Long ago, a creature appeared before the kingdom.
One that breathed fire and had eyes like melted gold.
It burned the villages of the kingdom.
And many died.
One day, an elder came forward and asked the creature to make an agreement.
If the kingdom gave the creature something, would it leave their kingdom alone?
The creature thought long and hard and then decided.
In exchange for sparing their lives, the creature wanted a diva.
A beautiful maiden who would sing it lullabies.
The agreement was made…

 

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LuHan || Irene

 

  

Yi Fan || Ji Eun || BaekHyun

 

 

SuMin || D.ana

 

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Prologue

Footsteps echoed through the caverns as she moved about them. Tracing each stone with her delicate fingers. She knew them each by heart, had given each one a name. She must have sung to them a million times, just as she'd sung for her master.

 

The girl glanced back behind her and looked back to the darkness. He was asleep for now but for how long? He'd wake soon and demand more songs she was getting tired of singing. She sighed, blowing a strand of hair out of her eyes.

 

She had to get out of this prison.

 

Carefully, quietly, she walked closer to the only light in the cave; A beam of moonlight and stars that cascaded over a small puddle of water where she often would dance, coming in from the top of the cavern. The only escape. She lifted one hand and drew a breath as she clutched her only possession; a pendant in the shape of an unfamiliar music note, given to her by no one she knew.

 

She held it tight, giving a sad smile to the moonlight as she looked up in apology. "Hello," she whispered. Even with her quiet tone, she could hear her voice calling back from the dark. Echoes were her only friend. "My name is Irene," she said to no one. "What is yours?"

 

"Hm?" The blond haired boy said, turning and glancing up at the sky. He could have sworn he'd heard something. Probably just his imagination getting the better of him again. He shook his head and bent down to pick up his music-shaped pendant. It was so loose these days, he seemed to drop it all the time.

 

"Something the matter boy?" Someone said from the sidelines.

 

The boy nodded clutching the pendant close, "I thought I heard it again, that's all." He spoke in a quiet whisper. "I know she's there."

 

His companions both looked at him with pained expressions, and he didn't have to turn to know what they were thinking. He stood straight up once more, shoving the necklace in his pocket as he looked up at the sky, studying it intensely.

 

"You don't know that for a fact," the first one said approaching the boy cautiously. He had neat black hair. His eyes were gentle and yet firm and he wore some of the finest robes from his country. He had more or less been dragged into their journey and away from his studies. He wasn't one to complain however.

 

The second one was a man with short cropped brown hair, a comedian by any other name. He protected himself with a scarf tied around his neck and carried a sword at his side as a weapon. He was smiling fondly to the boy, though one could see he too was doubtful.

 

"I do," the boy said absentminded, still keeping his eyes upward. "I know she's alive. I know she's there," he said watching the clouds float by. There was something about the way he did things. The way he moved. The way he spoke. Even the way he breathed. Each motion wasn't just his own, but belonged to another. And he knew she was out there waiting.

 

A light breeze picked up a shroud of leafs and dust, so much that his companions lifted their hands to shield their eyes. "Hello," he said softly into the wind, eyes remaining to the sky. "My name is LuHan," he spoke to no one, "what's yours?"

 

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©Kori123 & AloneShadow