The first person Minseok saw was Baro, which threw him into a panic. Scurrying to distance himself from the man, Minseok nearly fell off of the cot he was lying on.

“Calm down.” Baro didn’t move away, didn’t feel any of the kind of panic Minseok did. He answered with an even tone, a rather serene expression on his face. It unnerved Minseok further.

“Where am I?” Minseok looked around the room, realizing he was likely not going to escape if Baro was staring at him without a care in the world. No, he had likely been taken. Where, he did not know.

“Among friends.” Baro answered, further upsetting Minseok.

“Where is Luhan? Where is Doctor Park?” Minseok glanced around, he was in a small, windowless room. The place looked downright military, judging by the cot, single chair, and miniscule other items that bore the unmistakable stamp of the government’s issue.

Baro sighed. “They escaped, rather unfortunately.”

Minseok looked towards the door. It was a heavy metal door, likely reinforced. Could he use his powers and stop Baro, making a dash for the door in the process? But then what about what lay outside the door.

“Don’t think about using your powers here, they won’t work anyway.” Baro informed Minseok, as though he could read his mind.

“What are you planning on doing with me?” Minseok considered he was likely going to be killed. Yet he was curious. If they wanted to kill him why did they take him alive?

“Planning?” Baro tilted his head to the side as if he was considering the question, putting much thought into the answer, “We are planning on telling you the truth.”

Minseok wasn’t sure that he liked the sound of the truth, though he had little option but to listen.

***

Luhan was pacing again, frustrated. Now that he understood that something was off about their situation – something beyond the already unbelievable reality of the fact they were fighting against very extraterrestrial beings- that Doctor Park was likely hiding something – he wanted to leave more than ever.

Luhan had hoped that Jongdae, Yixing, Kyungsoo, and Jongin would readily agree. They needed to get out of the safe house, away from Doctor Park, and find Minseok. Yet the four men were cautious.

“I don’t think it will be that easy.” Jongdae sighed “Escaping.”

“Doctor Park is more powerful than we think.” Jongin stated “He will stop us without another thought if we are bold about our wish to leave.”

Luhan had considered throwing out his alliance with the four men alongside any kind of relationship he had formed with the others. Were they going to tip toe around the fact Minseok was missing? The fact that something was wrong yet no one wanted to move to swiftly? He was frustrated.

So he made his own plan. Would it be foolish? No more foolish than staying put, knowing that Minseok could be injured, god forbid even dead, and he was presently feeling as though the safe house was actually an elaborate prison. No bars to keep him in, only the aura of Doctor Park, with his slang words and unknowably immense power. What if he talked to him, what if he told him, boldly about his intentions? Luhan decided he had little to lose, not when time was of the essence.

Luhan found Doctor Park in the living area on the first floor. He was eating an apple, casually flipping through channels on the television. The sight further enraged Luhan.

“I need to talk to you.” Luhan started, staring at the older man with a mix of contempt and suspicion.

Doctor Park patted the space next to him on the couch “Take a seat brother, what is on your mind?”

What is on his mind?! Luhan was going to have to attempt to proceed with caution, because at the moment he felt very much like punching Doctor Park square in the nose.

***

“Ah, here he is.” Baro smiled as the door to the room opened. Minseok strained to see who was entering. He felt weak, likely from whatever had knocked him out on the highway. To his surprise, and partially to his horror, Kang Joon walked in the door.

“An old friend, I see.” Kang Joon singsonged, almost skipping up to where Minseok sat.

“How….how – how are you here?” Minseok clearly recalled Kang Joon being left in the cave, when Doctor Park had seemingly done something to him. Minseok had thought he was dead, though he did have that dream. Yet somehow he hadn’t thought the dream would manifest in the form of Kang Joon himself, staring at him, a broad smile on his face.

“How are you here?” Kang Joon countered.

Minseok wasn’t sure how to answer the question, so he didn’t. Kang Joon didn’t seem to mind his lack of an answer, instead he clasped his hands together and jumped up a bit in show of what seemed like delight. “Now that you are here, we can talk!”

“Talk..about what?” Minseok was afraid. Kang Joon did not seem like the most lucid individual. Hadn’t he spouted something about being alive a hundred years ago? Wasn’t he also Doctor Park’s son, or at least he thought he was? Why was he with Baro?

“How my Father has so cleverly tricked you. And how we are going to stop him.” Kang Joon moved his head back and forth like he was moving to a strange tune that only he could hear “You are going to stop him.”

“I…am?” Minseok suddenly missed the days when he was accused of being nothing more than a figment of Luhan’s imagination.

***

Luhan cleared his throat. “Doctor, I want to leave.”

Doctor Park rolled his eyes “We have been over this brother. You can’t just walk out of here.”

Luhan tried to muster all of the courage he could, continuing “Why? Does it have to do with Kang Joon?”

Doctor Park visibly paled, but recovered quickly. “Yo, what are you talking about? Did you hit your head that hard?”

“I know something isn’t right here, and I want to go. I need to find Minseok.” Luhan stated firmly “I don’t care what it is. I don’t need to know, I just need Minseok back.”

Doctor Park laughed, loudly, his body shaking with his mirth. “All you need is love, right brother?”

Luhan stood, deciding his conversation was done. Doctor Park was only going to laugh at him, try to dissuade him, accuse him of foolishness based on an injury. He didn’t need to stay, listen to it, act like the others and wait for something worse to happen before he took action. “I am going.”

“Are you?” Doctor Park stopped laughing.

***

“I like to tell stories. Do you want to hear one?” Kang Joon asked, Baro grinning ear to ear as he watched Minseok squirm.

Minseok didn’t say yes, didn’t say no, he just watched.

“Good. Good. You know my Father? Do you know what he has done to you?” Kang Joon walked to the wall, leaning against it casually he smirked “Do you know he lied to you – to use you. To use you for his own plan?”

“What plan?” Minseok was interested, he couldn’t hide that fact.

“There isn’t anything coming for earth. No…no bad guys. No bad guys to fight.” Kang Joon paused as if he was waiting for Minseok to panic, to exclaim his anger. When he did nothing Kang Joon continued “The only bad guys are Dad. And that Ryohei.” Kang Joon’s face suddenly contorted in anger, he raised his fist, shaking it “Bad men. Very bad men.”

“What do you mean?” Minseok hadn’t felt entirely at ease with Doctor Park, but he had still believed him to a certain degree. How could he not? He had enabled Minseok to become flesh and blood, he had acted as though he truly cared for the twelve of them.

“My Father named that stupid empire after a Kpop Idol. You didn’t notice? Haha.” Kang Joon laughed loudly, his moods seeming to change in a few seconds “Taeyang. Don’t you think it is funny?”

Minseok didn’t think it was funny, not really. Not if Doctor Park had toyed with them like that.

“And THEY. Dad and the others, they want to come here, they want to take it over. Are you afraid?”

“They want earth?” Minseok couldn’t dismiss it, not entirely “But why?”

“Their planet is slowly being destroyed.” Baro chimed in “Has been for centuries. They are the ones that decimated their own kind for the Red Shifting technology. Soon they won’t even be able to live on the planet, not even underground. They need a new home.”

“And they want earth to be that place.” Minseok felt sick.

“Papa is a bad man.” Kang Joon shook his head vigorously, like he could will away the fact his Father was the one making such dire plans “They want you all gone. All of you. All of your people. And they want you to help.”

“So we are their tool to destroy mankind?” Minseok wasn’t sure how that was possible “Don’t they have powers too? Wouldn’t Ryohei and the others be able to do so without enlisting our help?”

“Except they need to keep you under them. Or their plans might not succeed. What happens if they attacked and left everyone on earth that could fight them?” Baro explained.

“Then why awaken our powers?” Minseok couldn’t make sense of it.

“So that you could be their soldiers. Why get their own hands dirty when they could have all of you do it for them.” Baro looked to Kang Joon “Thankfully Kang Joon has been in contact with us for years. Without him we may never have learned about Doctor Park’s plans.”

“I hate my Papa. I hate him, hate him, hate him.” Kang Joon repeated over and over. Minseok recalled that he didn’t seem to really hate him on the planet, even relishing in the fact his Father had come for a visit. So why was he in that cave to begin with?

“Papa trapped me there. He found out. He found out. But I escaped. Kang Joon is smarter than Papa.” Kang Joon puffed out his chest “And now we will stop him. Friend?”

Minseok didn’t want to confirm a friendship, an alliance, or anything else. Because in the end, who could he believe? What could he believe?

***

Sehun was sick of sleeping. He had never thought that would be possible, not after feeling so fatigued with the events of the days past. Yet, he didn’t want to sleep any more. The rest of the guys were passed out, even Sunny and Min Woo were curled up in a corner. Apparently safe houses were really just places to sleep, idling away the time until they could emerge from hiding.

He decided to watch some television, perhaps find out more of what the newscasters were saying regarding the newly found terrorists. It was a sickening thought, what had occurred, what would probably occur in the future. Yet he couldn’t help but be strangely fascinated by it all.

Sehun paused in the doorway to the living room, stopping when he realized the room was occupied. Doctor Park was there, so was Luhan. Sehun was about to say something, ask them what they were doing, but then he noticed something was wrong.

Luhan didn’t look well. He looked..dazed. Sitting on the couch, he was staring straight forward, Doctor Park standing in front of him. Sehun ducked back into the hall, not wanting to be seen. He felt as though he had walked into something he shouldn’t have, further confirmed when he heard Doctor Park speak.

“You have never met Kim Minseok. You have no thoughts of leaving. You have no thoughts of Kang Joon. I am the only one you can trust.”

Was he…could he be..Sehun remembered clearly what Sunny had said Doctor Park’s power was. He could shape, change, form memories. A rather dangerous set of talents, yet a set of talents that Sehun didn’t think he would see in action – not on one of them anyway.

Sehun continued to listen, feeling a chill overcome him as Luhan finally spoke “The only one I can trust is Doctor Park. I have never met Kim Minseok. I have never..”

Sehun ducked back down the hall. He needed to wake Tao up and tell him what he had witnessed.

--------

a/n- Ohh, this is…oh. So Doctor Park isn’t a nice, friendly sort? And who can Minseok trust?

Sorry again for such a gap between updates. This fic seems to be one that I write slowly any more. I am forever thankful people are giving it a lot of love and being patient as I update. Thank you so much! <3 LC

PS- There are five chapters left, so we are nearing the end.