sorry. Please apologize to everyone on your end when you wake up.”

The telltale sign that Baekhyun was seconds away from waking up was pulling at him. The edges of his visions were going a little gray, and it meant he had only a minute or two to spare. “We’re going to wake up?”

“You’re going to wake up,” Luhan clarified. “I’m not. I can feel it. The reason that I’m asleep … whatever it is, it’s important, and I need more time.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?” He’d always felt oddly protective over Luhan, which was just as well, because he knew Luhan felt protective over him. They were brothers of a sort, they’d been through a lot together, and knew each other well. Their friendship was an odd one, but the oddly beautiful kind.

“I’ll be fine,” Luhan brushed off. “I’m more worried about you. Me having this visions shouldn’t have affected you. Sometimes my visions drain me. Other times they hurt me. I don’t want that for you. You don’t have Lay if something goes wrong.”

Baekhyun assured, “I’ve got Kai. If anything goes wrong, he could have me there in a second. So stop worrying . We’ll figure this out.”

Luhan was saying something else, potentially something important, but all of it was drowned out by the roar in Baekhyun as he came awake.

Baekhyun gasped for air as he shot up in the bed he was laying on. His feet were twisted in the sheets as his eyes shot around the room, quickly identifying that this was his room, not the infirmary.

“Baekhyun?”

The bathroom door opened and a weary looking Chanyeol poked his head through, pausing almost in disbelief.

“Chanyeol?”

A second later the wind was knocked out of Baekhyun again as a shaking Chanyeol enveloped him in long, protective arms.

“What’s wrong?” Baekhyun asked, rubbing Chanyeol’s back soothingly. “It’s okay. I promise.”

“It’s not okay! I couldn’t get you to wake up. No one could.”

For a brief moment Baekhyun tried to imagine what it must have been like for Chanyeol. If the situation had been reversed, and something had happened to Chanyeol, Baekhyun knew he wouldn’t have been okay.

“I’m sorry,” Baekhyun offered, pressing his mouth to the edge of Chanyeol’s lips. “I didn’t exactly have a choice in the matter, but for the record, Luhan is sorry.”

Chanyeol drew back. “So you guys were dreaming together?”

“We were,” Baekhyun confirmed. “And something weird happened.”

He did his best to explain what he’d experienced to Chanyeol, not only about what he’d seen, but how Luhan’s vision had triggered something in Baekhyun.

“This isn’t going to happen every time, right?” Chanyeol demanded. “Luhan gets hurt most of the time when he has those visions. What if that starts happening to you?”

“I don’t know.” Baekhyun slid his legs over to the side of the bed. He let his fingers thread through Chanyeol’s. “If I’m connected to Luhan in this way now, then there’s nothing we can do about it. But at least I got to see some of what you’ve been dreaming about.”

Chanyeol helped guide Baekhyun up to his feet. “Did Luhan tell you about his crazy theory?”

“That it’s the future?”

Chanyeol nodded. “Crazy, right? Crazy impossible.”

Baekhyun swayed on his feet for a second, then found his center of balance and said seriously, “All things considered, this is the least crazy impossible thing I’ve heard all week.” Then he let Chanyeol kiss him properly, and tried to block out the experience of his first vision, and how it had left his body achingly sore.

Chanyeol seemed to shadow him for that entire day, following Baekhyun as he reported in to Suho what had happened, and contacted M about what Luhan had said to him. He spoke personally to the king, who seemed relieved that at least Luhan’s mind was fine, and then promised to try and check in on him again later that night when he went to bed, if Luhan was still out.

“Are you sure you should be up?” Chanyeol answered him by the end of the day. “I think you should be in bed resting.”

“I think,” Baekhyun challenged, “by your account I was out for the better part of a day. That’s more than enough rest.” The truth was, he was feeling exhausted, but there were lines of worry creasing into Chanyeol’s face, and the last thing Baekhyun wanted to do was worry him. “I’m going to go see Chen. Can you detach yourself from me for one second?”

Chanyeol frowned at him. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”

“I am,” Baekhyun said bluntly, then gave him a smile. “I know you’ve been neglecting your duties to stay with me. Go check in and get some work done with the little bit of day that’s left. I’m going to be fine, okay? You can’t hover over me endlessly like this forever.”

“Try me,” Chanyeol said, but with a little more prodding, he was heading off towards where he needed to be.

And Baekhyun was on his way to see Chen.

“You look good,” Chen said when he opened the door. “For a guy who’s supposed to be in a coma.”

“Is that what they were calling it?” Baekhyun inquired. “I was only asleep.”

“No one could wake you up.” Chen invited Baekhyun in. “It was pretty scary, being that you and Luhan were both out at the same time. The same exact time.”

“About that,” Baekhyun brushed off. “It’s not important. Or rather, we can talk about it at a later date. I’m more interested in what you’re doing tomorrow.”

“Tommorrow?” Chen took a seat in a nearby chair. “Aren’t you supposed to be like a fancy secretary? Shouldn’t you already know what my schedule looks like?”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “If I was a secretary of any type, and don’t say it like it’s a profession that’s lacking in any way, I’d be the Commander’s, and that wouldn’t include me controlling, setting, or knowing your schedule. Plus, I just spent some time in a so called coma, so I’m a little out of the loop.”

Chen’s eyes flicked upwards as he thought, then relayed, “I have a breakfast meeting with one of your election candidates. It’ll be televised, apparently, with the first primary race coming up at the end of the week, and from what I hear, this candidate is running on a platform of Never Again. As in, never again will M be allowed to control and subjugate K. So that should be fun. Oh, wait, did I say fun? I meant awkward and excruciatingly painful.”

Baekhyun knew exactly what candidate Chen was talking about immediately. There were four who seemed to be emerging as front runners, and there’d be three after the first primary, but only one was radial enough to stand on such a platform. And he was Baekhyun’s least favorite. K and M desperately needed a period of calm and friendship, not antagonistic militarization.

“You have to go?”

“I have to go,” Chen verified. “Unlike Sehun, who’s apparently spending his days going to parties, stuffing himself full of dessert and hanging out with his new best friend, I’m working over here.”

Baekhyun laughed, “You’re also more mature than Sehun, older, and you have a sense of responsibility. Sehun will get there.”

Chen shot Baekhyun an irritated look. “Why’re you asking? Any chance you can spring me?”

Baekhyun angled himself in a chair across from Chen. “Commander Suho likes me, but he doesn’t like me that much. He’s in charge of making sure this election process goes smoothly. If I do anything to mess that up in any way, I’ll be in the level of trouble that Kai currently resides at.”

Chen winced. “The Commander still isn’t getting over Kai almost getting K wiped off the map because of his relationship with Luhan, is he?”

“Not even close.”

Seeming more easy going, now that he’d spent a while in K, Chen said, “Well, I have to admit, I was upset about that in the beginning too. But Kai’s not that bad when you get to know him, and oddly enough, he and Luhan compliment each other in a way. If things had been different, I could see myself supporting them. Maybe being away from M and a rigorous military routine has made me soft over here.”

“Soft?” Baekhyun hardly thought that was possible. “Unlikely. But I came to see you firstly because it was an excuse to ditch Chanyeol. I love him, but he can be a little overbearing from time to time. And more importantly, secondly, I want to go visit where I found the book with you as soon as possible. Tomorrow, hopefully. We’re running out of time and things are escalating quickly. You and I need to see if I missed something there, or if there’s any clue as to why such an important book would be hidden in such a place.”

“You get me out of that breakfast tomorrow and we can go right now.”

It was odd to Baekhyun, but as he sat so casually across from Chen, he could almost call the man a friend. They’d spent several days together doing various activities, they’d had meals together, and spent time just talking. Maybe they were friends. It was simply hard to imagine that if the war hadn’t ended, Baekhyun could have met Chen on the battlefield. If it had come down to it, they could have fought each other, with disastrous results. But here they were now, chatting with each other, joking and laughing.

“I can’t do that,” Baekhyun said with a grin. “But I’ll get you a free pass to something else. Most of the other officers here owe me a favor or two. If you need to bail on something, I can call a favor in. Deal? You go with me tomorrow, and you have that favor waiting for you.”

Chen told him honestly, “You don’t have to bribe me. I was just kidding with you.”

“I know.” Baekhyun got to his feet, and dared to say, “But it’s yours all the same. So I’ll come and get you after your horribly traumatic breakfast date?”

“You sure I can’t call that favor in early?”

Baekhyun laughed, “Wear warm clothes. We’re going near the sea and it’ll be windy.”

A smile dropped off Chen’s face. “How far near the sea? What part of the coastline?”

Giving pause, Baekhyun tried to work out why Chen’s entire demeanor had changed. “Is that a problem?”

“No,” Chen said immediately, clearing his throat. “No problem. Never mind.”

Baekhyun honestly wanted to push the subject at hand, but Chen looked more than a little testy, and Baekhyun was beginning to wonder how much time he had left before exhaustion won him over.

“Alright,” Baekhyun ended up saying, letting it all slide. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

That night as Baekhyun lay in bed, Chanyeol curled around him in a fitful sleep, he tried not to let himself get distracted by any of the many things that had been happening lately. And not just the things that had been happening to him, but also to all the people he was connected to.

Chanyeol mumbled something in his sleep, his head burrowing deeper into Baekhyun’s shoulder. Baekhyun wondered if he was dreaming about Earth, with it’s impossibly high buildings, crazy population and frantic pace. Maybe he was dreaming up a different future than the one he’d seen the last time he’d gone to sleep. Were the things they did now, on Exo, really effecting the things that Chanyeol dreamed about? But then after all, Luhan had said they weren’t really just dreams, but visions disguised as dreams because of Chanyeol’s distnace from Mama’s life tree.

Thinking about it all made Baekhyun’s head hurt a little.

Chanyeol gave a sudden startle and sat up, asking in the near pitch darkness of their room, “Baekhyun? You awake?”

Baekhyun kept as still as possible. If he admitted to being awake it would take much longer to get Chanyeol back to sleep. Baekhyun had seen the lack of sleep written all over Chanyeol’s face earlier, and that was something he couldn’t abide by.

As he waited for Chanyeol to fall back asleep, Baekhyun found himself giving in to the need himself. But Luhan wasn’t there to greet him, and neither was Earth. Did that mean their connection was fractured in some way? It didn’t feel like when Luhan was blocking him out. Maybe Luhan’s sleep cycle was just off and he was awake. Before Baekhyun could question much more, he fell deeper into a regular dream all his own, and was distracted completely from any rational thought.

In the morning, as Baekhyun lounged on a bed a bit longer and watched Chanyeol dress in his uniform, he said, “I’m going out of the capital with Chen today.”

The displeasure was on Chanyeol’s face before he even said, “I don’t think that’s the greatest idea ever, considering you face planted recently, and no matter what I tried, I couldn’t get you to wake up.”

Baekhyun patted the spot on the bed next to him. “Come here.”

Chanyeol slotted the buttons on the front of his uniform jacket. “I’m supposed to meet Kai for drills in less than twenty minutes.”

“Sit,” Baekhyun urged, savoring the picture of Chanyeol done up in his full uniform. Most of the time Chanyeol chucked his jacket to the side and made a point to lose it, or mismatched his buttons on purpose to annoy Suho. But today seemed different. Maybe it was because one of the electoral candidates was in the capital. Baekhyun knew how desperate Suho was to at least seem like he ran a competent military. Once the elections were held and they had their first democratically chosen leader, Suho’s position wouldn’t be guaranteed. So he needed to make a good show of everything now.

“What?” Chanyeol huffed out, sitting.

“I know I scared you,” Baekhyun said, reaching up to cup the side of Chanyeol’s face. “I never used to be effected by Luhan and his connection to Mama. I never used to feel the backlash of his visions. That’s scaring you probably as much as it’s scaring me. But I’m fine. Look at me. I’m fine and I’m going to stay that way.”

“You didn’t just scare me,” Chanyeol confided, pressing a kiss to Baekhyun’s palm. “When you fell, and when I couldn’t wake you up, that was the most terrified I’ve ever been in my life. I thought I was going to lose it. I have never doubted how much I love you. I’ve probably always been a little in love with you, right from the start, but I …”

“I’m sorry.” Baekhyun reached up for a fierce hug.

“I want to get married.”

“Huh?” Baekhun sat up fully on the bed and tucked his legs crossed in front of him. “You want to get married?”

“Married,” Chanyeol said firmly. “I want you to be my husband.”

“Everyone already knows we belong to each other,” Baekhyun pointed out.

“I don’t care. I want it to be official. I want to marry you.”

When Baekhyun thought about it, there was nothing else he really wanted to do with his life other than grow old with Chanyeol.

“Baekhyun? Did I just completely freak you out?” Chanyeol looked so frightened at the prospect.

“You need to get going,” Baekhyun stated, pulling Chanyeol in for a sweet, slow kiss. “Kai is waiting. And I promised to rescue Chen from his breakfast with the electoral candidate. But afterwards, tonight, we should talk more of this marriage business.”

Chanyeol ducked in for a quick peck to Baekhyun’s mouth and then shot to his feet, heading right away to the door. He called back, “Be careful while you’re out there! I’ll see you later tonight!”

Baekyhun let himself flop down on the bed and stare up at the almost gray ceiling. If he and Chanyeol were married they could move to new, bigger quarters. They’d get an extra monthly stipend. They’d be eligible adopt. They could wear matching commitment rings. They could file their yearly papers together. They’d be married.

It was an absurdly nice notion.

“You’re in a good mood,” Chen observed when Baekhyun met him just before the day stretched into the afternoon.

“I am,” Baekhyun said with a shrug. He led Chen to the vehicle he’d requested for the day. “And you seem to be in one piece. That’s a surprise, considering what you led me to believe about the candidate.”

Chen slid into the passenger seat comfortably. “Have you actually met that guy? He was all smiles to me today, but it was very clear from the start that he’d gladly rip my face off if given the opportunity. It was a lovely meal, what with all the covert insults and backhanded insinuations.”

It was going to be a long drive, but Baekhyun was more worried about remembering the way. He’d dreamed about the cave for an endless amount of nights, but once he’d actually recovered the book, his memory had started to fade almost immediately. Maybe it was a sign he wasn’t meant to go back, but he didn’t know what else to do.

“Can you blame some of K’s citizens for being a little touchy on the subject of M? Especially after the war just ended? It was a war that lasted for the better part of ten years.”

“I understand the anger,” Chen said. “I understand the resentment and the distrust. I just don’t understand the lack of want for peace. That’s what gets me. I’m telling you, that guy I spent the morning with, he would have gladly gone right back to the way things were if given the chance. He seems to be under the impression that K was winning the war.”

“Time,” Baekhyun mused. “We all just need time.”

They drove of the better part of the afternoon, and just when they were beginning to get hungry, the coast came into view.

“Still as beautiful as I--” Chen broke off suddenly.

“Want to tell me the reason you were apprehensive about coming back here?” Baekhyun said, pulling onto a road that ran parallel to the coast. There were rows of houses spread around, some more spaced out than others, but most of them looking untouched from the war.

Chen snorted, “You want me to believe that you and D.O. don’t have sleepover parties and share all the gossip that you know?”

Baekhyun challenged, “Do you and your friends have sleepovers?”

Honestly, Chen offered, “Sometimes we’d all end up in Luhan’s room for the night. Well, not any more, I’d imagine. He’s married to the king, and that would just be awkward, but before, kind of. D.O. … he didn’t …”

Baekhyun took his eyes off the road for a second to make contact with Chen’s gaze. “D.O. is exceptionally trustworthy, Chen. If you asked him not to say anything about where you were born, and exactly who you’re afraid to run into down here, he wouldn’t. He didn’t.”

Chen’s eyes narrowed. “But clearly you know.”

“There was a dossier.”

“On me?” Chen asked, startled. “K has a dossier on me?”

“Actually,” Baekhyun corrected, “when you were designated liaison, your king sent the file over. Don’t make that face at me. It’s nothing terribly exciting, I promise you. It’s mostly filled with some medical history, personal history, likes, dislikes, tendencies, behaviors, and an outline of your abilities. It only exists for us to avoid some kind of international incident, and other than myself and the commander, only a few others even know it exists, let alone have read it.”

“Oh.” Chen seemed to settle down in his seat. His eyes were locked on the road ahead, and he said, “It’s coming up. So many years, and I still remember the way home.”

Baekhyun was silent until once again Chen spoke, pointing out exactly what land belonged to his parents as they passed by.

“We can stop,” Baekhyun offered, looking over the pleasant looking house. “They might be surprised, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”

“I’ve been in the capital for a while,” Chen argued. “And Commander Suho has been very public with both my name and my face. They know I’m here by now. There’s no way they don’t. I’m not going to go begging them to take me back as their son. They didn’t mind when I left, I can’t imagine they’d care about me coming back.”

Baekhyun tried not to judge. “Okay. Tell me if you change your mind.”

They were parked a short distance away from the mouth of the cave by the time midday rolled around. It really wasn’t so much of a cave as an opening in the jagged rocks that ran along the coastline. It could only be accessed when the tide went out, and even then it meant cold, wet ankles and the fear of drowning. Baekhyun wasn’t exactly thrilled to be going back in.

“Hook this on your shirt,” Baekhyun said, handing a tiny, circular disk to Chen. “The air may not be safe if we go very deep into the passageway. It’ll light up and indicate right away if we have to leave.” Along with that he handed Chen a flashlight. “Now that I think about it, we should have brought Kai. I don’t look forward to getting trapped in that passageway by the tide if it comes down to it.”

“We’ll be fine,” Chen said, heading forward in a brazen way. “This beats sitting around, listening to exceptionally boring people talk about exceptionally boring things.”

“I think on the docket for today’s talk was the grain harvest.”

“See, boring.”

Baekhyun followed after Chen easily. “Yes, very boring. It’s only the report that’ll determine how hard of a winter we’ll have, and if M will need to render assistance, which is sure to ruffle feathers on both sides.”

“Jeeze,” Chen laughed out. “You must really like politics.”

No, Baekhyun wanted to argue. He just paid attention. At least to the important things.

“Lights on,” Chen called out once they were through the mouth and headed down a passageway that thankfully was not growing narrower.

“Maybe I should lead,” Baekhyun said, cutting in front. “There’s going to be a branch up above.”

They turned left when given the choice, and then left again, before finally another right. And then, just as the air was starting to really thin, though they were still in the clear by their indicators, they emerged into the same cavern area that Baekhyun was beginning to remember more clearly.

“I can’t see anything,” Chen said, turning his flashlight in all directions. “These beams aren’t strong enough. How did you find the book in this darkness?”

Bakehyun turned his own light up to the ceiling, checking his position in the open space. “I don’t think I had to look for it. I just instinctively knew where it was. Mama was guiding me towards it. I could have been blind and still found it.”

“I feel blind in here,” Chen commented.

Baekhyun wasn’t one to complain, but Chen was certainly right. The light from their flashlights was poor and they were hardly going to find anything with them. Maybe not even the exit if they moved any further in. They were in no danger of being forgotten by anyone at the capital, but it would still be a while before anyone came looking for them, and even longer before Kai of D.O. were able to follow the hand written directions he’d left.

“Can you light it up?”

Baekhyun turned towards the sound of his voice. He couldn’t even see Chen anymore, only the light from the small device he held. “Light up?”

“That’s your ability, isn’t it?” Chen asked. “So light this place up.”

Something deep in Baekhyun’s stomach protested right away, fear rolling through him. “I’m not supposed to,” he said instinctively, feeling almost sick at the thought. “It’s not safe. The darkness will be drawn to the light.”

Chen corrected, “It wasn’t safe. I mean, that was before the twelve of us were together and figuring this mess out. Things are different now.”

“I don’t think I should.”

Chen sighed heavily. “Then we should just head back now, before the tide catches us. I mean, I’m afraid to take another step forward. I don’t want to trip and fall and break my neck. Imagine how that’d look. I can see the headline now, ‘M dignitary involved in suspiciously odd accident in isolated location.’”

“Fine.” Baekhyun pushed down the fear. “And you might want to close your eyes. At least at first.”

It had been more than just a few years since he’d used his ability. It had been so long he barely remembered how to pull it out of him. Hiding who he was and what he could do had become second nature to him, and it felt wrong to go against that.

But it came flowing back to him like second nature after a beat of his heart, and he let it unleash around him flooding the space with the brightest of light.

“Holy ,” Chen said, voice echoing.

The cavern space was utterly beautiful. As Baekhyun radiated light, the walls shined shades of blue, purple and black, almost sparkling like stars. There were juts of rock and stone everywhere, and after a second more Baekhyun could make out the flat surface in the far corner that he’d found the book waiting for him. Only now, with the proper light, he could see a second pedestal.

It was incredibly clear now, in the light, that someone had deliberately taken care to preserve the area. The book had been left for Baekhyun to find on purpose.

“Look,” Baekhyun pointed, drawing Chen’s attention. “What is that?”

Chen followed Baekhyun over to the pedestal, remarking, “It’s a box.”

It truly was a box, the outside colored by water damage, but more important were the six symbols carved into the top.

“That’s yours,” Chen pointed out one of the symbols on the box. “And I think this is D.O.’s, and Sehun’s. Wait …why are there only six? There are twelve guardians.”

Baekhyun reached out to run his fingers over the indentations on the lid. Finding his own was easy, but Chen’s was not among them. In fact, none of the symbols belonging to anyone from M could be found on the box.

There was a soft hissing sound and the box cracked open.

Baekhyun froze, and so did Chen. Neither of them seemed to know what to do. Or how to proceed.

“Well,” Chen said finally, urging Baekhyun. “It didn’t do that when I touched it, and it’s your symbol on the box. Not mine.” Instinct made Baekhyun pull at his clothing until he could see the symbol on his skin blazing brightly, matching the one on the box lid. “Open it.”

Bakehun cracked the lid open and he was rewarded with the sight of six, nearly identical orbs half the size of his fist, all of them nestled in a soft cradle of cloth. Each bore a different symbol and color.

“What are these?” Chen asked.

“I don’t have a clue.” But Baekhyun could feel himself being pulled towards the orb with his symbol on it. His fingers couldn’t be stopped and before he could think about the consequences of his actions, he was picking the object up, reveling in how it felt lighter than air, almost as if it wasn’t in his grasp at all.

“Baekhyun,” Chen said worriedly. “Are you getting brighter?”

Baekhyun looked down at himself. In general, whenever he used his ability it seemed to reflect back on him a bit to give him a certain sort of glow. That normal glow was currently getting brighter. It was already brighter than Baekhynn had ever seen, and didn’t seem to be stopping.

“What’s going on?” Baekhyun asked, panic starting to set in.

“Stop it,” Chen urged, taking a step back. “Baekyhun. You’ve got to turn it down.” Chen was shielding his eyes as he spoke.

“I can’t,” Baekhyun gasped out. “I can’t, Chen.”

Chen reached almost desperately for him, but the second their skin connected there was a flash of lightening, and then it was raining electricity on them. Baekhyun screamed, his own voice mingling with Chen’s, and then white light took them over completely.