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“Calling it lunacy makes it easier to explain away the things we don't understand.”
― Megan Chance, The Spiritualist

Nari coughed, feeling the smoke enter her lungs. She pressed her palm against , trying to muffle the sounds so Namjoon wouldn’t be able to locate her through the smoke. The last thing she saw was his eyes digging into hers and she couldn’t help the slight fear she felt when she saw the anger and vacancy in his gaze.

She bent down and helped Hoseok to his feet before leading him through the trees to where the other two were.

Although they had cleared the forest out, she didn’t want to leave Yoongi and Jimin there alone and unconscious in the unlikely scenario that an Erratic would be able to find him.

She felt the blood drip down her pant leg and when the blood made the fabric stick to her skin, she couldn’t shake off the uncomfortable feeling and the pain that was creeping up her body. It felt as if her leg was on fire and she couldn’t find a way to put out the flame. Her side was burning and with the weight of Hoseok added onto herself, it weighed down more and with every step she took, she bit into her lip even harder.

When they got out of the forested area, she had to drag Hoseok across the rocky path to the other forest on the other side.

She felt Hoseok’s body slump forward and she gasped when she almost lost her footing with the added weight. She looked over to see Hoseok’s face leaning on her shoulder and his arms were no longer around her neck because he had fallen unconscious.

She gritted her teeth and tugged him upward, throwing his arm over her shoulder once again before stepping forward again.

Earlier, she had taken out Yoongi and Jimin’s tracker as soon as they fell unconscious. If she hadn’t, she’d be rushing back to help both of them remove it right now.

She recognized the carved tree and took two lefts, stepped over the overgrown roots and shrubs covering the forest floor. She saw Yoongi and Jimin resting against the tree she had left them at earlier and bit her lip, using the strength left in her body to pull Hoseok towards the other two.

She set him down and tapped against the side of his helmet when she saw him try to open his eyes. His hand was still gripped around his thigh. He opened his eyes to look at her when she called his name. She held up a knife and his eyes followed her every movement.

“Clench your teeth. I’m going to remove your tracker and it’s going to hurt.”

He nodded weakly, not fully in his right mind to understand the situation. His eyes widened when he felt the metal dig into his body and she pressed her hand against his mouth when he was about to scream out in pain.

He whimpered and she in a breath. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. The device has lodged itself deeper so it’s going to hurt more than usual. Bear with me, Hoseok.”

When she finally removed it, she took it into her hands and with her palm she crushed it before throwing the scattered bits behind her. She wiped her hands onto her pants before reaching behind Yoongi to where his bag was and rummaged through it for the gauze she had used on him earlier.

With the little water that was left in his can, she cleaned out Hoseok’s wound before wrapping the cloth around it tightly. She looked up to see that Hoseok was fighting to keep his eyes open at this point.

She put her hand up against his visor and he stared at her through the dirt and dust. She began coughing and his eyes widened. She shook her head when she saw that he was going to take off his oxygenated helmet for her.

“Close your eyes and rest for a bit. You’ll see Taehyung and Jungkook soon.”

Taehyung and Jungkook ran through the forest, dodging the branches and tree roots blocking their way. Around the bottom half of their face was a cloth so that they wouldn’t inhale the smoke.

After they heard the second bullet ring through the forest, they had begun to climb down the tree.

When they reached the rock path dividing the two forested areas, they looked around before running across. Taehyung cursed under his breath when he realized how loud the rocks sounded beneath his boots.

They followed the marks on the trees and found their way to where they saw Nari lying on the ground beside Hoseok, Jimin, and Yoongi.

They shared a quick glance before rushing over.

“Nari? Can you hear me?” Jungkook asked, helping her sit up. She opened her eyes to look at him and she smiled when she saw his face.

“I’m fine. Can you sanitize their wounds? I don’t think I cleaned it out entirely.”

Taehyung, who was checking the pulse on the other three, turned to her and shot her a look. “And you didn’t think to clean out your own?”

Jungkook’s eyes fell onto her leg and the side of her stomach where blood had seeped through the suit, staining it a dark red colour.

“They did this to you?” he asked out loud.

He looked up and nodded at Taehyung. Taehyung took the bag off his back, reaching around for the medical kit before handing it to him.

Jungkook set Nari onto the ground and he took out his knife to cut the fabric off around her wound.

“Namjoon and Jin didn’t come through?” Taehyung asked, turning to her.

She turned her head weakly to him and shook her head. “‘I’m sorry. Namjoon took Jin before I could get him.”

Taehyung shot her a small smile, giving her a pat on the head. “Don’t apologize. You managed to get three of them out of the five. You did a great job.”

She managed a smile back before her eyes rounded when she remember something. “Namjoon and Jin haven’t removed their trackers yet. Soohyuk did something to theirs too. They must still be in pain right now.”

Jungkook frowned, looking up from her wound. “Is there any way we can help them, though? Besides forcefully taking the trackers?”

“Namjoon fought back,” she said. Taehyung raised an eyebrow. “Was he the one who shot you?” She kept quiet and he let out a sigh. He looked up and caught Jungkook’s eyes, the two of them sharing the same thought.

Taehyung had just turned around to finish bandaging up Yoongi’s wound when he felt her grip onto his hand. He turned back to her in question and saw her holding onto his hand when Jungkook started to clean out her wound. He shifted so that he was fully facing her now and when he felt her fingernails dig into his palm, he simply brushed away her bangs and gave her a reassuring smile.

“Hang in there, Nari. Don’t fall asleep on us,” Jungkook whispered, his eyes focused on pulling the bullet out.

“I’m trying,” she replied, struggling to blink away the sleepiness. She felt Taehyung squeeze her hand and she could barely even turn her head.

“Nari, stay awake,” she heard him say but she wasn’t too sure if she managed to reply to him before her eyes closed shut.

Taehyung and Jungkook had waited within the hidden area of the forest until night fell.

They had watched through the leaves when they heard the vehicle start up and when it drove away, they had stood there in silence together. An unspoken feeling of regret and sadness ran through them when they saw the vehicle disappear beyond the horizon.

“Do you think he’ll receive the punishments when they get back?” Taehyung asked. Jungkook stood in silence for a few seconds.

“Most likely. He failed the original mission and if he came here against the Forerunner’s orders, he won’t be let off easy.”

Taehyung looked down and kicked away a pebble on the ground. “I wish the eight of us could be together right now. It doesn’t feel right that the most of us are here while those two have to go back.”

“But Namjoon’s been exposed to the drug and pills the longest out of all of us. I wasn’t surprised when Nari said he fought back,” Jungkook said. He paused and then continued speaking, “And as the leader, he took it the hardest when we lost her.”

“Jin remembered, didn’t he?” Taehyung asked. Jungkook nodded. “It seemed so.”

They had returned to the three unconscious members and carried them to the boat.

After getting Nari and Hoseok onto the boat, the two of them returned together to get Yoongi, and then Jimin. With Jungkook’s arm still throbbing, they had to take on person at a time between the both of them.

“Should we wait until they wake up?” Jungkook asked, looking down at the three. They had made makeshift beds with their cloths and bags lined against one another.

Taehyung shrugged, his hands already reaching for the motor of the boat. “If we wait any longer, you might just catch a glimpse of a man-made Erratic.”

Jungkook raised an eyebrow as he took a seat at the back of the small boat.

“A man-made what”?

Namjoon winced when another wave of pain shot up his arm but he shook his head, clenched his teeth, and kept his focus on the road. He turned to Jin, who was squirming in pain in the passenger seat and he felt the anger rise.

The more he thought about the girl, the more confused and angry he was because deep down, there was a feeling that he must have known her at some point in his life for him to feel so angered at the moment. She kept claiming she knew them and the fact that the sknew their full names stirred something within him.

He thought back to the way Hoseok and Jin doubled over as soon as her name registered in their minds and he tilted his head.

At first, all he could think about was the fact that she must have done something to hypnotize them with her words but then he realized it was her name that triggered something in their minds. He couldn’t wrap his head around why they seemed to know who she was but he did not.

Whether she was an enemy or acquaintance, he had no intentions of seeing her again without taking her back with him to the Cover. If he needed to explain this to the Forerunner, having her as proof would hopefully suffice.

All of a sudden, he felt the pain in his arm subside and he blinked in surprise. Then, he heard a voice cut through his earpiece and his eyes rounded.

“Namjoon, do you hear me?”

He brought his hand closer to his face and pressed a finger against the mic.

“Yes, sir.”

“Where have you been? You were ordered to return to the Cover if you were unable to locate Jungkook, where you not?”

Namjoon hesitated. “Yes, sir. I apologize for my actions.”

“Tell me, how many more members have you lost now?”

“Yoongi, Jimin, and Hoseok. I am bringing Jin back with me right now.”

Namjoon waited when he didn’t hear a reply.

“I expect a full mission report when you get back and a report as to why you disobeyed my orders, do you understand?”

He couldn’t shake off the creeping feeling of fear when he heard the tone of voice the Forerunner was using.

“Yes, sir.”

Yoongi was the first to wake up out of the three and the first thing he did was sit up in alarm, wondering why the scenery around him was moving. He looked around him to see Hoseok, Jimin, and Nari laying beside him and Jungkook resting his head against the side of the boat. Then, he saw Taehyung behind the wheel and he blinked in confusion.

“What is going on?” he asked.

Taehyung turned around in surprise hearing his voice. “You’re awake? How are you feeling?” Yoongi pushed himself up and leaned back. “Aside from some pain here and there, I’m doing fine. Where are we? What’s going on?”

“We’re on a boat. We’re going to circle this island and reach the one nearest to us,” Taehyung replied, turning back to the front.

“So, you and Jungkook weren’t really kidnapped?” he asked. Taehyung shook his head. “No, we weren’t.”

“And you were with Nari this whole time?” Yoongi asked. Taehyung nodded.

Yoongi frowned, staring at his back figure. “Then why didn’t you guys say anything? You left us all clueless back there, searching for you, wondering if you two were alive. Do you have any idea how hard it was for us?”

Taehyung paused.

“It was a lot for us to take in, Yoongi. We’ll catch you guys up with everything later. For now, you should rest. It’s a lot to handle when you’re still recovering your memories.”

Yoongi closed his eyes, confused and too tired to delve deeper into the topic. He let out a yawn. “Where is Namjoon and Jin?”

“Namjoon didn’t remember who Nari was like the rest of you did and thus, didn’t let her take him with her easily. He took Jin with him and by now, they’re well on their way back to the Cover.”

“And where is my helmet?” Yoongi asked, looking around him. Taehyung turned around and pointed to one of the compartments that could be opened up.

“It’s in there. You don’t need it.”

Yoongi raised an eyebrow and he stared at Taehyung in confusion. “What do you mean I don’t need it? Has breathing the air up here made you mad?”

Taehyung chuckled a bit. “Just wait until the other two wake up. We’ll explain everything to you guys.”

Jungkook stirred awake from their conversation and he rubbed his eyes before looking between the two. He smiled when he saw Yoongi staring back at him.

“You’re awake?”

Yoongi nodded. “Clearly, I am. How the did you survive the tornado?”

Jungkook, taken aback by the sudden question, blinked back at him. “I didn’t think I would. I spent a full day laying under the cement and rubble thinking I’d die.”

Yoongi frowned. “Then why did you pull a stunt like that? You could’ve died, Jungkook.” The younger male chuckled, nodding his head.

“I know, but you know how curious I am, I needed answers. Taehyung had contacted me about Nari and when I remembered who she was, I wanted to see for myself what really was going on.”

The two looked up when they realized Taehyung had stopped the motor. He walked over with two cans full of fresh water and he handed it to them.

“Drink something before you guys continue your conversation. I should probably wake Jimin and Hoseok up too. How long has it been since you guys ate something?” Taehyung asked. Yoongi looked down at his watch.

“Over 12 hours, I’d say.”

Jungkook’s eyes widened. “We have some meat that we cooked earlier today.” He got up and crouched down to tap Jimin’s shoulder. He waited until he stirred awake. Taehyung had done the same to Hoseok.

“Nari too?” Jungkook asked, looking over at Taehyung for an answer. Taehyung turned to Nari, whose face had lost all colour and her face was shining under the moonlight because of the sweat. It seemed as if that was a constant sight for them now.

Taehyung shook his head. “No, she needs all the rest she can get. We can explain everything to them while she rests.”

Jungkook nodded, handing the three of them another can filled with cooked pieces of fish. He caught Jimin’s confused and questioning eyes and gave him a small grin.

“Man, these stories just keep getting passed on and on, don’t they?”

a u t  h o r ' s     n o t e 

       Hello, hello. I couldn't quite figure out how to explain the confusion the others would be feeling at this moment so I'll most likely do it in the next chapter instead! 
       Hope you liked the chapter, and see you in the next.