The Deadlands were located almost an equal distance from K and M.

Aside from the lost continent where the Forbidden City was located, the Deadlands were home to the only other place where absolutely nothing grew and no life survived. As far as D.O. knew, people kept trying to make it out there, with the promise of free land and the chance to start from fresh, but it never worked out. Some still lived on the fringes, but it was inadvisable.

And now it was possible that the Deadlands were killing people. Literally killing people.

“Is anyone else getting a really bad feeling?” Chanyeol asked, standing shoulder to shoulder with Baekhyun.

“If by bad feeling,” Kai responded, “you mean I might be getting sick sometime very soon, then you’re right. Because my stomach is upset and it’s threatening to revolt.”

D.O. gave a soft nod. He understood the feeling. They weren’t more than a few feet into the area designated as the Deadlands, and already his stomach was churning. And the survival instinct groomed into him by the war, was screaming at him to get out of there.

“What exactly are we looking for?” Baekhyun asked.

D.O. couldn’t help looking at him. He knew that both Baekhyun and Luhan had theorized, or at least hoped, that the glow to Baekhyun’s skin would wear off with time. But it had been several days now since Baekhyun had come into contact with the orb containing his symbol. And he was still glowing.

If anything, the positive to the event was that he was more powerful than he’d ever been. Not that D.O. had ever seen Baekhyun use his ability before. For the longest time D.O. had harbored a secret belief that Baekhyun wasn’t gifted by Mama at all. He and Baekhyun were friends, but they weren’t that close, and it was hard to believe someone who claimed something with no proof.

There was more than enough proof now. Enough to make D.O. feel guilty.

“Maybe the genesis of whatever this illness is,” Kai said, looking every bit like he’d rather be accompanying Luhan to the Forbidden City, and not stuck in the Deadlands. “And try not to get infected ourselves.”

“That would be high on the list,” Chanyeol said.

Shortly after that they started an uneasy trek further into the barren area. D.O. kept near to Kai as he complained about feeling ill, and held back any comments he might have had himself. He’d volunteered to come out to the Deadlands because he wanted to feel useful. But he was starting to feel bad about bringing Kai along with him.

They’d been walking for around an hour when D.O. heard Chanyeol say quietly to Baekyhun, “You shouldn’t be here. It’s not safe.”

“It’s not safe for any of us,” Baekhyun returned.

Chanyeol argued, “Kai can take you back to the capital in less than a second. I feel uneasy having you here.”

Their hands were linked together in a somewhat inconspicuous manner, and if D.O. hadn’t been watching them, he probably would have missed the gesture all together. He didn’t begin to understand what they saw in each other, they had radically different personalities to begin with, but when they were together, there was something that seemed natural. Maybe Baekhyun needed Chanyeol to spice up his life a little, and Chanyeol needed Baekhyun certainly for the balance he brought.

Chanyeol bumped his shoulder into Baekhyun’s. “You’re a beacon of light, and we know that the darkness is attracted to the light. We’re maybe going into their territory. That’s putting you in the kind of danger that makes me feel sicker than this place does.”

“And what if I stayed back?” Baekhyun challenged. “What if I went to the capital like this? I’d still be a danger to those around me, and I won’t put innocent lives at risk. I’d rather be out here, with you to watch my back.”

D.O. watched Chanyeol pull up Baehyun’s hand for a quick kiss to the skin. “Did I mention how awesome it is holding your hand like this?”

“You guys are making me sick,” Kai called out, hands anchored behind his head as he walked along. “Could you be any more domestic?” D.O. laughed at his friend’s words. There was no bite to them, and Kai obviously just enjoyed teasing them for the principle of it.

“Stop being jealous,” Chanyeol called over his shoulder. “Just because Baekhyun wants to hold my hand and give me an energy boost.”

D.O. couldn’t say that he hadn’t been tempted to pass by Baekhyun, accidentally brush their skin together, and get a boost of his own. He’d also been tempted to go for his designated orb several times. At least before Commander Suho put them under lock and key to dissuade anyone from attempting it. The draw to power was unlike anything he’d ever felt before.

“Hey,” Baekhyun called out, pointing with his free hand. “Look ahead!”

Just over in the distance, maybe less than half an hour’s walk away, was a visible dip in the landscape. The path in front of them seemed to be leading to a valley. It looked an ominous place enough to look.

“Agreed?” Kai asked, looking among them.

Chanyeol gave a pull to Baekhyun’s hand and said, “Come on. The sooner we check this place out, the sooner we can go home.”

After they’d started walking again, the valley getting closer with every step they took, D.O. found himself sliding up next to Kai and apologizing softly, “I’m sorry I volunteered you to come with us. I know you didn’t want to.”

Kai shrugged, his hands in his pocket. “It’s for the greater good. And for the record, Baekhyun might feel better with Chanyeol watching his back, but I feel better watching yours.”

D.O. felt a rush of pleasure at their friendship. “But still. If I hadn’t forced you into this, you might have had a shot at getting to accompany the king’s husband. The king made him take an extra person in the end, didn’t he? On top of Lay and Xiumin.”

“Yeah,” Kai eased out, his voice going stale. “Chen was excused from his duties in K for Luhan’s trip to the Forbidden City. But I don’t think the king would have been all that happy with me going anyway. He might trust Luhan, but he doesn’t trust me.”

D.O. shook his head. “They’re married now. We should be beyond that. You know how to keep your hands to yourself when you have to.”

Something akin to a very guilty look flashed across Kai’s face and D.O. wanted to groan.

“Define keeping my hands to myself.”

“Tell me you’re being careful, okay? Please. Kai.”

Kai pulled a hand from his pocket, Kai slapped it on D.O.’s shoulder. “I’m not doing anything to risk the peace between K and M. Anyway, Luhan won’t let anything happen between us anymore. Believe me. I’ve tried.”

“Then why do you seem so okay with the current situation? The person you claim to be in love with is married to someone else.” D.O. took a quick look ahead to make sure that both Chanyeol and Baekhyun were out of earshot. D.O. trusted Baekhyun with some secrets, but he was too loyal to Commander Suho to be trusted with anything about Luhan. At least anything that could potentially compromise Kai.

There actually was a little pep in his step as Kai said, “Luhan sees the future all the time. He said it changes all the time. And in at least one possibility, we’re together. We get to be together.”

“Just one?”

“One is enough,” Kai said confidently. “And between you and me, that’s the one I’m gunning for.”

They reached the low valley before the noon hour, and as they carefully made their way down the pathway, Chanyeol called out, “I don’t remember either King Kris or Commander Suho actually giving us orders about what to do if we find the bad guys here.”

D.O. called to him, “I think the universally acceptable behavior will be for us to take down any threat we come across. Right?”

Kai flashed them a thumbs up. “The last victim of what no one is calling the start of a potential plague among those of us with gifts, was twelve. I’m taking personal offense against a child being targeted. And if I find something to take down, I’m doing it. Regardless if we have orders or not.”

At the bottom of the black charred valley, and under the heat of the bright sun, D.O. could see a long fissure running along the cracked, broken ground. It seemed to stretch for around a quarter mile, and was gaping open in some areas.

“What is that?” D.O. asked, the lot of them keeping a respectable distance away. “It’s an opening, right?”

“In the ground,” Baekhyun said with a nod. “But I looked at the geological charts we have of this area right before we left. I remember seeing this valley on the charts, but not this.”

Chanyeol said, “Maybe the area has experienced some seismic activity lately. M’s been having earthquakes. K’s been having dust storms. Maybe the Deadlands have been getting some of that.”

“Alright,” Kai announced, turning to face the others. “I’ll go check it out. You three stay here until I give you the all clear.”

“Be careful,” D.O. said, feeling a spike of anxiety. “And get out of there if you get even the slightest bad feeling.”

Kai snorted, “Too late for bad feelings.”

With complete silence between them, they watched as Kai popped out of sight next to them, and reappeared in the distance, near the cracked opening. He could be seen peering down into the opening, pausing, and then he was waving at them, gesturing them over.

“What do you see?” D.O. asked as they made their way over to Kai. He wasn’t eager to take a look down the fissure himself.

“Can’t see much,” Kai said simply. “That’s why we need Baekhyun.”

“Light it up?” Baekhun asked, holding up a fist, his fingers folding together in an even brighter show of his ability than normal.

Baekhyun had said that he felt stronger than he ever had in his life, and D.O. believed him in the way he harnessed his ability so easily. But now he felt almost overwhelmed as light exploded everywhere, blinding them almost instantly.

“Sorry!” Baekhyun shouted. The light reeled back in a second later, still bright, but manageably more so. “The power is a little tricky to control.”

D.O. blinked harshly against the light, then grew accustomed to it. “Baekhyun,” he eased out, “You’re as bright as the sun.” And it was odd, but with Baekhyun exerting so much power, D.O. could feel the rumbling of his own spiking to life. He was clearly being effected by Baekhyun, and the others must have been too.

“Holy crap,” Kai said, jerking D.O.’s attention to him. “.”

D.O. leaned over the edge of the fissure and looked down.

A normal fissure would have shown jagged, rocky edges where the earth had broken apart. And even with the light from Baekhyun, eventually it would have dissolved into a blackness too far down to make out anything in. But regardless, the inside would have been still, lifeless and quiet.

Voice at a whisper, Chanyeol asked, “Are you guys hearing what I’m hearing?”

Whispering. There was whispering, the harsh kind that made D.O. want to claw at his ears.

He didn’t know which was worse. The vile, terrifying whispering, or the mass of blackness moving in the fissure. It was best described as a blob, almost like jelly, and it was lapping up at the sides of the fissure in the ground.

“What the hell is that?” Kai asked D.O.. “What is that moving around?”

Chanyeol leaned as far over as he could manage. “Is the whispering coming from that thing?”

“I think so,” Kai said slowly. “But what is it?”

“Darkness?” D.O. offered. “Shadows.”

“Don’t touch anything,” Baekhyun warned. He added, “In fact, I’ll breathe easier if you all take a step away.

D.O. wrenched is eyes way from the horrible sight in front of him and turned to Baekhyun. There was a question on the tip of his tongue when he froze, getting a better look at Baekhyun.

“Don’t move,” D.O. said roughly, hoping the force in his voice would come through. He reached for Kai, pulling him around towards Baekhyun. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

“What?” Baekhyun asked, genuinely unsure about what the commotion was.

“Chanyeol,” Kai hissed at him. “Look at Baekhyun.”

“You guys are scaring me,” Baekhyun said quietly. “What’s wrong?”

With a long finger, D.O. pointed down to Baekhyun’s feet. With the brightness from the sun and Baekhyun’s ability combined, they were all giving off strong shadows that mirrored them perfectly. Except for Baekhyun. Baekhyun had two.

Gritting his teeth, Kai commented, “Aren’t we all glad there are four of us here.”

“You’re a trouble magnet,” D.O. threw back at him.

“Guys!” Baekhyun shouted. “Focus. And get ready.”

D.O. had to jump back as Chanyeol burst into flames, his phoenix manifesting before their eyes and shooting up into the air. “Oh, I’m more than ready.”

The best thing about the lot of them, maybe more than any other group of people D.O. had ever worked with, was that they were a single, cohesive unit when they fought. They moved in perfect synch, sensing the actions of each other, and to a scary degree, they were flawless.

“I’m the bait!” Chanyeol shouted, and then he was raging even hotter than ever before, singeing some of the baby hairs along D.O.’s arm.

“Got it!” D.O. rallied back, stamping his foot to the ground as hard as he could. He could feel it respond immediately to him, rolling them all into new positions. Fiercely concentrating, D.O. braced a hand down on the ground for better control, grinning as Baekhyun was flung up an off his feet with a surprised shout.

But Kai was there a second later, teleporting to his side, hooking an arm around Baekhyun’s waist and pulling him free from the shadow that had reared up into a somewhat solid form taller than the both of them.

“Chanyeol!” D.O. shouted, catching sight of movement from the fissure from the corner of his eye. “To your left!”

In a matter of seconds they were surrounded by tall, semisolid forms of blackness.

“Don’t let them touch you!” Kai said, dropping Baekhyun off near Chanyeol’s side.

“Wasn’t planning on it!” D.O. replied.

Chanyeol, as far as D.O. could tell, was absolutely magnificent. He was in his element, flinging fire and brimstone at their attackers. His phoenix soared around, sweeping down in low arcs to cut through the shadow forms with a screech.

And the moment that Chanyeol and Baekhyun begun working together, boosting each other, using their abilities in tandem, the destruction was twice as effective. D.O. had never quite seen anything like it.

“Head’s up!” Kai said, pulling D.O. roughly to the side and teleporting them over fifty feet away. Where he’d been standing D.O. could see a shadow folding in on the spot. “Pay attention!”

“I’m fine,” D.O. shot back, a little embarrassed at losing his focus for a second. He reached down for his ability once more, bringing up a wall of dirt and ground to block the next shadow that attacked them.

It was even more evident as they fought that Kai was the most vulnerable of them all. He could easily teleport himself away and to safety, but he had almost no offensive capabilities. At least none that would be effective against this new enemy they’d never fought before. He was a sitting duck in a lot of ways, and that made D.O,’s stomach roll over a little. It was up to him to keep Kai safe, more than go on the offensive.

The shadows, or whatever they seemed to be--formless figures shrouded in black, were starting to multiply. More were coming up from the fissure, and the ones that were already on the surface were easily breaking themselves apart into separate forms.

“We need a plan!” Kai shouted at Baekhyun. “You two need to light it up!”

Hadn’t Baekhyun and Luhan said once that the shadows were only susceptible to light? Baekhyun was all light, and Chanyeol was at least some form of it. It seemed like a decent plan to D.O..

“Keep them off our backs for a second,” Baekhyun requested, snatching at Chanyeol’s nearby hand, likely for a power boost. Initially D.O. had been convinced that Chanyeol was feeding off Baekhyun for the boost, but it looked now more like they were feeding each other.

Kai shot himself and D.O. over to near where Chanyeol and Baekhyun were stationed, yelling, “Make it fast. We’ll do what we can.”

It was easier said than done. Kai could move them around fast enough, diverting attention to themselves almost wholly, but D.O. was starting to feel fatigued, manipulating the ground for so long. And there was something nagging at the back of his mind every time he pulled at his ability. It felt much different to manipulate the Deadlands ground--harder, and it was straining him faster than normal.

“There they go,” Kai breathed out, Chanyeol’s fire sweeping out at the shadows, aided and pushed along by Baekhyun’s light.

The joy was short lived as a sudden shudder under their feet knocked Kai and D.O. down. Immediately D.O. shouted, “That wasn’t me!” He hadn’t been responsible for the violent shudder under them, but he could feel the ground straining and fighting to stabilize. Until it stopped shaking they couldn’t get up, no matter how hard D.O. tried.

“What’s going on?” Kai shouted.

“Baekhyun!”

D.O. ripped his eyes over to the pair across the way and was just in time to see a shadow form speeding towards Baekhyun. Kai was too dazed to teleport fast enough hand D.O. felt himself seize up in fear.

But then Chanyeol was there, throwing himself at Baekhyun, knocking him out of the way and taking the blunt hit himself.

“Kai,” D.O. screamed, shaking at Kai’s arm, “we have to get over there. We have to get them and get out of here!” It had been a mistake to try and stay and fight. They were obviously in well over their heads and they were on the losing side of the battle. D.O. didn’t even know if it could be called a battle. The second they managed to down one of the shadows it reformed itself, usually doubling in number.

“You don’t have to tell me twice!”

The ground split open between them before Kai could do anything. D.O. barely managed to roll away in time, shouting an obscenity as more shadows leaped up from the ground, blocking himself from Kai.

“Chanyeol!” D.O. managed to sit up, using the ground to boost himself. He could just make out Baekhyun crouched over the still and silent form of Chanyeol.

There was nothing but sheer insanity around them, worse than any battlefield D.O. had seen, and so utterly confusing.

“D.O.!” Baekhyun called out for him, folded over Chanyeol almost desperately. “We need you!”

“What’s wrong?” D.O. called out, throwing up a wall of earth to protect himself from an incoming hit. He searched frantically for Kai but couldn’t see him. “Kai! Where are you!”

“Chanyeol!” Baekhyun screamed again, shaking Chanyeol who wasn’t responding. Of a bigger concern was the fact that his phoenix had disappeared, and the fiery bird had been providing the extra support they couldn’t afford to lose.

“I’m here!” Kai’s voice rang out from a bit away, and that was when D.O. realized Kai was literally pulling himself from the new fissure that had cracked open. He had a bright red, angry looking wound across his forehead, and appeared to be dazed, but he was moving and breathing and at least D.O. could be thankful for that..

“Are you okay?” D.O. asked, crawling his way to Kai, barely mustering up enough strength to use his ability to protect himself. He reached a hand out to Kai and pulled him fully up. Then he was shouting, “Chanyeol’s down! I don’t know what’s wrong with him. We have to get out of here.”

“I feel sick,” Kai ground out, and his eyes were unfocused.

D.O. caught his chin, bringing the dirt and dust around them to block out everything. He wouldn’t be able to hold it forever, and it was leaving both Chanyeol and Baekhyun to the wolves, but Kai had always been D.O.’s main priority. He always would be.

“What?” Kai asked with a wince, trying to pull away.

“You’ve got a concussion,” D.O. said definitively. “You can’t focus. Your eyes … damn.”

Weakly, Kai protested, “I’m okay.”

The shadows broke through the barricade a moment after that, sending D.O. sprawling out closer to Baekhyun and Chanyeol, and Kai away from the three of them.

“What’s wrong with Chanyeol?” D.O. asked, close enough for Baekhyun to hear him properly. Baekhyun was still light up brilliantly, and it was enough at the moment for the shadows to keep their distance. They were obviously drawn to him, almost obsessively, but they couldn’t get close enough to attack. If D.O. stayed close too, he was protected as well.

Kai appeared next to them almost awkwardly, collapsing down into the dirt with a gasp. He was breathing hard, sweating heavily and had his eyes closed.

“We need to get out of here,” Baekhyun said, his eyes wide with fear. “Chanyeol needs medical attention. And by the looks of it, so does Kai.” Baekhyun reached out to tap Kai’s cheek. “Are you with us still?”

“I’m good.” Kai pressed himself up to his elbows.

“My light won’t keep them at bay forever,” Baekhyun said. “I’m going to dim very shortly. They’re too strong. But I can hold them back long enough for Kai to get Chanyeol and you out of here, D.O..”

“Excuse me?” D.O. demanded. “We’re all getting out of here.”

Baekhyun shouted angrily, “Look around. We obviously woke something up. And I’m drawing them to me like moths to a flame. I can’t go back with you. At least not until I can get my ability to quiet down. If I go with you, I’ll just pull the shadows with me wherever I go, and that means risking innocent lives. I won’t do that. I want you three to go and leave me here.”

“Absolutely not!” D.O. protested right away. “We’re not leaving you behind!”

“And I’m not compromising Chanyeol’s safety!”

Kai gave a quiet groan and D.O. a finger at him for Baekhyun to see. “Kai’s got a concussion. We’re just wasting time here. Who knows how long he’ll even be conscious.”

“Leave me,” Baekhyun said, almost pleading. “I can’t let anyone get hurt because I’m a beacon. Luhan knows what to do if I die. He’ll be able to guide you all. He’s the Oracle. I’m only the Scribe.”

There was no other choice to be made, and as much as D.O. hated the idea that the end was coming, he knew it was the only option. “Kai!” He snapped his fingers in front of Kai’s face, drawing his attention. “We only have a few seconds left. Can you focus enough to get a lock on M’s palace? They have the superior medical center and they can help you and Chanyeol.”

“I’m starting to lose it,” Baekhyun warned.

The shadows were managing to inch closer as D.O. reached over and placed Chanyeol’s limp hand in Kai’s loose grip. “Hold on tight to him. Don’t you let him go for anything, Kai. And get him back to the palace.”

Baekhyun flinched. “What about you?”

“Kai’s hurt,” D.O. reasoned with a resolute shrug. “He’s drained and at a disadvantage. The lighter his load to teleport the better. And don’t you think for one second that I’m willing to leave you here to die.”

“So you’ll stay and die with me?” Bakehyun demanded. “How does that make sense?”

“I don’t have any plans to die here, thank you very much.” Then, without giving Baekhyun any more room for disagreement, D.O. caught Kai’s chin in his hand and told him firmly, “Get the lock in your head. Get it and don’t let it go no matter what. Tell me when you have it.”

Kai squeezed his eyes shut, hand tightening around Chanyeol’s. Then he said, “Okay. I can see … Luhan’s room. The one with the tiles on the ceiling. The mosaic.”

That didn’t seem like the best place to teleport, but considering the concussion Kai had, and the familiarity with Luhan’s room, it was probably better than he should have dared to hope for. It would do.

“Good,” D.O. praised, taking a last long look at Kai. His plan certainly wasn’t to die, and he would fight until his last breath, but if something went wrong, now could be the last time he ever saw his best friend. The person that he loved more than anyone else in the world. The only person he’d ever trusted with all his secrets. His brother.

“Keep it locked,” D.O. urged. “And when you’re ready, go.”

“D.O.--” Kai tried, seemingly realizing who he’d be leaving behind.

“Go!”

D.O. swallowed down his fear as Kai and Chanyeol blinked out of view.

“Well,” Baekhyun said. “I hope you have a very good reason for doing that. Considering you told me your plan is not to die.”

The shadows were closer than ever as D.O. reached out and clasped Baekhyun’s hand in his own. “You and Chanyeol have been channeling your power between each other over the past few days, boosting one or the other, right? You can take from others, Bakehyun. It’s your second ability. The orb didn’t give you that ability, you already had it.”

Baekhyun startled, fear on his face. “I don’t--”

“Don’t be ashamed or afraid of what you can do,” D.O. barked out. “That ability is about to save our lives … hopefully. If you can do it. You can do it, right?”

There wasn’t time for D.O. to tell his friend how he’d worked out Baekhyun’s second ability. There wasn’t even time for them to mention it again. There was only the threat of death and the shadows closing in.

Plus the desperate hope that Baekhyun would come through for them.

Baekhyun gave shaky a nod. “I’ve always been able to do it, but the orb has been helping. And anyone else who touches theirs is going to be able to do it for a short amount of time, too.”

“Then we’re going to make our final stand here. You’re going to take everything I have, and everything you’ve got, smash it together, and let off a light bomb. Yes, I know that sounds stupid, but we’re about to die here, and stupid is all we have.”

“That is stupid,” Baekhyun said bluntly. He squeezed D.O.’s fingers. “But it’s a good stupid. Let’s go for it.”

“And,” D.O. added, “if this works and we don’t completely end up killing ourselves, you might be burnt out enough to not draw those moths.”

Baekyhun arched an eyebrow. “Big, ugly, dangerous shadow moths.”

“Exactly.” D.O. cracked a smile. “So how about we get going?”

“This will hurt,” Bakehyun warned, surprising D.O.. “Chanyeol likes to pretend like it doesn’t when I draw from him, but I know it does. Or at the least you’ll feel some discomfort. Okay?”

Discomfort was an understatement. D.O. could feel it the second Baekhyun started to leech away his power. It burned down into his core and made him feel like he couldn’t breathe. It felt like everything that made him exactly who he was, was being stolen from him. Was this how normal people lived? Was this what it was to not have an ability?

“Cover your eyes,” Baekhyun whispered, and there was barely enough time to get his lids shut before the world was engulfed in a white inferno.

The truth actually was, no matter D.O. had said about having no plans to die, that he’d kind of expected to. He’d figured going out in a blaze of glory, and if taking some of those shadow bastards with him was about the best he could do, then he was okay with that.

So to find himself alive, albeit feeling extremely weak, was a surprise.

His hand was still encapsulated by Baekhyun’s and he gave it a soft squeeze the second he had the energy for it, feeling like he’d been sick for a long time. Like he was just recovering, and even just being awake was a chore.

Baekhyun squeezed back.

“We’re alive.”

D.O. barely recognized his own voice and gave a rough cough.

“We are,” Baekhyun replied. “I think.”

Taking in a shuddering breath, the kind that only had him coughing again, he reluctantly voiced, “I think I’m blind. Baekhyun. I think your light blinded me.” It was only just begging to dawn on him that he couldn’t see anything. His eyes were open, he was blinking madly, but there was nothing in front of him but darkness. He was blind.

Baekhyun was silent for a minute more, then said, “If you’re blind, then so am I.”

That flash of light and power from Baekhyun, with his own strength given freely, was the brightest thing D.O. had ever seen in his life. It had been brighter than when he’d been young and stared up at the sun, and a hundred times brighter than Chanyeol whenever his phoenix raged. The explosion had robbed him of his sight, but before that had happened, it had been breathtakingly beautiful.

“No, wait.” Baekhyun said, startling D.O. a little. “Let go of my hand for a second.”

D.O. had to fling his fingers out from Baekhyun’s, remarking, “I can barely feel my hand.” It was so hard to breathe, like the air was thin and getting worse by the second.

“D.O.,” Baekhyun said, and D.O. could hear him moving around in the slightest. “Reach up.”

Without hesitation D.O. propelled a hand up, straining with the effort it took. And he met with … a hard surface.

Baekhyun gave a sudden laugh, sounding almost crazy.

D.O. demanded, “What’s so funny?”

“We’re not blind,” Baekhyun said, laughing again. “We’re just underground. Can you feel what’s above us? That’s dirt. Compacted dirt.”

D.O. felt around, trying not to get his hopes up. But a few more seconds revealed that Baekhyun had been right. They were in some kind of air pocket, trapped underneath the ground.

It was D.O.’s turn to laugh as he said, “You’re right. You’re right. We can’t see anything because we’re completely cut off from topside.”

Baekhyun reasoned, “We must have shifted the ground completely underneath us when I unleashed the extent of my ability. And I’m willing to bet that your connection with the land is the only thing that saved us, creating this air pocket.”

“Small favors,” D.O. huffed out. He pushed harder on the ground above him, but it refused to budge even an inch. “We must be pretty deep. More than a couple of feet. That’s for sure.”

“Can you get it to move with your gift?”

D.O. didn’t have to try to know the answer already. He confessed, “I gave you everything I had. And by the way, it hurt like hell. I can’t even grab at my ability.” He said it like that for lack of a better way, because he could feel his connection to the soil under his skin like it always resided, but every time he tried to harness it, it slipped through his fingers like water. “It’s still there, I can feel it. I just can’t use it.”

Once more Baekhyun found his hand and held it tightly. “Better than me. I think … D.O., my ability might be gone completely. I can’t feel it. It’s like it was never there to begin with. I don’t have any light left, and I can’t even feel your power.”

“Don’t panic.”

“I’m not,” Baekhyun defended. “But it feels sort of like losing a limb. It’s more than uncomfortable.”

D.O. let himself relax against the dirt he was laying on. “So that .”

“It does.”

“But we’re alive,” he reminded.

D.O. liked to imagine that Baekhyun was cracking a smile as he responded, “There is that. And that isn’t something small.”

When their air was starting to run thin, the affects being felt with every breath they drew in, they united to push up against the ceiling of their pocket with every bit of strength they had. Practically yelling at the effort, D.O. and Baekhyun eventually broke through, and blessed, beautiful sunlight beat down on them.

“Fresh air,” Baekhyun squeaked out, taking a deep breath. “Never smelled, tasted or looked this good.”

When they’d both pulled themselves free of the ground, the wake of Baekhyun’s destruction was something great to behold.

Baekhyun asked almost desperately, “Weren’t we down in a valley?”

They had been at least. They’d been lower than sea level for sure, with barren mounds of land surrounding them. But all of that was gone. Now they were on a flat, level terrain with no distinguishing landmarks.

“Where’d that fissure go?” D.O. inquired, searching the ground. They weren’t up for another fight in any way. “Where those shadows sprung up from.”

“It’s gone,” Baekhyun said. Then he cocked his head, and asked, “Do you think those shadows actually came from that crack? Or do you think they were just hiding down there?”

“I don’t know,” D.O. said with an honest shrug. “But I’m hoping they just thought they found the perfect place to hide. Because I looked down that fissure and it seemed to go on for ages. If that’s where they were coming from … they could be all the way down to the planet’s core.” It was a frightful idea, but it would also explain why the planet itself was experiencing so many extreme occurrences. And why Mama was so desperate.

Baekhyun spun in a circle, looking around. “I think it’s gone, D.O. When that blast of power happened it upturned everything, and I think the fissure was covered up. We might have actually bought ourselves some extra time.” Certainly the shadows hadn’t been dealt with that easily, but time was something D.O. could believe they had. Even if it was only a bit.

“Okay,” D.O. said slowly, thankful at least for that much. “But look around. Take a long hard look around one more time.”

Baekhyun craned his neck. “What exactly am I looking for?”

“Well,” D.O. drawled out, “Or teleporter Kai isn’t with us anymore, and we’ve completely leveled the landscape around us. Which way did we come from? Which way is home?”

The silence on Baekhyun’s end was telling.

D.O. shielded his eyes against the sun and said, “We have to be really careful where we go from here. We’ll die wandering around the Deadlands if we go further in instead of out. We have no supplies and no protection from the sun.”

“We could just wait here,” Baekhyun said. “Kai could tell them roughly where we were.”

“He’ll tell them to look for a valley,” D.O. argued. “Nothing he tells them now will be of any use. They won’t be able to find us, and we can’t stay here hoping that they will. We have to help ourselves.”

“And how are we going to do that?”

D.O. made a face. “I haven’t figured that part out yet.”

Baekhyun tipped his head backwards, obviously trying to pinpoint the position of the sun. “Well, we need to figure it out fast. Because it’s going to get hotter very soon, and I’m willing to bet on my life that there are plenty more shadows hiding out here in the Deadlands. I don’t think I need to tell you we can’t take another hit like we just had.”

“I know,” D.O. sighed.

“So lets get a plan going,” Baekhyun decided, hands on his hips. He paused a moment later, though, and questioned, “But first tell me how you knew I had a second ability. No one has ever been able to guess that, though I’ll admit it was completely out of control after my contact with the orb.”

D.O. nodded and wiped the back of his hand against his forehead, already sweating from the heat. “We get out of here and I’ll tell you anything you want to know. Now help me figure out which was is North. I’ve got an idea.”