After searching the entire dismal span of the cave, we came to the conclusion that we were either dreadfully trapped or that the only way to advance was by exploring the malignant depths of the water. Having already endured quite the frightening experience beneath the still surface, I was less than enthusiastic to return once more. Though I suspected there were many mysteries, marvellous openings to new places, no part of me felt like finding them. I stubbornly rejected Kris’ hand as he tried to tug me towards the water’s edge.

‘If there are more monsters down there, I’ll fly us right out’, he promised, sticking out his pinky and expecting me to snatch it up in my own.

Much to his chagrin, I crossed my arms tenaciously, hiding my slender fingers from sight. I hugged myself, both trying to shield my body from the inevitable dangers and from his touch. Even though I surreptitiously craved the thrill of these two interactions, I refused to admit it aloud, letting him stare at me gloomily with widened, wavering eyes.

It was the sweet cooing and reassuring words of Jongdae and Yixing that convinced me to cautiously wade into the water. Each of them held one of my hands, squishing me in between their solid frames. Our shoulders knocked together and with each step we took, at least one of us copped an accidental splash up the back of our legs. I was grateful for their actions, especially those from Jongdae. His palms were outrageously clammy and I could feel the vibrations of his body through my own. He was absolutely petrified, but he had mustered up courage for my sake. Careful not to make Yixing jealous (I’d noticed the way they dreamily looked at one another), I very speedily pecked his blushing cheek. He grinned sheepishly, almost tripping and toppling head first into the dark water. Yixing snorted.

Once we’d all ducked under the water, in one final breath, we made sure to keep Yixing in the middle. His safety was obviously paramount; without his powers, it was likely that fatalities were to be unavoidable and that a decent amount of the members would not escape the cave unscathed. He claimed to despise being wedged in between us all, but no amount of protest could persuade us to give him any space.

Jongin took the front, diving into the water with an animated yahoo and hurtling off into the distance. He had tied his shirt around his waist and discarded both shoes, their red soles contrasting against their dull surroundings. He undoubtedly looked magical as he swam gracefully, bare chest on view. Unlike everyone else, who awkwardly squinted or progressed blindly, his eyes were broad and glistening. They shone enchantingly as he moved forward, dark caramel strands pushed off his forehead and floating like a frame around his chiselled features. Kyungsoo, though immersed in the clouded water, smiled at Jongin’s beautifully flowing figure. I internally sighed, focussing on them both to forget how constricted my chest was beginning to feel.

When Jongin disappeared, lugging himself out of the water, I felt a wave of relief crashing over me. I wiggled forward and shot out of the water to reclaim some air, filling my lungs until they ached, before quickly spinning to assist some of the others back onto solid ground. Kris crawled out and climbed over me, jokingly collapsing to press our soaked bodies together. I grumbled and irritably kicked my legs, but all efforts were futile. He did not have any intention of budging.

So, flat on my back with a heavy weight crushing my limbs, I tried to gaze around and to become familiar with the new stony room. Unlike the previous place, the rocks were not mixtures of lacklustre browns and greys, but were shimmering combinations of countless vibrant shades. To my left I could vaguely make out dots of twinkling blue gems lining the cavern walls. They were wedged in between peculiar, jagged stones, splotchy and partially green like camouflage-styled army uniforms. On the other hand, there were clusters of glassy pinkish crystals across the ground on the right. They protruded treacherously, their points undeniably sharpened and lethal, and their edges were roughly chipped. Strangely, their appearances were aesthetically pleasing and I was disheartened by not being able to run my fingers along them. Luhan, as expected, was the only person senseless enough to actually touch the uneven surface. He came away with a cut finger and watering eyes, just enough of a pitiful presence to receive some fussing from a very sympathetic Minseok.

My attention snapped back to Kris as his hand slipped beneath my clingy, dripping shirt. ‘You look good wet’, he whispered against my ear, nibbling at it cheekily.

‘Stop it. Someone will see us.’

‘Let them.’

‘We are not canoodling in a cave’, I cried, squirming and fighting my laughter as he tickled my stomach with stubby nails, ‘get off, get off, get off!’

Kris chuckled and leant down to kiss my jaw, before being yanked away by Baekhyun, who was far stronger than he looked. Grumbling at the slighter man, Kris brushed some dirt of his knees and went to spring to his feet. Baekhyun stopped him by pressing down onto his shoulders and as Kris opened his mouth to emit a few obscenities, he was harshly shushed. The younger of the two was motioning for everyone to zip their lips as he slowly shook his head and crouched, minimalizing his figure. We all followed suit, huddling together and shrinking into the darkness, totally confused.

Shakily, Baekhyun extended a hand to illuminate our surroundings. On my back I had only been able to examine two directions, but this moment allowed me to see what the path directly ahead offered; black, scuttling creatures with hollow faces, their jaws slack and unhinged. Where their eyes should have been were simply empty holes and a faint, white glow and where their noses or snouts should have been positioned was entirely flat. Their curved front legs looked a little more like arms, simply because they all stood on their hind legs as they spotted us, immediately beating their oozing chests. On all fours they were not so intimidating, only reaching my waist. Stretching out on two feet saw them all growing to meet each of us eye to eye.

‘Move back slowly and silently’, Baekhyun whispered, shuffling backwards on hands and knees.

His subtle, sluggish movements were enough to set them off. With shrill, piercing shrieks, they darted forward, bounding bodies so fast that they were difficult to distinguish from the shadows around them. They didn’t maintain close proximity between one another, instead branching off to lock onto individual targets.

‘Get back into the water!’ Baekhyun bellowed.

I scrambled to my feet and jolted towards the water. Before, I had dreaded entering it, but now it seemed like a safe, sparkling haven. As it got closer it grew more and more appealing, the tiny ripples like an invitation to delve right in. However, I never made it.

A creature whirred past us, skidding to a halt right along the water’s edge where it sat, snarling and obstructing any possibility of escape. We couldn’t push forward and pacing backwards was meaningless, because the snapping monstrosities were cleverly circling around us. Like wild dogs, they gnarled their teeth together and let strings of slobber ooze onto the rutted ground and like agitated horses, the sounds they emitted were abrupt huffs and whinnies.

When the first pounced towards us, I prepared myself for my untimely demise, leaning back and somewhat guarding my face with trembling hands. Luckily, I was saved from the horrid impact by two brave (stupid) members. Luhan and Jongin sprung forward in perfect synchronisation. When a creature swiped at Jongin, he would dissipate into thin air and leave it there frozen in shock, vulnerable to Luhan’s fury of attacks; onslaughts of soaring rocks and forcefully thrown knife-life crystals. They twisted around one another, relying on the other member’s ability and throwing insults around to fire themselves up. If I wasn’t fearful for my life, I would have giggled childishly.

Jongin threw a punch and then disappeared to avoid the retaliation, before popping back up and side-sweeping the disorderly creature. ‘You're so ugly that your Mum got fined for littering when she dropped you off at school!’

‘Roses are red, violets are blue’, Luhan yelled, dodging angrily slashing claws and grinding teeth, ‘when I take a , I think of you!’

‘I’d slap you right now, but stains!’

‘Don’t feel sad, don’t feel blue. Frankenstein was ugly too!’

When the ground was littered in twitching contorted bodies, Luhan and Jongin lunged at each other’s throats and finally, the rest of us were forced to take action.

Chanyeol, as he restrained Jongin, muttered his own insult under his breath. ‘You two never fail to shock me. The only way you’d be able to is by actually saying something intelligent.’  

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Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡
I'm not really sure what the hell this entire chapter is, but I watched Resident Evil and then I suddenly used it as inspiration for some really gross monsters (I also used it for inspiration for the antagonist in my fic The Zodiacs which you should 11/10 ruin yourself by reading). I can somewhat imagine them looking a bit like this

but just a little less muscular and more spindly/wiry.
Anyhow, I should remind you that the final line of the first chapter is my warning of what terror is to come. I may or may not be using the whole OT12->OT9 situation as my inspiration for the plot, so be prepared for anything.

Then again, I'll also continue to try my best to please. Thank you for reading this far ~ consider yourself an honorary Pathfinder! ♥‿♥ 

(This fic might not be updated for a while [less time than the period between this chapter and the last but still a while] due to major exams and an art program I'll be partaking in. Lots of love and thank you for your patience!)