Chapter 46

You are My Destiny

At the amusement park

‘It was Evil.’

Mei’s words were followed by a profound silence, both Luhan and Suho processing her words. Finally, Luhan spoke.

‘Mei, baby, are you sure?’ His eyes were filled with worry as he glanced all over her, looking for injuries and Mei felt her fear settle. She was safe now.

She nodded her head, shuddering as she recalled the black claws striking against the metal. ‘I think he was possessing someone; it looked like a man. He had some sort of claws that cut through the metal… I was so scared.’ She looked up at Luhan, tears filling her eyes.

Luhan hugged her tighter, meeting Suho’s eyes over her shoulder. Suho had a somber expression on his face, not looking surprised at the news. Just then, there were running footsteps and both Legends looked around to see…

‘Chen?’ Suho sounded confused. Thunder sounded as if in response and Mei huddled closer to Luhan, never a fan of thunderstorms.

‘I just got here. What happened?’ Chen sounded out of breath, as if he’d run all the way.

Suho frowned. ‘Mei was attacked. Didn’t you head back home?’

He shook his head. ‘Baek called, so I came here directly. I was close by.’

‘Getting snacks?’ Suho sounded skeptical.

Chen had the grace to look sheepish. ‘They have my favorite flavor here?’

Suho rolled his eyes. ‘Come with me, we should get a look around.’ Glancing at Luhan, he nodded his head. ‘You should take her home.’

Nodding, Luhan led Mei away. Suho and Chen headed in the opposite direction.

……………………………………

 ‘I came soon as I realized Mei was being attacked,’ Kai spoke as they headed away. ‘If we’re lucky, we may catch the attacker.’

Tao shook his head, looking skeptical. ‘Not if its anything like the Abby that attacked us; she broke out of my time freeze easily. And I only stopped the car from falling. It’s unlikely that they’ll stick around.’

‘Unless they’re spying.’ Kai argued stubbornly. Kris rolled his eyes before locking them with D.O. ‘I’ll do a flyover, see if I spot anything unusual.’

That stopped the duo in their argument. ‘I’ll come with,’ Kai offered. Kris nodded and took off, Kai disappearing immediately. Tao looked at D.O. ‘What should we do?’

‘Let’s take a look at the Ferris wheel.’

The car that had fallen was dented in several places, probably a result of Luhan’s cautious hits but also something else.

‘Check this out.’ Tao waved him over, pointing at the hooks which held the car aloft. ‘Cut straight through.’

D.O reached out, tracing the cut. Something smeared against his fingers when he pulled away. Tao in a breath. ‘Abby,’ he whispered, eyeing the black goo coating D.O’s fingers.

‘The one who attacked you?’ D.O muttered, his mind racing with unwanted thoughts.

‘She’s the only one with these abilities that we know of.’ Tao frowned. ‘But… if she’s with her brother, that rules her out.’

D.O didn’t want to say anything. He had his suspicions and nothing so far had allayed them. So, he voiced what Tao had already probably deduced. ‘Evil wouldn’t settle for sending just one Abby after us.’

‘Which means that there is another one with similar powers.’ He frowned again, as if he’d just thought of something. D.O mentally cursed.

Of course, Tao was a strategist as well, one of their best planners and a lot smarter than he behaved. He was astute when need be and he must’ve remembered what D.O had never forgotten: how Tao’s powers hadn’t worked on Chen, just like they hadn’t worked on that abby, on the same day.

He chewed his lips, wishing Tao would disregard his suspicions, at least until he’d had time to investigate on his own. D.O would never put his entire pack in danger for just one person, even his own Shadow. But he needed to be sure, for his own sake, to appease the guilt of suspecting the one closest to him.

‘D.O?’ Tao called and D.O blinked, having spaced out. ‘Yes?’

Tao eyed him strangely. ‘We should look around.’

Nodding, he headed towards the operating booth. The spitting, electric sounds informed him that the board had short-circuited. A visual confirmed what he’d already known; the board had been destroyed, covered in black goo.

Tao joined him. ‘They must’ve turned it on so Mei’s car could go up.’

D.O nodded.  Tao eyed the board thoughtfully. ‘You know what’s strange? None of their attempts have been successful so far. It’s almost… as if they don’t want to hurt us.’

D.O looked at him sharply. ‘What’re you saying?’

Tao shrugged. ‘Just that it’s strange.’

D.O narrowed his eyes. Did Tao suspect or know more that he was letting on? He opened his mouth but Kai’s arrival interrupted him. Kris joined them moments later. ‘All clear.’

Kai handed D.O a paper bag. ‘Don’t know if it means anything but I thought we should look at it anyway.’

D.O rifled through its contents, consisting primarily of junk food. ‘That’s…’

‘My chips!’ Chen’s voice made him glance up. Chen was grinning happily, running towards them, Suho shaking his head as he followed. ‘Where did you find them?’ He snatched the bag from D.O and pulled out his favorite, opening the crisps.

‘We’re on duty.’ Suho muttered tiredly.

‘So?’ Chen asked, passing a few packets around. Kai tore his chips open happily, Tao munching along. Kris declined but gave in at Chen’s pout. D.O stared at his Shadow suspiciously. ‘Where were you?’

‘At the store across the street, you know, the one that’s open all night.’ Chen answered easily, offering him some chips as well. D.O eyed them before reluctantly accepting. ‘I’d been about to head back but Baek called, told me that Mei had been attacked and that you guys were headed here, so I came running. Dropped these somewhere along the way.’

‘Near the entrance.’ Kai supplied, mouth full of chips.

‘Don’t speak with your mouth full.’ Suho reprimanded. ‘We should be looking out for Evil and here we are, eating chips.’

‘I doubt they’d stick around for us to show up, though.’ Chen supplied.

‘That’s what I said,’ Tao sounded happy for the support.

Kai muttered, ‘They could be spying.’

Both cubs looked ready to get into an argument again, so Suho intervened. ‘Did you find anything?’ he asked Kris.

Kris shook his head. ‘No, everything seems clear. No unusual signs.’

‘Kai?’

‘Other than Chen’s junk food, nothing.’

‘Kai, you’re the best.’ Chen told him seriously. ‘I’ll buy you chicken next time we have a movie night.’ Kai perked up at that. Suho ignored them, looking at Tao and D.O. ‘You two?’

‘We know it was an abby, but nothing more.’

‘Abby, not Evil?’

‘I doubt Evil would put himself in danger, so soon after the battle.’

‘Alright, if there’s nothing else, we should head back. Lay called, we have a patient incoming. We’ll discuss everything afterwards.’

Nodding they divided. Kris offered to fly a few of them back so Kai wouldn’t be burdened; Tao, to his happiness, agreed to come with him. The rest grabbed onto Kai and were whisked home.

………………………………………

 

The ride over was nothing but a blur and before she knew it, Xiumin and Lay were rushing Leo away on a gurney. She followed them, stepping through the double doors and into a lobby. There were a couple of chairs scattered around and she dropped in one of them, whatever energy she’d recovered draining out.

She was numb, in a shock over what had happened – what she’d done – and everything still felt like a dream, a nightmare that wasn’t ending, not until she knew that Leo was absolutely and completely alright.

She wished Lily was here; she always knew what to do in any situation, was the rock her family could always, always lean on. Not like Rose who was falling apart. She bit her lips to silence the cry that wanted to escape but her tears slipped out. She sniffed.

‘Here.’ A handkerchief was in front of her and she looked up blearily, too exhausted to be surprised.

A familiar face greeted her, sharp cheekbones and curly hair and a megawatt grin that was prominently absent, replaced instead by a soft, understanding smile. Inside her, she felt Star stir, the first reaction she’d shown in a while now but Rose wasn’t taking any more chances. With all of her will, she forced Star back and grabbed the proffered article.

‘Thank you.’ she muttered quietly, wiping her tears. To her surprise, he dropped into the seat beside her.

‘Rose, right?’ he asked, ‘We haven’t met before; I’m Chen, Xiumin’s brother.’

She swallowed her response. They may not have met but she knew who he was very well because Star, for some inexplicable reason, found him almost fascinating as Xiumin and she’d followed him on at least one occasion of which Rose was completely aware. Who knew how many times Star had followed him in her blackouts?

As much as she wanted nothing more than to just bury her head in her knees and cry, his presence kept her together. He talked a lot but most of it was meaningless chatter, small talk designed to keep her engaged but not burden her, probably to help distract her. She wondered if Xiumin had asked him to keep an eye on her or if he was just being kind but she appreciated it nonetheless.

Nor was she the only one because ever since he’d arrived, Star had been a constant presence in the back of her mind, just like she’d been with Xiumin. 

Try as she might, she couldn’t fight her exhaustion for long and eventually gave into a mouth-splitting yawn. Chen stopped whatever he was saying, looking at her in concern.

‘You okay?’ he asked, eyes roving all over her face searchingly.

She nodded her head, trying to keep another yawn at bay. She had to stay awake because she still hadn’t heard any news about Leo. ‘Just… tired.’

He tutted, seeing right through her. ‘You must be exhausted. I should get you somewhere more comfortable, we can’t have you sitting here all night.’

She shut abruptly. ‘All night?’

Chen nodded sympathetically. ‘Probably. They want to get every bit of the infection, so…’

Belatedly, Rose wondered if Xiumin or the others knew about her possession. Chen had been acting like she was just another girl, come in after a horrible accident but nothing about her or Leo’s condition was remotely ordinary.

And yet, neither Xiumin nor Lay had batted an eyelash at the state they’d found her and Leo in, nor reacted to Star’s obvious presence. Did they know about it already? What was going on?

Chen seemed to read her puzzlement.

‘You must have a lot of questions.’ She nodded, not sure if she could trust herself to speak. He continued, ‘I know you want immediate answers but you’ve had a bad day and this isn’t something that can’t wait a few more hours. Alright?’

She wanted to object but yet another yawn interrupted her and Chen nodded decisively. ‘Let me make some arrangements. I’ll be back in a few, okay?’

He parted with a reassuring smile and Rose slumped back. Before she knew it, sleep had taken over her.

……………………………………

Chen felt as if the rug had been swept from under his feet when Baekhyun had casually announced that they were bringing in the ‘abby girl’. He hadn’t realized they’d been talking about Leo when Suho had mentioned the incoming patient because he’d missed the meeting. 

Immediately, he’d backed to his room and tried to follow his link to Star but found it blocked. His anxiety rocketing, worst-case scenarios running through his head, he’d been close to going crazy. The worst part was, he had to pretend like nothing was wrong when everything he’d worked towards was potentially falling apart around him.

D.O had found him with his head buried in his hands, desperately praying for Star’s safety, fluently cursing Evil’s timings. He’d been so careful all this time to never black out at the same time as Star did, so he could keep an eye on her, make sure she was safe.

He had no idea what had happened, what had led Star to act on her own and not knowing was making him crazed.

‘Chen?’

D.O’s voice sounded like it was coming from underwater, muted behind the blood rushing through his ears.

‘Chen?’

He blinked, surprised to find his Shadow leaning worriedly over him. ‘Huh?’

D.O eyed him closely. ‘Are you okay?’

He tried to smile but it felt shaky and fell away immediately. ‘It’s nothing.’

He felt D.O pushing against his link, to lend his energy and felt a bolt of affection go through him. He knew his Shadow suspected him – D.O may have a great poker face but he’d never been able to hide himself from Chen – and yet, he was still trying to help him.

That made him cheer up considerably and he gave a sincere smile to his Shadow, gently pushing him back. ‘I’m fine, really.’

D.O still looked worried but didn’t say anything. Just then, there were sounds outside and Suho and Tao rushed by.

After successive injuries to the Legends and their mates in the past few months, Suho had rightly realized the need for a properly equipped medical facility within the HQs. During renovations, he had annexed an entire new wing to the building. Equipped with a clinic, waiting area, a couple of rooms for overnight stays and a fully functioning operating theater, this would be the first time it was being used.

Chen followed D.O to the new wing, peeking in through the glass doors to see Lay, Xiumin and Suho rushing past, rolling a gurney between them, Tao following, probably holding the body in stasis. With a sickening jolt, he realized the bloodied body was none other than Leo.

His worry multiplied tenfold, especially when he caught sight of Rose slumping into the chairs. She was covered in blood and looked completely out of it.

His fingers curled as he resisted the urge to barge in; he couldn’t have his cover blown, not now.

D.O left him, going to check on something or the other while he stayed, pacing outside and occasionally peering in to make sure Rose was okay. He could sense Star but it was very vague and that worried him.

He’d been staring in, chewing on his lips nervously when Xiumin stepped in the living area, cleaned up and freshly showered. Catching his eye, he nodded towards the waiting area. ‘Lay asked if you could go in and keep Rose company. I would but I need to talk to Lily.’

Internally blessing the healer, he nodded as calmly as he could and stepped in.

A few words with Rose told him that she was completely in charge and keeping Star at bay but just knowing she was okay, unhurt, was enough.

Chen breathed a sigh of relief as soon he stepped back inside the HQs, slumping against the doorway. Rose may have pushed Star back but both were fine and that was what mattered.

He wanted to bring Star in, to his own room because that’s what the beast demanded but he had to be practical and not arouse any suspicions. Instead, he went to the door Xiumin had stepped out of and knocked gently.

Suho’s voice floated over. ‘It’s open, come in.’

The operating room was brightly lit and sterile, the smell of antiseptic overpowering. Leo’s body was resting on the table, even paler in the harsh fluorescence, thankfully wiped clean of blood.

The scar on his chest was quite large and the way it puckered indicated its depth. The skin was pinkened from Lay’s healing but the fact that it had still left a mark showed just how quickly the healer had to act that he couldn’t avoid scarring.

There was also the distinctive blackness over his body, indicating the abyss’ goo had infected him which confirmed what he’d suspected: Star had, for some inexplicable reason, attacked Leo. He couldn’t fathom why because Star seemed to like Lelo, as she called him. Something must have triggered her.

‘Yes, Chen?’ Suho asked, not looking up from where he was busy with Leo. A closer look told him the leader was busy extracting the infection from his chest with a suction pump, a bag next to him steadily filling up with black goo.

‘Is that…?’ He eyed the bag apprehensively. The black goo flowing through it turned gradually red.

‘Yes,’ Suho replied absently. ‘Tao, hand me another bag and hold this part in stasis until Lay’s done. Lay, anywhere else?’

The Legend, Chen noticed, was busy healing the parts that Suho had cleaned, the skin closing neatly. He indicated another part while still healing and Suho picked up the scalpel, making a neat little cut. Black goo oozed out, looking like gross sewer-y slush. ‘Freezing him was smart.’ Suho commented, starting the suction again.

Lay nodded, eyeing Leo’s body thoughtfully. ‘It was the only thing I could think of, to slow its spread.’ He looked up, locking eyes with Chen, gaze piercing before suddenly breaking into a dimpled smile. ‘Chen, how’s Rose?’

Chen wondered if it was a coincidence that Lay had specifically asked him to check on Rose. If it were anyone else, he’d chalk it off to his amicable personality – everyone knew Chen was good with people and could be tactful if the situation called for it.

But since it was Lay, he had to wonder if the healer was aware of his special connection with the girl. To be honest, he wouldn’t put it past him. But if that were the case, why hadn’t he said anything? Or tried to stop him?

Lay was still smiling, waiting for his answer so he obliged. ‘Actually, that’s why I’m here. I was wondering if it’s okay to put her in one of the rooms. She looks like she’s had a tough day.’

Lay nodded understandingly. ‘Of course, it hasn’t been pleasant. I’ll take a look when I’m done but she seemed fine, at least physically. Get her comfortable.’

Nodding gratefully, Chen backed out and left them to their job.

…………………………………………….

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Alisha0074 #1
Chapter 84: Yikes!!
Alisha0074 #2
Chapter 83: What future????? I'm going to reread....
thanks for the update!!!
Alisha0074 #3
Chapter 81: Thanks for the update!!! Its was nice to read this again.
As for the kris may I suggest something??
Alisha0074 #4
Chapter 79: Finally finally xiu can get his girl but now what do we do with kris?????
these elders ....
Crazydork22 #5
Chapter 79: Woohoooo! You go Xiumin! Get your girl!
topgirls
#6
Chapter 77: This update made my morning!! Keep up the great work!!
shenaya #7
Chapter 76: I hope you did not give up on this masterpiece.
Crazydork22 #8
Chapter 75: Oh my GOSH. I was so excited to see a new update on this. I went to read the chapter and I was confused because it didn’t seem to flow with the end of the previous one from my memory so I went back and....somehow I missed an update?!?!!!!! How did I miss two chapters??? And SO MANY XIUMIN LILY MOMENTS???? Ahhhhhhh!!! Okay so loved the Xiu/Lily, her payback was XD also big lol to some of them wondering why it was snowing. This newest chapter, yes! Xiumin! Put a ring on her!



As to real EXOland, oh my gosh I was so so so happy when Jongdae came to Baekhyun’s show! All the pics were LQ, but it was so lovely to see him. AND Minseok and Kyungsoo had their musical live streamed yesterday! I’m so proud of them! Minseok’s character is so adorable and meme worthy!
Alisha0074 #9
Chapter 73: Poor poor minnie!!!!
thanks for the update!!!!
Alisha0074 #10
Chapter 71: Thank you for you're updated!!! Glad to see my 2 lovely ppl falling back in line