Listen to Battle Scars by Lupe Fiasco : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QMJDUOXQ10

                                                                                     BAEKHYUN

"We should have never left."

Eleven faces turned to look at me, but I didn't return their gaze. With my taut jaw holding back my tears, I shook my head and repeated, "We should have never left."

A fair hand rested itself on my shoulder and I glanced to find Sehun. "You know we needed to strengthen ourselves to end this once and for all," he said. He then nodded at Suho, who was staring at me but seeing something else. Ever since we had returned to the temple to meditate and recharge ourselves, I wondered if Suho was relieved for not having seen Taeyeon's execution. The drop of the axe had not given me any more closure than I had received in the past seven years. Jiyeon was always going to be the ribbon choking my heart, its ends frayed and incomplete while Taeyeon was probably the red string around Suho's finger, a string that had simply disappeared from the face of the earth, its marks still embedded on his skin. 

I nodded at Suho and then glanced at the rest of EXO, my only family now. We looked out to the battlefield, the charred and blood-stained grounds hiding the battle scars of several hearts in the cave beneath. 

"I have some explaining to do," Lay sighed as we walked down to the hideout. "Kairi trusted me."

"She'll forgive you," Luhan whispered. His eyes were flitting across the scene of death, relief washing across his face when he didn't find the body he was looking out for. 

There was still hope for some, I thought. Kris too had wistfulness in his eyes and Tao, who had unwillingly left Dayoung, had trained himself to a level completely unbelievable. Unlike most of us, who were ready to sacrifice ourselves, Tao wanted to keep himself as well as Dayoung alive. He wanted a future. He wanted life. D.O. too had last spoken to the girl he found, Eunji and if my memory was correct, he had promised to return and protect her. 

"I wonder if we'll get a warm welcome," I sighed and entered the dark tunnel descending into the den. 

                                                                                        AMBER

I clearly remembered those s leaving us. Then where was that sound coming from?

I woke up in a start and grabbed hold of my revolver. Shuffling feet, the friction of shoes against the cold stone ground resounding from the entrance. I gulped and landed on my feet, walking towards the opening with great caution. I heard a second pair of feet get down from behind me, until soon the entire room was alert and awake. 

"Hoya," I heard Krystal say. The former, who was ahead of all of us, moved forward and before we knew it, entered the darkness. I was trying hard to keep my heartbeat in control when suddenly, Baekho dropped his defensive stance and collapsed on his mattress.

"We're safe," he waved at us and closed his eyes. Five seconds later, Hoya returned with his arms around Luhan and the rest of EXO following behind them. 

"TRAITORS!"

Kairi charged at the group and before Woohyun could stop, she had her katana slapped against Baekhyun's neck. The monk looked down at her, his eyes widened and watery. Moments later I realized that Jiyeon and him had something going on and that having your dead lover's face shoved against your own was the worst form of closure. Kairi was trembling and I could empathise with her. This was one of the many times she had been left behind, though her bloodthirsty conscience made this situation different than the others.

"It's not his fault," Hoya murmured, but Kairi continued staring at Baekhyun, her katana inches away from swiping the life out of him. She moved away from him but instead of walking back to her place, she took his hand and dragged it to the corner of the room. She spun him around and said, "Look at everyone of us."

Baekhyun did. He scanned the room, the morbidity in his eyes too strong for any of us to look at.

"Whose missing?"

Baekhyun sighed. "I'm sorry for your loss---"

"There's someone missing," Kairi interrupted him. "Someone who had a connection with you."

Baekhyun looked at the angry grief in her then looked back at us. Realization dawned on him and the moment he mouthed Yong Guk's name, Kairi began crying. 

All of us were in shock. This was probably the first time all of us had seen Kairi fall to a state as vulnerable as this. Her face had contorted into an ugly expression of mourning and fury and sadness and lost hope and all the nightmares I ever had were clouding every inch of her face. Baekhyun looked at his team, who were still huddled at the entrance. I noticed a strange glow on their countenance and wondered if they had devoured more strength for future battles. 

"We want this to end as much as you do," Baekhyun said. He took Kairi by her shoulders and with great effort, looked her in the eyes. "I promise you Kairi, we'll make sure you get the justice you deserve."

"We will." Jiyong stood up from his seat. All this while, he had been like a skeleton in the cupboard. This was the first time I had heard him speak in a long while, especially since the execution. L.Joe and Jiyeon had been pretty close to him and the two had been saved by Jiyong's recruitment. Their murderous end had to have some sort of effect on him. I remembered all the people Jiyong had lost due to Paragon and wondered if his quiet demeanour was hiding a vengeance far powerful than all of ours put together. 

He took a deep breath and looked towards Woohyun and stood next to him. He glanced at Suho and Kris and murmured a greeting. 

"This is it," Jiyong said, looking out at all of us. "Thanks to Sungjong, Luna...." He glanced at me and I simply shrugged. 

"Yoona, Hoya, D.O, Eunji, Psy and Hyoyeon, we've managed to find two important warrants. They're powerful enough to prove Paragon's weakness and now we need the third."

"As much as the two warrants are strong," Woohyun continued. "We need the third warrant to be something groundbreaking. It has to be ultimate and something which Avalon stands for. Our numbers have been affected and we've lost friends along the way..."

"But we've made new friends as well," Suho said. He blinked wearily, then smiled. "All of us, we're more than just family and friends."

"That's right," Luhan said, the charm in his tone making us forget what we had been through in the past one week. He cheekily slid his arm around Hoya's waist and announced, "We are one!"

Cheers erupted. Kairi smiled and Baekhyun wrapped her in his arms, until Woohyun tapped his shoulder and pulled her away. L looked at me and grinned while Krystal tried to push Baekho away from a nearly erse embrace. I noticed the discreet glances exchanged between Hoya and Yoona and saw Seohyun skip towards a surprised Luhan. D.O.'s wide eyes searched for Eunji, who mutely shrugged at his appearance, while Tao tried to get his way around Himchan to greet Dayoung. Dongwoo had sneaked towards the bodies and placed his hand on Sungyeol's head while Sungjong sat next to him and comforted his incoming tears. Jihyun punched Chen in the arm and Sehun gave a courteous nod to Suzy, whose poker face suddenly broke into a grin.

Luhan was right. In that moment, despite all the deaths and the shadows and the blood and the tears....We were one. 

                                                                           ********************************************

The slim figure was easy to miss, even in the eyes of trained guards and cameras. 

Na Eun placed her hand against her chest and heaved a sigh of relief, her urgent eyes skimming through the computers in the room. She carefully glanced at each monitor and upon finding the one she was looking for, quickly took out the square translucent piece of foil and placed it inside the empty slide. She read the instructions written on the insides of her skirt and accurately followed them, typing on the keyboard with clear dexterity. The speakers hanging from the ceiling crackled to life and with a satisfied smile on her face, Na Eun left the room as stealthily as she had entered it. 

All over Paragon, the familiar military brass tune, the propaganda music, reverberated through radios and televisions and public speakers and cell phones. But what followed the music was not the dark velvet tone of the General but an angel-like voice.

"30 January 2013," the voice narrated. "The Associate Director of the Woollim Drag Racing Championship, Daniel Henney, had disappeared from the map of Paragon. Alongwith him was Jessica Jung, famous model and singer. Daniel Henney had been forced to be partnered with the daughter of the MInistry of External Affairs, but his heart fell in love with Jessica and together, they eloped from the borders of Paragon."

Sangmin woke up from his stupor and stared at the radio. Instantly his five cellphones started ringing and the video conference calls began beeping without any mention of stopping. An angry cry was let out and all of those gadgets were thrown on the ground. "Get my coat!" he demanded and left the comfort of his bedroom. 

"15 June 2015," the voice continued. "Jung Shi Kyung was forced to resign from his position as a corporal lawyer during his fight for a case, where he defended a small company against the monopoly of the big pharmaceutical company Syntax. Within a week, Jung Shi Kyung and his family were transferred from Central Paragon's luxury apartments to one of West Paragon's suburban boarding houses. What no one knew was that the lack of financial and emotional support drove Shi Kyung to depression and as a result he committed suicide. For six years, Jung Shi Kyung's daughter, the eldest of six children, has been travelling to a luxury hotel to Central Paragon everyday for four hours to make ends meet and make sure that her family gets to eat and is not kicked out of the house that they have to pay monthly rent for. Although she works hard as a skilled bartender, she is hardly paid enough to cover up the meals and shelter of her family and has to often take triple shifts."

*****************************

The electric fireplace burnt and a woman sitting on the leather armchair smiled. She curled her feet up underneath her and began dialling a number. Her eyes met with the man sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper. He approached her and kissed her forehead, muttering, "It's time."

"It is," she said. Her attention returns to the call to which she says, "This is Jessica Jung? Am I speaking to the Chief Secretary? I have some crucial information.... about Paragon." 

The angel-like voice continued floating in the background of their room, whose windows showed a stellar view of the Eiffel Tower.

"If they could fight for their hearts and for their desires, then why can't us? These laws are unreasonable simply because the controlling of humanity is uncalled for. Humans are meant to feel, express and learn from their mistakes. Who are they to tell us how to walk, talk, marry, love, learn, sit, eat, work and live? Once upon a time, there were the rich and the poor. But we were still human. Now, we have been deprived of that only. What makes us any less poor?

******************************

The boy silently, like he always did for everything, shifted in his bed. He turned down the volume a notch and paid attention to the noise below. He opened the window and found the landlady clutching the picture of a young boy and crying. A few children stuck their heads out of their room, the faint crackle of the special news echoing from behind them.

"Go to sleep!" the landlady ordered upon finding the curious eyes staring at her. The lady was in turn alarmed when a tall young man jumped from the window and held her close. "We've slept enough ma'am. It's time to wake up."

The kids cheered and the tall boy (Siwan remembered his name to be Sung Jae) began calling out to the rest of the orphans. Siwan watched them arrange a video recorder and a chair, on which the first to sit was Sung Jae. 

"My name is Sung Jae," the boy started. "I was seven years old when my house was invaded by tax officials. Instead of taking money, they took away my mother's honour."

Siwan closed the window and stared up at the ceiling. Your dream came true Inguk, he smiled. My job is done. My time has come.

Next morning, the kids found the Mute Boy's lifeless body, an entire bottle of sleeping pills wiped clean. The only thing left was a note, which Sung Jae read out loud for everyone.

"I couldn't be with the one I loved," he read. "I hope that this note doesn't get destroyed so that one day in the future, when this note is read again, the time would come when the reader would be sitting beside the person he or she has chosen to be with."

**************************************

"You know," Kairi said, narrowing her eyes and staring into the face of the man opposite her. Their team was preparing to leave for their final hideout, one of the many destroyed temples of EXO. "You've always looked familiar to me."

"I have one of those faces," Kai nonchalantly responded and offered to heave her luggage into the truck. 

"Nah thanks," she said and smiled. She packed the bag away and entered the car. Luhan smiled at her and after making sure the doors were locked, started the engine. 

Kairi rested her head against the window and closed her eyes. She remembered the conversation she had with Sungjong and drifted off to sleep. 

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it was definitely her." Sungjong his lips and shuffled his feet. "But don't tell him right now. He's already got too much going on, plus it might not be safe for her if he goes looking for her."

"Yeah I get it.... But his mother..."

"I'm telling you, Luna and I were... Yeah, it was his mother."

"Has she figured out yet?"

Kai glared at Luhan through the rearview mirror. The latter grinned and said, "Relax. She's entered her deep sleep phase."

Kai glanced to his right where Kairi's head was resting. "She did say she found me familiar."

"Well that's a start," Luhan said, though his tone was detached and disinterested.

"You're still ecstatic about Seohyun remembering you," Kai scoffed. Luhan looked flustered and focused on his driving. Kai snickered and looked back to the window. Moments later however his gaze trailed to his right and he sighed. 

"I guess a part of you remembers me too," he whispered and brushed a stray strand of her hair away from her face.