|Chapter I- Prelude|

prel·ude
/ˈprelˌ(y)o͞od,ˈprāˌl(y)o͞od/
noun 
        1. an action or event serving as an introduction to something more important
 

“Hanbin ah!” Hanbin’s mother called urgently, “Take Junhoe and run! Run into the forest until you’re both safe.” She grabbed Junhoe’s hand, placing it into Hanbin’s so their hands were locked together.

“Umma?” Hanbin looked at his mother with eyes full of confusion. “Where are we going?”

“Hyung?” Junhoe tugged on the hem of his older brother’s shirt. “What’s happening? What’s wrong?” He didn’t get a response; only a small smile that was somewhat reassuring.

She hustled her two children towards the back door. Kneeling down to Hanbin’s height, she stared straight into his eyes, hands on his shoulders. “Hanbin, you have to listen carefully. There are dangerous people after the two of you. Your powers are special and they want to control them. I trust you to take care of your brother, okay?”

Hanbin nodded obediently, his hand unconsciously tightening on his younger brother’s. He took a step out the door and glanced back, his innocent eyes searching his mother’s face. “Umma? Aren’t you coming with us?”

His mother shook her head sadly. “The people after you… your father and I have to protect you from them.” A loud bang sounded in the near distance. “Hanbin, you have to go now. We’ll find you when you both are safe. Remember that Umma and Appa love you both very much.” She kissed both siblings on the forehead before ushering them out the door.

Hanbin’s grip tightened on his brother’s hand as he pulled Junhoe along and out the door. “Let’s go,” he whispered, “don’t worry Junhoe, I’ll keep you safe- I promise.” He glanced back towards his mother one last time, but she was already gone.

Hanbin led Junhoe deep into the depths of the forest, until they found a small cave for the night. “Let stay here for the night.” Hanbin decided softly, leading his brother into the cave.

“Hyung,” Junhoe said in a quivering voice, “I’m scared.”

Hanbin looked at Junhoe. ‘I am too’, he wanted to say; but he had promised his mother that he would protect Junhoe. If Hanbin was scared, how would that make Junhoe feel? “Don’t worry. Umma said she would come get us, right? We’ll be safe soon.”

Innocent 9-year old Hanbin believed every single word his mother said; didn’t even doubt a word of it. He believed his mother when she said she loved them. He believed his mother when she said she would come get them. He also believed that his parents were going to protect them.

But their mother never tried to find them; all the promises that came from their mother were empty lies.
 

Hanbin was tired of running; his last decade was spent hiding from from his hunters. His hunters who will take the only thing left precious to him- Junhoe.

He had promised their mother he would protect him. Hanbin hadn’t broken that promise for 10 years, and he didn’t intend to either.

He adjusted his positioning on the cold stone floor carefully, trying his best not to wake Junhoe who was leaning against his shoulder. Nights were hard for Hanbin- he had difficulties falling asleep, in fear that their hunters would come and find them in their most vulnerable state. Most nights, he would wake in a cold sweat the echo of nightmares lurking in the back of his mind.

Hanbin released a tired sigh- he was tired of running and hiding. He felt like suffocating under the pressure of being chased; an endless game of tag where he is never ‘it’. Images of him being a deer chased by wolves took over his mind - running, running, always running - but the end results were always the same. Caught like a deer in headlights; backed into a corner with no place to hide. And it was only a matter of time before that happened.

His eyes slowly began to droop, his head resting against Junhoe’s as he slowly drifted off to sleep.
 

Muffled shouts and the clattering of metal could be heard in the near distance. Hanbin stirred in his sleep, frowning at the disturbance.

More shouts. More clattering. Hanbin bolted straight up from his slumber, immediately adjusting to the situation in the blink of an eye.

The shouts became louder. Closer.

They’re coming.

More alert now, he urgently nudged his still-asleep younger brother. “Junhoe! Wake up! They’re here,” he whispered, loud enough to wake the younger male up. “We have to go now!”

Junhoe sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Still groggy, but more or less awake, he whispered back, “Already?”

Hanbin sighed, running a hand through his messy hair, “Unfortunately.” Hanbin grabbed Junhoe’s hand, interlocking it with his own and pulling his brother up onto his feet. “Where do you want to go this time?” Hanbin asked, a playful grin creeping onto his lips.

Junhoe shrugged, laughing.  “I don’t care- surprise me.”

The footsteps were now increasing in volume, echoing in the depths of the cave. “Stop right there!” An angry voice shouted.

Hanbin’s grip on Junhoe tightened as he took a deep breath. “Let’s go.” He whispered, just as three gunshots were fired.

Bang, bang, bang!

The shooter lowered his gun as he rubbed his eyes, wondering where the iridescent flash of light had come from. The duo was gone; but only two of the three bullets clattered to the ground.

Bingo.
 

Hanbin opened his eyes, taking in the change of scenery. Junhoe laid unconscious on the ground- but that was one of the few side effects of teleportation. He kneeled down next to his brother. “I’m tired of running, aren’t you?” Hanbin said softly, running a comforting hand through Junhoe’s hair.

As he adjusted his position, he felt his hand brush against something wet and sticky. Hanbin’s blood ran cold. No! It couldn’t be-

It was difficult to notice because of the dark fabric of Junhoe’s shirt, but blood was beginning to seep through, and Hanbin’s hands were now stained a crimson red. Panic rose in his body. He lifted Junhoe’s shirt, revealing a nasty gash on his lower right abdomen where the bullet had pierced through his skin.

It didn’t seem too deep, thankfully, but it was serious enough to need medical attention. Hanbin looked around. They were in the depths of a forest; somewhere he vaguely remembered playing as a child. Before everything happened, he thought bitterly.

Junhoe groaned, interrupting his brother’s chain of thought. He stirred weakly in Hanbin’s arms. “Hyung…” Junhoe breathed out, “it hurts.”

Hanbin pressed a finger to the pained male’s lips, “Shh… I know, but try not to talk. It’ll only make it worse.”

Junhoe nodded, the colour slowly beginning to fade away from his cheeks.

Hanbin shrugged off his jacket to use as a temporary bandage. He tied it against Junhoe’s abdomen, applying pressure to stop the bleeding. “You think you can heal yourself?”

“The wound’s not a problem, but I think it had poison in it.” Junhoe hissed in pain. “I can feel it.”

Hanbin frowned, rummaging through his knapsack in hopes of finding something useful. Cursing under his breath at the lack of resources, he tossed the bag aside carelessly. He couldn’t help but feel weak and vulnerable; they were out in the open where their hunters could catch up at any possible time. “We have to get somewhere safe.”

“No , sherlock.”

Hanbin rolled his eyes. “Even when you get shot, you’re still a pain in the .” He muttered, shaking his head. “I’m not going to carry you- so you’ll have to heal it yourself and I’ll stay on lookout.”

Junhoe did as he was told without much complaining. A soft blue light formed around the tips of his fingers as his hand hovered over the wound, the slash slowly beginning to close up. He sighed, closing his eyes in relief.

“You okay there?”

Junhoe looked up to the worried eyes of his brother, concern dressing his face. His expression was serious; a side of Hanbin Junhoe was used to seeing the most.  

It finally hit him when Junhoe realized he didn’t remember the last time his brother smiled; truly smiled. Junhoe remembered the cheerful and happy Hanbin, who was never seen without a smile plastered on his face. But that was before he started putting up walls around him; before they were hunted.

“Junhoe.” Hanbin deadpanned, annoyance evident in his voice.

He pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind. “Yeah, I’m fine.” He mumbled.

“Get up,” Hanbin demanded, “we have to get to safety before the sun sets.”

Junhoe almost winced at his harsh tone, despite being used to hearing it over the course of the past years. He trailed behind his brother, dragging his feet along, finally feeling the effects of the poison beginning to overwhelm his body.

Hanbin was a few meters ahead of Junhoe when the coughing began. He whipped around at the sound of his distraught brother. “Junhoe?”

The younger man was leaning against the trunk of a tree for support, his face drained of all colour.

“Oh .” Hanbin rushed towards his sibling.What if I-.... no. It wouldn’t still be there, would it? He rubbed a comforting hand against the back of the younger. I have to try. “I’ll get us somewhere safe.” Hanbin sighed.

“Wha-”

Hanbin grabbed his hand, and then they were gone.
 

Junhoe laid unconscious on the ground once again- Hanbin was uncertain if it was due to the effects of teleportation or not. He crouched down next to his brother, making sure if he was okay.

Asides from the beads of sweat rolling down Junhoe’s face and his heavy breathing, the younger male seemed to be alright.

Hanbin looked at his younger brother with sad eyes. What did we ever do to deserve this?

Hanbin stood up, turning towards the edge of forest, the feeling of nostalgia hitting him. “This place… could it be?” He breathed out in awe, stepping out onto the cliff, revealing a small town in front of a large palace surrounded by tall  brick walls.

A groan sounded from behind Hanbin, “Hyung…”

“Junhoe!” Hanbin turned towards his brother, relief lacing his voice. “Are you okay?”

The younger man nodded, despite his pale complexion; his eyes searching the surrounding area.  “Where are we?”

“It’s strikingly familiar isn’t it?” Hanbin’s eyes were filled with a mix of nostalgia and sadness. “It’s our hometown.”

Junhoe flinched at the amount of bitterness in his brother’s voice. “Our hometown?” He echoed in disbelief. “I thought- I thought the place was wiped out because of the hunters.”

“That’s what I thought too.” A dark aura surrounded Hanbin, his eyes narrowed. “Remember that part of the palace we used to sneak into?”

A small smile crept onto Junhoe’s face, lightening up the atmosphere. “You mean the alchemy lab?”

Hanbin smiled back, nodding. “You stay here. I’ll teleport there and get something to cure the poison.”

“Isn’t that dangerous?”

Hanbin laughed, “We live every single day in danger. Living life a bit more carelessly wouldn’t hurt.” He lifted his hood over his head, covering his eyes. “Hide in a bush or something, and don’t do anything stupid.”

Junhoe opened his mouth to protest, “But-”

“I’ll be quick- don’t worry.”

His playful smile was the only thing Junhoe could see before being forced to look away from the flash of light.

Be safe hyung...
 

Hanbin landed with a creak on the wooden floorboards, slightly stumbling forward. His energy level was really low at this point; he had been teleporting more than usual today, and the effects of teleporting were beginning to take a toll on his body.

He closed his eyes for a brief moment, shaking away the wave of nausea hitting him.  Hanbin sighed, opening his eyes as he tried discern his new location.

Is this the alchemy lab?

Shelves of potions lined the walls in an orderly manner, empty glass bottles and opened books were scattered around the front desk.

Hanbin scanned the shelves, looking for something that would help his brother. Potion of Flight, Potion of Healing… ah! Poison Antidote. Hanbin grinned in satisfaction, grabbing two bottles off the shelf.

He turned to leave, but one of the potions caught his line of vision. “Potion of Invisibility…” Hanbin breathed out. This would be great for hiding from the hunters.  He took several bottles off the shelf- bottle after bottle, until the door slammed open unexpectedly.

“What the do you think you’re doing?”

Hanbin whirled around at the sound of the voice, his hood slipping off his head.

“Oh .”

A/N:
Hi everyone! I'm really sorry for the long wait, but here is the first chapter! To be completely honest, I've no idea how long this story is going to be, or how often I'm going to update. I'll try my best to update weekly, but I seem to be really good at procrastinating xD (as you can see, it took ages to upload Chapter I). But! Chapter II will probably be up this week or the next (I've started it already! ^^).

Thank you for everyone who has already subscribed; it means a lot to me! I hope y'all have a great day!

-classicalights