It’s raining in Šerdesas and it has been for the past week. But Yoongi has been here for 3 days now, tailing after the crew of the Stravechi Nava without pause, no matter the weather. The Anningan Yisheng and the Cahyan were at the Yisheng Headquarters, the Heladian was keeping watch at the Trade Sector outside of Zhoumi’s office, and the Long-Huon GIU Lieutenant was sitting at a spot staring straight into Zhoumi’s apartment windows. If the Long-Huon shifted his gaze to the right, he would find Yoongi looking back out at him from the windows but he doesn’t.   

‘Guys I’m so bored – someone tell me a story.’

It’s the Cahyan. Yoongi has learnt to differentiate their voices, learn the lilts and accents of their speech and dialect. The Cahyan had been closely linked to the Isbahaysiga Alliance. Whether or not the Cahyan knew what he had been doing was a different story altogether. But Yoongi now knows of his involvement and wonders if the Being would have chosen to do what he had done, if he had been aware of all the outcomes involved.

Yoongi has also hacked into their Comm-Devices, allowing him to listen in on their conversation. It had been difficult to do so. All four Beings were incredibly difficult to waylay or find an opening to gain access to their Comm-Devices. But inside the ship that carried them from the Mothership all the way here, Yoongi found the opportunity to temporarily nick the Cahyan’s Comm-Device when he had faked his own capture. The guards of the ship had removed all forms of communication device on the Cahyan and so Yoongi slipped into the prison-cell storage facility and had managed to download their specific frequency channel. It was an independent and heavily customized channel that was both impressive and a little daunting. The ship clearly had a lot of individuals who were far more capable than their appearances suggested.

‘How are you feeling Baekhyun?’

This was the Heladian- the Being K’mara had told him to keep an eye on.

There was nothing remotely outstanding about the Technician at first glance, but a closer study of his files lead Yoongi down another path. He was a survivor- the only survivor- of a space-storm. And judging by what he had seen, this was the Being who held the most importance to the digitized-soul aboard the Stravechi Nava.

Yoongi had stood inside that Hangar Bay in the Mothership, watching the two walk around the raised ramps, looking over the slow demolition of the Hive.

How did one Being hold so much value for another? What did they see in each other, what did they feel in each other, what could they perceive beyond what could be seen within each other? Because Yoongi could feel an emptiness around the Heladian- a shell hollowed out and dormant near him, void of the Being whose value and enormity rendered the Heladian whole and Alive. Yoongi could see this, but didn’t understand it.

‘It’s kinda really cool here y’know?’ The Cahyan replies, sounding sleepy. ‘So relaxing – maybe a bit too relaxing.’

There’s slight chuckle, ‘Only you would find that to be a negative thing.’

And then there was the Long-Huon. Yoongi can see some small movement coming from the nearly entirely hidden form of the Lieutenant. Though he was trusted as a ranking individual within K’mara’s commanding force, Yoongi knew K’mara didn’t trust him all together. And the Long-Huon knew this as well. But more than anything, the thing that stood out from this Long-Huon was the shadow that seemed to cling on to him.

Yoongi doesn’t understand this. It’s never mentioned nor is it ever addressed. K’mara obviously couldn’t see it. No one could. But Yoongi could. And he sees how the Long-Huon speaks to it time and time again. There was a strange resonance surround this shadow. In the correct angle or lighting, Yoongi can just about make out red-neon eyes.

‘Not negative. I know this is good for me…but at the same time I wish I were there with you guys. Any luck finding Zhoumi?’

‘Nothing. Isn’t Yixing there? You could keep him company?’

‘Yixing suddenly went full on Yisheng-mode and practically ran away mumbling something under his breath while we were meditating. He said he was free the entire day and we would go around the Headquarters but now I don’t know where he is and I don’t know if I’m allowed to eat at the Service Hall – aren’t Yishengs all health-freaks? Would they stop me from eating again? I need to eat you know? But what if they say I’m fat? I’m not fat! I have two hearts and I need to heal!’

Yoongi notices how Zitao is silently arguing with the shadow next to him, and Yoongi concentrates even more but finds that he can’t see the form, rather he senses the form.

‘I’ve had enough – I’ll just go and check myself.’ Zitao is sitting up from his crouching position. ‘How are we going to find out more information about Zhoumi if we can’t even find him?’

‘I still think we should track him without him knowing we’re here. I know you want to go and punch him, I mean I know I do but we need to think past our immediate anger.’

The shadow next to the Long-Huon moves a little aggressively and the Long-Huon waves a hand as he says, ‘So what do we do now?’.

‘Well, is there any activity from Zhoumi’s apartment?’

Yoongi notices how the Long-Huon’s eyes rove over the apartment, watching every window properly. He had entered the apartment yesterday, leaving very few traces of himself behind. Yoongi himself had stayed out though he could have stayed hidden inside. But the shadow that clung to the Long-Huon had made him reconsider. There was something disconcerting about it so Yoongi had stayed in the next apartment. Yoongi made sure to clean up after the Long-Huon in case any more of the GI agents came back snooping.

‘Nothing. There are no lights, none of the main systems running to his apartment switched on. Didn’t da’ge mention that he’s never been able to contact Zhoumi after they first received their trade mission?’

‘Not even once.’

Zhoumi had gone missing sometime after that. Had he purposefully put off communication with the Stravechi Nava?

‘Where can we find information regarding his whereabouts? Isn’t there some form of directory we could potentially hack into?’

It wouldn’t be possible.

‘It’s too risky. Hacking into the GIU, which is one large ship essentially, is something. But this is the GLA directory we’re talking about – not even J-D would attempt to try it.’

‘You know I’m pretty good at sweet-talking my way into getting information-‘

‘No Baekhyun, no one is going to dress as females and try to get information from GLA officers.’

There’s a choking sound and Yoongi notices how the Long-Huon seems to be coughing, his shoulders shaking. The shadow flits about him as though agitated.

‘I’m-I’m sorry what!?’

‘It’s a long story but making it short and to the point, I needed information, and getting two Beings into the plan would work out with better chances so I pulled Junmyeon in and made him wear a dress and heels and a wig and 2 hours later we got what we needed and we left. The end.’

Laughter was a beautiful and odd sound.

‘D-do you have pictures!?’

‘I think J-D could pull some out yes.’

They share laughter together, a lightness building around the Long-Huon as he laughs uncontrollably. The Cahyan is exuberantly explaining something with great detail. A story he had called it. A memory. Not only of one Beings. But shared and eternal between them.

They existed in each other. Their lives were merged with each other’s, creating an endless cycle of possibilities of their actions, of their words. Creating wavelengths of movement across the stars.

But Yoongi had no memory. He had no memory that converged and met with another. He was not a memory.

What was he?

‘Jongdae no-!’

Yoongi is startled at himself for not paying attention, for not listening.

‘Min-Seok!? Are you all right!? What’s going on!?’

There’s shaking breaths, a panic that Yoongi can feel even though it’s not his own. This was his memory, his present, inter-lapping with Yoongi’s own.

‘Minnie!? Are you all right what’s wrong-‘

‘Jo-Jongdae. Something’s wrong – something’s wrong!’

Yoongi steps away from the wall where he’d been watching the Long-Huon Lieutenant, making note of where the Heladian was to track him and guard him.

‘ I just saw Zhoumi!’

Yoongi freezes.

‘What!?’

‘He was- , he was on a medical bed, he’s-‘ There are footsteps, running and skidding. Added shaky breaths to the already pained gasps that fill the sound channel.

‘He’s in a medical bed, they’re pulling him into one of the recuperation rooms!? I don’t know what’s going on I can’t see beyond this anymore-‘

‘Where are you? What can you see? Was he a patient all along!?’

Yoongi catches sight of the Long-Huon, abandoning any pretense of .

‘I don’t know – I’m at the garden and you can like, look down into some of the hallways but- !’ Baekhyun hisses. ‘I’m gonna go downstairs- but Min-Seok-!?’

‘I’m fine, I’m fine – I need to-.’

Yoongi’s entire body feels electrocuted. Zhoumi was in the Yisheng Headquarters? This entire time? What did it mean? Didn’t he say he was friends with the Yishengs?

‘Go check in with Baekhyun Zitao. Baekhyun don’t get caught – I just. Track Zhoumi. I need to-‘

‘Min-Seok what is going on!?’

‘Something’s happened – inside the Nava – we have to get to them. Baekhyun stay on Zhoumi – just- just leave this to me.’

Yoongi is torn. Who does he follow?

‘I’m coming to you right now Baek – it will take some time but I’ll be there as soon as I can. Did he look injured? Was he unconscious what’s happening?’

Yoongi makes up his mind quickly. He darts out of Zhoumi’s apartment, rushing towards the elevator.

‘I can’t tell exactly- I’m just-shit-.’

‘Baekhyun!?’

Yoongi sinks downwards, uncaring that he’s being caught on the surveillance feed.

‘I’m fine – I just collided with some plants. They’ve taken Zhoumi into a lift – I can’t go in – I’m going to find Yixing – he should know what’s happening!’

There’s a distinct clicking sound. The Cahyan had clearly gone offline.

‘I’m on my way- Min-Seok, what’s going on?’

‘I can’t connect with the Nava- something’s gone wrong-‘

How did the Heladian know about their ship? How was he connected? Yoongi knows that they stopped all communications so that they could keep their location a complete secret.

‘What do you mean something’s gone wrong – what happened?’

‘I- I saw something – I saw what Jongdae was seeing – something’s happened with Lu Han I think I’m not sure-‘

The Android? Yoongi is completely confused.

He sprints past a crowd in front of the elevator, eliciting a few gasps from the surrounding Beings who were waiting for the elevator. Yoongi is past caring.

‘You saw something!? What do you mean you saw something-‘

‘I need to connect to the Nava now- make sure you know what’s happening with Zhoumi and meet up with Baekhyun as soon as possible.’

‘Min-Seok what are you going to do!? Where are you going-!?’

Was the Heladian going to break their communication silence? What was wrong with the digitized-soul? Yoongi finds his parked Drift-08 and spots the Long-Huon zooming past in blasting speed before spearing off into the polarized highways. The Drift-08 hums to life and the camouflage setting installs itself immediately, rendering Yoongi nearly entirely invisible and he zooms after the Long-Huon.

At this speed, the shadow behind the GIU Lieutenant seems to somehow seem more visible and Yoongi can see neon-red eyes, the outline of horns, and a crooked body echoing out of the Long-Huon’s form.

‘I’m going to sleep.’

*

‘Are you comfortable?’

Namjoon glares at Taeh’yung.

He was not comfortable. He was pressed up into a tight cage that was too short for his lengthy height, making him crouch uncomfortably. There were unconscious bleeding Beings pressed up against him and this Taeh’yung or whatever, was also pressed up against him, looking incredibly happy in the process. He’s leaning against Namjoon, practically roping his limbs around him like some strange creature, resting his head on his shoulder in a manner that was far too affectionate for someone who has known him for literally 15 minutes.

By the time the K’it’y had arrived, Namjoon had no choice but to entirely give up and allow himself to be restrained, cuffed, and then thrown into a cage already bursting with other Beings. They were now floating along on a gravity-lift, being pulled in and attached to another larger lift installed with an Atmoshield. Namjoon looks around as best as he could. He saw no signs of pale pink hair anywhere so Sk’jin wasn’t here, that probably (and hopefully) meant that the others evaded capture. But that also meant they were now more or less freed from the ties of their mission. Without a Captain to lead the mission, would the others follow up on it? As Captain, Namjoon was solely in charge of the Užkulisai, without his saying or his command, Lisai won’t start up the ship. But Yoongi had his NaviLet. Meaning they could use that to start up the ship and escape. 

Honestly, Namjoon wouldn’t hold it against them if they planned on escaping and leaving him here to the mercies of these slavers. This was a sticky situation to be in and too much to think about and too much to plan.

‘We’ll be fine soon,’ Taeh’yung says, his hair poking into Namjoon’s under-jaw in an annoying way. ‘Your friends will come and we can set everyone free and destroy the ship and leave!’

‘And just how do you plan on doing that?’ Namjoon asks irritably.

‘Oh- not me!’ Taeh’yung beams up at Namjoon, squeezing him even tighter. Namjoon feels something damp feeling growing on his back as someone behind him groans in a pained way and he just prays it’s only blood and not something else.

‘What?’

‘Well- to be honest I don’t have much of a plan- I never normally I do- I just try my best and things luckily do work out,’ Taeh’yung says with a thoughtful nod. ‘But most of the time, I get help.’

‘Wait- so you’re saying you don’t have a plan, but you expect to free all these Beings, and blow up the ship?’ Namjoon asks incredulously. ‘How is any of this even timed? How are you going to set these Beings free? How do you plan on blowing up the ship without harming everyone on board?’

‘That’s a good question,’ Taeh’yung nods seriously. ‘I’ll think about it. Or we plan together! But wait! We have the perfect wild card for this!’

‘Wild card? What-,’ Namjoon stops himself. ‘Spaces, it’s like talking to a child.’

‘Yeap,’ Taeh’yung grins. ‘Your friend. He’s the wild card.’

‘Look- I don’t feel like explaining the relationship, or lack of it, that I have with my “friend” so I’ll just tell you right now you shouldn’t expect anything from him.’ Namjoon retorts, feeling frustration building up in him.

‘Oh?’

Taeh’yung blinks up at him in surprise, eyebrows going up as he looks away for a while.

‘But the last time I met him he was super helpful and dedicated.’

The gravity of Taeh’yung’s words hits Namjoon a little slowly.

‘Wait- wait a minute,’ Namjoon looks down at Taeh’yung unsure how to phrase his words. ‘You know Yoongi?’

‘Is that what his name is?’ Taeh’yung looks happy. ‘I’m happy he has a name! And friends!’

Namjoon’s mouth opens and closes a few times,

‘Are we talking about the same Being?’ Namjoon tries, hoping that he’s wrong. Actually he doesn’t know why he’s hoping he’s wrong- he doesn’t even know what he’s hoping for. Ever since the start of this mission, Namjoon’s mind has never been at rest and right now everything was getting increasingly confusing and the appearance of this Being is not helping him clear things up either.

‘Um- yeah? I mean, there can’t be a lot of Human GI agents right?’ Taeh’yung quirks his head to the side.

Taeh’yung really was talking about Yoongi. How did this even happen? How does this Being know anything about the GI? How did he know Yoongi was Human?

‘How do know Yoongi?’ Namjoon asks, feeling a little anticlimactic with his questions.

‘I mean I don’t know him- I just know of him, you know?’ Taeh’yung replies, jolting forwards a little more and he promptly makes himself more comfortable as he leans more into Namjoon and adds a ‘you’re really comfy to lean against’ as well.

‘No, I don’t know,’ Namjoon splutters. ‘Explain!’

‘I first met- well, saw him in Šerdesas four years ago! He was present in a meeting of sorts in the Yisheng Headquarters,’ Taeh’yung narrates, making himself comfortable against Namjoon who struggles a little as he literally carries Taeh’yung now. ‘He was with a few of my friends for a while- well sort of “with”- more like just sneaking around and making sure they were okay.’

Namjoon understands nothing. Taeh’yung was there during the first ever Court hearing regarding the Gaia Case?

‘Your friends?’

‘Yeah!’ Taeh’yung beams brightly before he looks sad again. ‘But I had to say goodbye to two of them,- there was nothing I could do.’

‘Um-‘ Namjoon finds himself filled with anticipation as he carefully asks, ‘Were your friends perhaps…involved with the uh-‘

‘Akramanese? Yeap! They were being chased around, and it was terrible- then they freed me from Teronko’ng to help them out and heal a few of them. I was so happy! I hadn’t been freed in a while. So after that I went to Earth to help out my friend.’ Taeh’yung looks sad, his eyes gleaming strangely as though reliving a memory of sorts. ‘He was tired. So tired.’

‘Who?’ is the only question that comes out of Namjoon’s mouth. This Being was in Teronko’ng?! Who was he?

Taeh’yung beams up again. His expression is so childishly innocent and almost carefree, that Namjoon questions his own ears and wonders if he might have just mistaken Taeh’yung’s words. There was no way he could have been in Teronko’ng. it was just impossible.

Taeh’yung gives him a smile, and for a brief second, Taeh’yung’s face entirely changes, morphing into different faces. But it’s gone so quickly that Namjoon, again, questions himself.

‘The most beautiful soul to have ever existed.’

Namjoon feels winded. Like he’d been punched in the face.

‘So how do you know Yoongi? I’m so happy that I saw him- well I mean, felt him more like. No one feels like Yoongi actually- no wait, that’s a lie. There are a few others who feel like Yoongi, but it doesn’t mean anything anymore now that it’s been sealed.’ Taeh’yung mumbles to himself.

Namjoon feels like he’s going to regret asking but he does anyways.

‘What do you mean he feels different?’

‘Yoongi you mean? Well, he’s from another Time you know? When they’re reborn from a Time that comes from  another part of Continuum, they always feel a little bit different.’ Taeh’yung replies as though it’s the most obvious thing.

‘Born from another “time”?’ Namjoon repeats a little hollowly. He’s so taken aback with all of this sudden information from this unknown Being in front of him that he doesn’t even notice they’re being towed away towards the main ship past Grezma’s orbital border.

‘I mean- he’s just like the rest of my babies,’ is Taeh’yung’s extraordinary response. ‘Born in a Time long ago, brought through different dimensions, and reborn into this Continuum. They slept in Dreams for ages and ages.’

Before Namjoon can question this extraordinary “explanation” a few guards come over, leering into the cages aggressively.

‘Shut the up!’ one of them growls. Namjoon notes that the Being’s nose is blotched and discoloured, its shape strangely disproportionate and from the looks of it, recently broken. Good, Namjoon thinks absent mindedly as the K’it’y guard rough-houses a few of the more awake imprisoned Beings, inwardly cheering the Being who punched him.

Taeh’yung’s attention has now shifted to the other Beings they’re cramped with. He’s talking in a low soothing voice, brushing his fingers through matted and dirty hair covered in Spaces knows what.

Who was he?

‘I’m Taeh’yung!’ he replies.

Namjoon belatedly realizes he’s spoken out loud.

‘No- I mean.’ Namjoon pauses. ‘Where are you from?’

‘Ah!’ Taeh’yung suddenly lifts a rather small child from out of nowhere as he disengages himself from Namjoon. Namjoon had no idea a child was even there. The child groans, a mess of fluids pouring out of his mouth onto Taeh’yung’s front but the latter pays it no attention, humming low before he replies.

‘Well, if you want me to get technical then I can,’ Taeh’yung repositions the child, elbowing Namjoon in the process. ‘I’m the fifth generation Zhak’gri from T’sayiti’k. I mean I wasn’t born there. But I guess I sort of am from there? I dunno the entire story- I was sold off by my parents when I was pretty young so I have no actual memory of all of that.’

This was getting too much for Namjoon. The crowded space, the cramped condition, the situation he was in, the catastrophic consequences of what might happen if he doesn’t get out of here, this Being and everything he is saying.

Namjoon knows that for most Beings they wouldn’t understand or even know what Taeh’yung was talking about. And what it meant.

If Taeh’yung was telling the truth, then he was descended from the oldest point of civilization developed and cultured in the Known Universe. T’sayiti’k was a system with only 3 planets in it but it has been pinpointed as the cradle of all life- the genesis of everything. Every species, every Being, every race ever born, could all trace their chemical and biological foundation to this System. It was a known fact that not all species of Beings could survive or be comfortable enough in another Being’s environment or planet due to their own unique chemical and DNA composition. However the T’sayiti’k System housed every possible elemental foundation known to the Universe. T’sayiti’k was used as a basis for all of the scientific facts known to the Universe to this day.

In fact, Raksane Tayi was built based on the T’sayiti’k System and her ideology.

The Zhak’gri were a race of Beings from one of the two planets in T’sayiti’k. They were a strange folk according to what Namjoon has read. They delved deep into the mysteries of Life-force and were, to an extent, the predecessors of the Yishengs. The Yisheng Code, for one, was based off of the findings of the Zhak’gri. Though the Zhak’gri did not have that ability or skill to heal, they delved in much stranger skills and abilities that were never properly documented or explained. Namjoon has never met anyone from T’sayiti’k, let alone a Zhak’gri. He doesn’t think anyone in the past few millennium has met them either. What did Taeh’yung mean by fifth generation? Where were her people? And what had happened to them now?

How did an entire species of Beings, an entire System of planets that basically laid out the foundation of the Known Universe, just disappear from history? How did they just disappear from the present?

‘Your…your people…where are they?’ Namjoon asks carefully.

‘Here, there, everywhere,’ Taeh’yung shrugs. ‘I don’t know- I haven’t met anyone from T’sayiti’k actually. All I know is that I’m the fifth Zhak’gri- or at least that’s what they tell me when they bother waking up.’

‘Who?’

‘The previous Zhak’gri,’ Taeh’yung replies, tapping his temple with a grin before patting the child in his arms. ‘We all share the same soul after all. According to what I’ve been told, I’m something like the fifth reincarnation of the first Zhak’gri.’

‘…I see…’

Taeh’yung nods emphatically and says, ‘But honestly none of that matters to me! I just want to do some good! Maybe blow up a moon? I mean I’ve done a bunch of other things that I’m pretty sure none of the other Four have done, but still, blowing up a moon is on my list of things-to-do!’

Just by his facial expression, you would think the Zhak’gri was talking about maybe going to some attraction site and buying souvenirs rather than purposefully blowing up a moon just for the sake of doing so.

For some inexplicable reason, Namjoon feels like Taeh’yung would fit right into his motley crew of less-than-savory disparate Beings.

The gravity-lift jolts to a stop and Namjoon belatedly realizes they’ve reached the open maw-like Hangar gate of this massive slaver-ship. There are choruses of Beings. Most of them were slaves themselves, judging by the cuffs on their wrists. Namjoon looks up, noting the uniform-like clothing some of the Beings were wearing, similar to the ones the K’it’y guards were wearing except in dark grey rather than dark olive green the Grezma outpost guards wore. They were fully armed with TeorSers as well as heavy looking batons, used clearly to subdue or subjugate the captured slaves.

There’s a rough but strangely fluid language thrown around and a few responses over the radio.

A guard appears in front of Namjoon’s cage and the Being stares at him and Taeh’yung. He’s a large and hulking Being- like the rest of the guards inside the slaver-ship. They were clearly using size as a form of intimidation against the already weak and hopeless slaves being brought in. Mental suppression by creating a visual barrier more powerful and efficient than cuffs. There was no need to spend units on cuffs if your prisoners were caged in with more than just cages and chains.

Taeh’yung beams and waves brightly.

The K’it’y hastens to explain in their tongue- he speaks haltingly, but the slaver-guard seems to understand well enough and barks out an order. Their cage is thrown open and Namjoon is roughly yanked out and slammed down on the floor, arms behind his back. Namjoon could roll his eyes at the basic treatment, gritting his teeth. Taeh’yung is also thrown onto the ground and he too seems used to it. He smiles brightly at Namjoon.

A hand twists Namjoon’s wrists and he knows they’re studying his cuff-links. They would soon find out where he was from and Namjoon can only sigh, knowing what would come next. The cuffs are attached to his wrist and he’s yanked up by them and Namjoon feels the metal dig harshly into his wrist. Taeh’yung is treated the same and they’re made to stand up as though for inspection.

They’re assessed quickly, checking them both for deformities or injuries while another scans them for their identity and species. Namjoon is used to this, unfortunately. Being looked at with scrutiny as though he were an object to be sold on the market- an item to be speculated and bought.

Taeh’yung to his right, launches into a bright conversation with the guard checking him, brightly discussing what Namjoon suspects is a dream he had. He’s slapped harshly across the face to shut him up no doubt, but Taeh’yung continues talking just as brightly. The guards grumble something to each other and the cuffs around Taeh’yung’s wrists come off.

It’s clever, Namjoon thinks, watching as Taeh’yung jumps up and down a little, flapping his arms, presenting yourself as an insane or mentally unstable Being. Because Taeh’yung is promptly ignored and Namjoon is under scrutiny again. They’re saying something in low tones and the K’it’y guard with the broken nose says something harshly, clearly not liking what was being said. There’s a lot of shouting, and Taeh’yung comes and latches himself onto Namjoon, watching with intrigue.

‘Ah- they’re saying that they should help out in Grezma, to clear up the situation there.’ Taeh’yung translates. ‘But they’re saying that they won’t because it’s not their business what the Governors do as long as they have their load.’

Namjoon grimaces.

‘So he’s saying that he’s going to take you and me back because we’re technically not part of the deal. However, he’s saying that they’re taking us as compensation. For free and- ah, yeah-‘ Taeh’yung winces as a punch is thrown.

A quick brawl takes place but the K’it’y has no chance. He’s knocked back a good distance, crumpling on the floor instantly. The rest of the K’it’y crouch and hiss but don’t make take any action. The slaver-guard yells something again and the K’it’y move back grumbling. A bunch of other slaves, clearly employed by the slaver-guards, approach them quickly and push them further inside the Hangar Bay. Namjoon notes the blinking collars around their throats. You didn’t need to be a genius to figure out that the collars were all coded to explode or detonate if the wearer disobeyed.

It’s a large space, with large gravity-lifts stacked up against the tall walls. They must be carrying a lot of slaves. Taeh’yung is immediately engaging the slaves around him in conversation, breaking out into a language Namjoon doesn’t understand. The working slaves don’t reply of course. They’re pushed towards a hallway that lead to a large and open elevator that overlooked a horrifying sight.

There’s a large open space, cylindrical in shape, and crossed over with massive bridges and narrow guard-towers as rings and rings of caged spaces line up and stack over each, creating sickening pillars of slaves. It was like a storage facility, where the slaves were stored until they were sold. Namjoon cranes his neck looking up and finds that he can’t see the ceiling of this facility. The lighting is dim and creates a strange sense of feeling both claustrophobic and agoraphobic at the same time.

He hears Taeh’yung let out a low sound of what Namjoon thinks might be awe.

‘It’s not as bad as Teronko’ng,’ the Zhak’gri muses as though to himself. ‘Wouldn’t you say so?’

Namjoon doesn’t know how to respond, seeing as he’s never been to Teronko’ng.

They’re not lead into the central-facility, they cross over on one of the bridges and enter a lift. They descend downwards and down into the floor. Namjoon suspects this might be the only way to go in and out of the levels were descending into.

They stop and Namjoon doesn’t know how far down they’ve reached. He’s not entire sure if they’ve been travelling in a strictly up and down motion either. There were many lifts and elevators that traversed in cross sections diagonally and horizontally as well.

It’s a dark and cramped space they come out into, lit only by sparse light bulbs that flicker a bit. It’s cold down here and Namjoon’s breaths come out in white vapour.

Taeh’yung breathes out forcefully, creating a large cloud of white vapour and saying, ‘Look! I’m a volcano!’.

He’s smacked harshly across the face.

They walk past thick doors, bolted over with actual bolts rather than digitally. Namjoon is wondering at the lack of security surrounding these cells when a scuffle breaks out ahead. The lighting is bad so Namjoon can’t exactly make out what was happening. But a prisoner seemed to have burst out of his cell, screaming maniacally. The working-slaves beside them all freeze, fear etched into their eyes.

The slaver-guard barks harshly at them and the two in the front move forward, a deadened expression in their eyes as they tackle the prisoner attempting to escape. But before they even fall to the ground, the collars around their necks detonate in a bright flash of light and blood and the screaming stops immediately.

The slaver-guard is barking orders again and the two working-slaves behind them rush forward, picking up the bodies of their fellow working-slaves and the prisoner, now obviously dead.

The slaver-guard shoves open a door and grabbing Taeh’yung, pushes the Zhak’gri into the cell. Namjoon briefly catches his expression and a chill runs down his spine at the intensity of anger in Taeh’yung’s eyes. The slaver-guard bolts the door and then moves to the next cell. Opening it with a loud clang, he grabs Namjoon and shoves him in too.

It’s completely dark and after feeling about with his cuffed hands, he finds that he’s inside a 3 by 5 meter cell that’s entirely empty. Sinking down at the very back, Namjoon takes a deep breath.  

They certainly didn’t need security if they had collars that detonated like that.   

Namjoon stares at the darkness, looking down where he knew his hands were cuffed. It was an annoyingly familiar sensation, having these cuffs around his wrists. Sighing, Namjoon closes his eyes though there’s no difference in opening or closing his eyes.    

He might as well catch up on some sleep.

*

The Yisheng Headquarters is not his home. Yoongi knows this.

The facility hidden in its ground is also not his home. The more Yoongi thinks about it, it felt more like a storage facility of sorts.

This is where he Slept. This is where he Dreamed. This is where he was made. But this is not his home.

He’s here faster than Zitao because Yoongi only used the polarized highway to a certain degree before he flew here. The Drift-08 was a model that wasn’t set for release until after 20 years. Though it still carried its trademark drifting abilities over any and every possible surface, the Drift-08 was designed to fly in-planet. Keeping track of traffic and any incoming Transporters, Yoongi cut across the busy city below by soaring through the clouds for a while, landing silently near the edges of the forest that fenced in the Headquarters.

Yoongi almost instantly heads for his usual route, using the very old and underground tunnel passages that had been constructed a long long time ago. Instead he heads for one of the open lobbies, expertly avoiding all Yishengs and patients who were dawdling about.

It’s quiet as usual here. Filled with Life and a quiet energy that sates all of Yoongi’s being. The air smells like rain.

Starting up his screen again, Yoongi notes that according to his tracking screen set specifically on the frequency of soundwaves from their Comm-Device channel, the Cahyan and the Anningan Yisheng were headed towards the Yisheng Living Quarters. Travelling off-course as well as up in Šerdesas’s upper atmosphere rendered weakly latched frequency waves unstable and Yoongi hadn’t been able to keep track of the crew members Comm-Devices. However their locations were still present to him, having used Šerdesas’s powerful cross-satellites to pinpoint their location. The audio links up as well and Yoongi swiftly makes his way through familiar corridors.

‘-eed him to not come to Raksane Tayi- well at least not here just yet.’

‘Yixing wait- please explain to me what’s going on! Where are we going?’

They’re right below Yoongi now.

‘I know someone who can “heal” you – you and Jongin.’

‘Heal!? What!? But…but Yishengs can’t- you can’t-‘

‘Not a Yisheng. Not a Yisheng – someone else. We’re going to go see him.’

Yoongi takes pause at this, unable to comprehend what the Yisheng was saying.

‘But Yixing,-I…I’ve already made up my mind. I … I don’t want to be healed. My time has come and-If this person we’re meeting is not a Yisheng – and this is Life-force we’re talking about.’

What did this Yisheng know? Yoongi had long ruled his involvement out of all of this. So had K’mara.

‘No Baekhyun. Your time has not come – Time is no longer relevant in this process- ever since the Akramanese tore through the dimensional barriers, ever since J-D himself has existed – what we know as the order of nature, the cycle of continuum – none of these are certain.’

The cycle of continuum? Dimensional barriers? Yoongi struggles to keep up.

‘Your time is not fixed – and I am not going to allow you to simply wither away – you have too much to live for – too much to love. So as your doctor I will not allow you to lose hope. You understand?’

What did the Cahyan live for? What did the Yisheng mean? Yoongi wants to reply,- to shake his head and ask the Yisheng what he meant.

‘Good – we have to pack. Not a lot, just bare necessities – it will take us around 3 days to get there.’

‘Where are we going?’

Where could they possibly go to gain something like this? It’s so beyond Yoongi’s immediate understanding that he can’t even place a name on it. They arrive at the Yisheng Yixing’s quarters, stepping inside hurriedly. Yoongi glances at his screen- the Long-Huon Lieutenant would be here in less than 10 minutes. Were they not going to wait?

‘Oh! Jongin must be in warp- the line keeps breaking – I should track what ship he’s on-‘

The Dakaṣayaii? What had happened to him? Why was he on a ship – he could teleport if he chose to.

‘Yixing! Where are we going!? Who are we going to meet!?’       

‘I don’t know who they are, I’ve only heard of them – but I know that this will work, together it can work, Ubhuku wasn’t a mistake-‘

Yoongi tracks down the word Ubhuku but he comes out blank. There was no information from his mind about this place.

‘Ok but where!?’

‘Teronko’ng Prison.’

Teronko’ng Prison was a massive dead planet that somehow still remained in very slow orbit around Raksane Tayi. It was the largest, harshest, and most efficient prison in the entire Known Universe. Beings sent here were beyond despicable- a place made for the worst of Beings. Yoongi carefully thinks it through and guesses it would be the perfect place for himself.

His reaches for his screen, quietly placing a call as he sinks back into a shadowy recess near a pillar. A Yisheng walks past, completely unaware of Yoongi’s presence.

‘Yoongi. How have you been?’

‘Good afternoon Admiral,’ Yoongi replies quietly, using a term provided to him by his mind. ‘The Yisheng Yixing, and the Cahyan, are making plans to leave Šerdesas and head to Teronko’ng Prison.’

‘What?’

‘They are meeting a Being. Someone the Yisheng has said would heal the Cahyan and the Dakaṣayaii.’ Yoongi adds and not allowing K’mara to speak continues on. ‘Zhoumi is here.’

‘At the Yisheng Headquarters?’

‘Yes.’

It’s silent for a while.

‘Where are the other crew members?’

Yoongi gives K’mara a short breakdown of the events that took place as he trails after the Yisheng and the Cahyan, silently climbing down a pillar and keeping a safe distance from the two as they jog out towards the Hangar Bay.

‘Stay there.’ K’mara orders. ‘Keep watch over at Šerdesas. I will track the Yisheng.’

Yoongi stops in his tracks.

‘Stay on Zhoumi. Report anything else you find or see to me.’

‘Understood.’  

*

It’s after 6 hours, 28 minutes, and 42 seconds and counting that his prison door cell opens. Namjoon is a light sleeper so when Taeh’yung’s door had opened he woke up at once.

It’s very bright- but nothing Namjoon can’t handle. His eyes weren’t like most Being’s eyes and he could very well stare straight into a burning star and not have his eyes evaporate from the gamma rays.

A slaver-guard walks in, roughly grabbing him and pulling him upwards. He shoves him out of the cell and Namjoon finds that Taeh’yung is already there, looking bright and happy. A completely different look than the last time Namjoon had seen the Zhak’gri wear on his face. There are four working-slaves waiting for them as well. Namjoon remembers what had happened and feels sickened by how they’re being used.

Namjoon is cuffed again and shoved forward down the long hallway. The slaver-guard walks ahead, no instructions given or words exchanged. They’re pushed along by the working-slaves and forced to follow after the slaver-guard. They’re not taken into the center-storage of this horrible facility, rather they’re being lead into another hallway leading inwards. Namjoon has no idea where they could be taken and he keeps his eyes peeled.

They’re lead into the same elevator again and they ascend. They come out into the huge cylindrical central-facility but don’t stop. They continue upwards until they move past it into a shaft headed upwards. They stop, almost at random, according to Namjoon, and they’re pushed out.

For such a large ship with such a massive population, the slaver-ship sure was quiet. Their footsteps creates loud clacking sounds against the metal of the floors. They walk past industrial walls and other hallways, passing through guarded doorways. Taeh’yung is still conversing with the working slaves next to him while Namjoon keeps a mental count of the number of steps he’s taken, the number of guarded doors they’ve walked past, and the number of guards walking about. He notes their weapons, their uniform, their surveillance system, and the types of systematic programming they used. Based on what he saw and counted previously, they were now 23 floors above the Hangar Bay they had come in from and possibly near the Central Bridge of the slaver-ship.

The metal-work starts to change gradually. From the harsh industrial looking walls, to smoother chrome walls. They eventually reach a modern and lavish door that the guard in front of Namjoon opens. This was where he was obviously going to be questioned or a place where they were going to label him with a price.

Inside is a large lobby, decorated lavishly and rather cheaply despite the obviously expensive products shoved into every corner of the room. There’s a large table at the center of the room, and surrounding the table were some very grim and greasy looking Beings, all clearly the brains behind this operation. There are 6 of them, dressed in rather simple clothing despite the gaudiness of the room. They were businessmen, all of them. And slaves were their trading units. This wasn’t a means of displaying power or some sadistic game. This was all a business to them. And right now, Namjoon, and Taeh’yung, were potentially very valuable assets the stumbled upon.  

‘So- this the Kutsogleran,’ one of them drawls at once, gesturing to Namjoon to approach.

Namjoon doesn’t move an inch. Even when he’s struck harshly.

‘Oh well, it’s fine- I’ll stand and check him myself.’

He’s short and rather compactly built. Nothing about him really stands out to Namjoon- but these were the most dangerous types of Beings in the first place. He was obviously from Raksane Tayi. Namjoon sees Lal Haenoon in his features and he wants to grimace. Even if Lal Haenoon wasn’t the best of Beings, he was at least, not in the business of slavery.

The Raksane Tayian peers up at Namjoon, studying his face.

‘Damn pity what happened to your lot,’ he sighs out, walking around Namjoon to study him. ‘But great for the market.’

The Tayian then looks at Taeh’yung who grins brightly in response.

‘And this one- who is this?’

‘My name is Taeh’yung!’

‘Good for you kid- he has a pretty face- he’ll fetch a good sum,’ the Tayian nods at Taeh’yung who says a bright ‘thank you!’ in reply.

‘Doesn’t seem like the brightest though,’ one of them remarks.

‘Does it matter?’ one of them blows out purple smoke, tapping at a long thin black cigarette. ‘Most of them would pay even more for that.’

‘But more would pay for an Information Analyst,’ the Tayian smiles at Namjoon. ‘Isn’t that right?’

Namjoon doesn’t reply and he’s smacked across the face again by the guard. The Tayian walks back and sits down on his chair again.

‘Care to explain what you’re doing here? Why you’re here? And why Sario here received a panicked call from Orvan?’ he nods towards his right.

An Orvanan was sitting there, looking remarkably bored though her eyes bore into Namjoon’s with fiery suspicion and distrust.

Namjoon doesn’t reply and honestly the smack across his face is starting to get old.

‘Apparently your “family ship” is a GLA issued trading ship,’ the Tayian peruses a screen in front of him, reading as he says, ‘And I mean I guess this would be normal. You’re retired and you want to work. The Venture Unit could have set you up with a false identity and given you a head-start to a normal life- but…your “crew” is rather particular won’t you say?’

The Tayian leans back, looking Namjoon up and down again before saying, ‘Another former Venture Unit agent who not only turned over most of the Board of Divisions Directors but also killed his own father. A former GI agent- is that even real? Ha! And the crowning glory! Sk’jin, the Khol’isa pirate-lord.’

The Tayian laughs, pushing away his screen.

‘Quite the crew you have there Namjoon, quite the crew.’ He smiles father genially at him. ‘And now here you are, from Orvan, now in Grezma, and now in my ship. Tell me Namjoon, are you here as part of the GLA or Venture Unit’s attempt to clear us out again? They’ve been trying, but they know where they get a lot of their funding from.’

The Tayian laughs again.

‘You can tell me Namjoon- it’s not like the Venture Unit really cares about you. They’re just using you; another terrible report of how brave and honest agents died in an attempt to stop the Alliance.’ The Tayian actually looks at him with some form of fatherly fondness. ‘I would know Namjoon- I used to be part of the GLA Departments- this is a futile  mission. Just tell me what it’s about and we’ll let it go.’

Namjoon doesn’t say a word and he’s smacked across the face again, though this time it’s the other side of his face.

‘You won’t get anything out of him,’ another says with a shrug. ‘They’re trained to never speak and this one is from Kutsoglera. He has a lot of experience with pain- it won’t get him to speak. You won’t get anything out of him unless he wants to give you that information.’

‘Well I’m sure he’ll start talking as soon as we get buyers,’ the Tayian smiles, waving his hands in a shooing gesture. ‘All right, good- take them to the private cells. We’ll send out a message saying we have an Information Analyst. We’ll sell him to the highest bidder in the next 24 hours.’      

The guard shoves them out of the room, nearly making Taeh’yung trip who grabs onto one of the working slaves for balance.

‘Ah! You saved me! Thank you!’ Taeh’yung beams, throwing an arm over the working-slaves shoulders. The guard shoves them apart, forcing Taeh’yung aside and harshly smacking the working-slave. There’s no reaction from the working-slave and Taeh’yung sulks a little, walking next to Namjoon.

‘Stop that,’ Namjoon says under his breath.

‘Hm?’

‘You’ll get them into trouble too,’ Namjoon glances over at the working-slaves, their heads bowed, collars standing out stark against their skin. Their uniform is a dull grey tunic over the same coloured trousers. Namjoon spots a plethora of bruises and cuts across visible skin and old scar tissue and lesions. He sighs inwardly.

There was nothing he could do. It would take an entire legion of operative forces to take over this facility and no life could be guaranteed. Innocent or not.

It was no secret that the Venture Unit colluded with the more nefarious side of the black-market for many things. And Namjoon also knows, all too well, that many of the Venture Unit missions and studies are sponsored and or funded by such facilities. Was Namjoon as guilty as those involved for not speaking up about it?

They’re not taken to the center facility or the cell he was being kept in but instead to another lift. They travel down a few floors in complete silence. Namjoon knows he can’t escape without a lot of the working-slaves dying in the process and he himself getting stuck in some place because he doesn’t know his way around. Besides that, Taeh’yung would probably tag along and cause more problems.

Speaking of Taeh’yung, wasn’t he capable of doing some seriously strange things? Why wasn’t he using his abilities to his benefit now? Instead he’s quietly humming under his breath, seemingly skipping a little. Namjoon’s only way of escape would be after he leaves this facility in the hands of whoever buys him. Namjoon rolls his eyes at himself.

The elevator opens into a large space with caged rooms lining up the walls. It’s entirely empty of prisoners or slaves, but there are 3 other guards in the middle, armed and waiting, looking bored as they watched a screen playing some form of entertainment media. This was obviously an observation room, where “clients” or “buyers” could come and inspect the goods. There’s a Medical Bed to the side as well. Namjoon feels sickened.

But as Namjoon takes one step out of the elevator, the guard leading them crumples down, a dagger buried deep into the back of his head. Before Namjoon even has the wherewithal to comprehend what was happening, the trio of guards at the center of the room also all fall over, daggers buried hilt deep into their heads.

‘That was so cool!’ Taeh’yung squeals.

Namjoon turns, eyes wide as he notices that Yoongi is behind him.

Taeh’yung is however, hugging another Being next to Yoongi and Namjoon watches in utter disbelief as the working-slave’s face morphs rather surreally into Hoseok’s. Namjoon notices how 2 of the other working-slaves behind them seem to be utterly bewildered, taken aback by the events folding out in front of them.

They’re raising their hands to their collars and Yoongi moves faster than Namjoon can process and the working-slaves crumple down as well.

Had Yoongi been there the entire time, not even in disguise like Hoseok, and he didn’t notice?!

‘Er-hi-?’ Hoseok manages to get out before Taeh’yung reciprocates by hugging Hoseok even harder, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

‘I almost couldn’t contain myself! That was amazing!’ Taeh’yung exclaims, looking deeply impressed. ‘It’s nice to meet you! And you too Yoongi!’

Taeh’yung dives to hug Yoongi but the Human side steps him easily. In response to Taeh’yung’s greeting, Yoongi nods, seemingly unsurprised at Taeh’yung’s greeting.

‘How did you get inside? What about the collars?!’ Namjoon splutters. ‘And where’s Sk’jin?!’

‘Can’t explain- it’s safe- we don’t have time,’ Hoseok says quickly as he starts stripping the working-slave of his uniform and clothes. ‘You’re gonna have to disguise yourself.’

‘Did you kill them?!’ Namjoon asks Yoongi, gesturing to the working-slaves.

‘No.’ Is Yoongi’s monosyllabic response. ‘They’re unconscious.’

Hoseok throws the uniform at Namjoon who easily breaks his cuffs, making Taeh’yung exclaim out in awe again.

‘Sk’jin is waiting for us-‘ Hoseok replies, handing Namjoon a Comm-Device and pausing before he hands Taeh’yung one too. ‘-we have to hurry.’

Namjoon feels elated and is deeply touched that they would actually come back and get him out. He steps after Hoseok and Yoongi at once, nearly entirely disguised as a working-slave. Yoongi hands him a deactivated collar to put around his neck.

‘Um- your friend is fine- we can pretend that we’re escorting him back up,’ Hoseok says as he jogs back into the elevator. Namjoon looks around wildly at the surveillance.

‘They’re fake,’ Yoongi says quietly. ‘Sk’jin checked.’

Namjoon has so many questions. But he knows they’re short on time so he stops himself.

‘But wait.‘

Taeh’yung hasn’t moved. He’s holding the Comm-Device in his hands.

‘I still need to set them all free.’

Hoseok and Yoongi stare at Taeh’yung blankly before they both turn simultaneously to stare at Namjoon.

‘Taeh’yung look,’ Namjoon begins desperately as he pushes the Comm-Device into his ear. ‘We don’t have the time or the means to do this-‘

‘­Namjoon- is that you?’ Sk’jin’s voice suddenly cuts in into his ear.

‘-Spaces, what?’ Namjoon bristles as though on automatic response to the Khol'isa's voice.

‘Get Taeh’yung on the line.’

‘What?!’

‘I said get Taeh’yung on the line now.’

‘Taeh’yung? Please,’ Namjoon walks ahead, gently pulling the Zhak’gri into the elevator. ‘And put on the Comm-Device, please.’

Taeh’yung frowns a little, the air around him glowing a little and Namjoon is instantly nervous. He puts the device into his ear as he steps inside and his face goes completely blank before he breaks out into a bright and joyful smile, clapping as he joyfully says, ‘I can’t believe this!’.

Namjoon and Hoseok both sharply turn their heads in alarm, staring at the Zhak’gri in confusion. Yoongi on the other hand, sighs.

Taeh’yung beams even more brightly and adding to Namjoon and Hoseok’s immense confusion says, ‘It’s so nice to meet you again Jin!’

*

Yoongi can’t find a way to enter the lowest chambers of the Yisheng Headquarters. It was too densely protected.

So if Yoongi couldn’t find a way to get to Zhoumi, then neither did the Long-Huon Lieutenant. However, he does stay in the Headquarters, living in the Anningan Yisheng’s quarters. Strangely enough, no shadow lingers over him here. No neon-red eyes peer over his shoulders.  

Yoongi is hiding rather openly, sitting down on one of the many benches on the second level atrium balconies overlooking the main Lobby downstairs. He sits next to a large potted plant, the leaves hiding him almost perfectly. In order to blend in better, Yoongi had discarded his uniform for a patient’s uniform. The Headquarters was much too populated to be overlooked

‘Has the source of the recent disturbances been discovered?’

Yoongi watches as a Yisheng walks into the Lobby, followed by a younger Yisheng.

‘I heard that there was a strange anomaly?’

‘It was very faint,’ the younger replies. ‘But it’s been 2 days now since the disturbance stopped.’

‘Odd – it simply vanished?’ the Yisheng notices the Long-Huon, smiling politely. Yoongi watches as the Long-Huon pulls on a charming smile.

‘It would seem so – we weren’t able to trace the exact location but it seemed to come from the lower floors.’

Yoongi isn’t surprised by the discussions the Yishengs were having. He’s been overhearing many conversations, citing that a strange disturbance seemed to be resonating from the lowest chambers. This wasn’t coming from Zhoumi, or from the stoic GLA personnel.

This was coming from that strange shadow that followed the Long-Huon Lieutenant around.

Yoongi cannot come up with any information or any idea regarding this entity. All he knew was that it could speak, it could see, and it existed. But its existence was one that Yoongi could not comprehend or sense. And though Yoongi knew that he could move without being seen or noticed, he had a strong sense- an intuitive warning inside his mind, that told him that it would be able to sense Yoongi.

The Long-Huon stretches where he sits. There is no communication amongst the crew members anymore.

The Yisheng, Cahyan, the Venture Unit agent had all landed on Teronko’ng’s outer orbit before vanishing from all tracking radar. This was to be expected, because Teronko’ng was one of the most isolated and controlled locations in the Known Universe. 

Yoongi hears it before he sees him. A panicked and maddened frenzy laces through the air, the hair on the back of Yoongi’s neck rises. There’s shouting and Yoongi stands, reaching into the pot for his helmet and TeorSer at once.

A mad form runs out of one of the corridors and Yoongi recognizes him before he rushes into the opposite doorway. But bursting out again, Zhoumi remerges.

The elder Long-Huon looks terrible. His hair is unkempt, his skin pale and sallow, his eyes have a maddened expression to them. Where had he been? What had he seen?

Zhoumi seems to regard the Long-Huon Lieutenant in front of him with shock yet an expression that suggested he wasn’t all too surprised to see him. He yanks out the tubes that are trailing out of his arms, a spray of blood washing over the floors.

‘Zhoumi-‘

Zhoumi runs and tackles the Lieutenant and they fall backwards with a loud smack. The Lieutenant coughs out a pained gasp but the tackle is short-lived.

He was after all, a fully trained operative member of the GIU. His training would be on par with many of the agents of the Venture Unit. He quickly gains the upper-hand, flooring Zhoumi and pushing him down and restraining him.

Zhoumi is half-yelling, half-spluttering as he foams in the mouth, face reddening. Yoongi almost doesn’t recognize him. The Long-Huon Lieutenant is staring down at Zhoumi in horror and confusion.

There’s a scrambling approach of footsteps and a young Yisheng-in-training appears.

‘Calm him down or something!’ The Lieutenant orders at once.  

But the moment he says this, Zhoumi’s actions still .

‘Oh, that was fast-‘

Yoongi can see the ploy before it happens. Zhoumi regains the upper-hand as he flips them over, and the Lieutenant cries out in pain as his head hits the hard floor with a cracking sound.

‘Zitao!’ Zhoumi hisses, his tone pitched and nothing like how Yoongi remembers it to be.

‘You need to warn them!’ he speaks in Long-Huon rather than in the GLA Standard. Zhoumi was much more aware than what his appearance might suggest.

The GLA personnel appear, pulling the flailing Long-Huon off of the Lieutenant who was gasping for breath, struggling to regain his composure.

‘NO! NO! LISTEN TO ME! YOU HAVE TO WARN THEM ZITAO! WARN THEM! THEY’RE GOING TO FIND HIM-‘

Zhoumi’s face is almost purple from the exertion of screaming and struggling. The Lieutenant manages to stand, approaching Zhoumi who was battling against his guards mightily.

‘Find who? Zhoumi, what are you talking about-‘

‘He’s mentally incapacitated,’ one of the personnel says curtly to the Lieutenant, nodding towards a Yisheng who was on stand-by.

‘Are you a relative?’ one of the other officers asks the Lieutenant sharply.

‘Yes- wait please let me speak to him-‘ The Lieutenant lies immediately- trying to reach Zhoumi but the Yisheng reaches for the latter, palms over his temples and Zhoumi instantly weakens in between his guards grip, his head lolling backwards momentarily.

‘We’re sorry you had to see that, we will be taking him back – no visitors allowed under orders of the GLA,’ the guard says to the Long-Huon Lieutenant who has an incredulous expression on his face.

‘Zhoumi-!’

Zhoumi seems to respond to Zitao’s voice, shaking awake.

‘Zitao-‘ he whispers out as he’s pulled away hurriedly.

Zitao pushes past the personnel, behaving as a confused and panicked family member would as he reaches and successfully pulls Zhoumi to himself.

Yoongi cannot hear from this point on and after a few short seconds, watches as Zhoumi is pulled back.

The Long-Huon Lieutenant stands frozen still, a worried and anxious look on his face. Yoongi is about to follow after the GLA personnel when Yoongi realizes he’s not alone.

Looking over the side of the balcony he notes another Being, staring down at the scene calmly. The Being is wearing full black, a helmet over his head. He doesn’t notice Yoongi who is hidden behind the lush leaves. The GI agent doesn’t follow Zhoumi but instead continues to keep track of the Long-Huon Lieutenant.

The Long-Huon regains his momentum and he starts jogging away, clearly headed for the Anningan Yisheng’s quarters. And then the GI agent follows.

Yoongi moves quickly, staying low and sticking to the wall.

The GI agent is ahead of him and Yoongi knows he’s keeping track of the Lieutenant in the corridor below them. Yoongi maintains a quiet and safe distance, watching with mounting confusion as the agent continues forward, making no move, making no action.

Then as soon as the Long-Huon enters the quarters, the agent spins and throws a startling fast and swift dagger straight at Yoongi. Yoongi dodges it just as quickly- using his screen as a deflective shield of sorts. The screen breaks in his hands, pieces falling over the carpeted ground with little to no noise. Another dagger flies straight at him again and Yoongi skids to the side, feeling the blade slice through his hair as he rolls onto the ground, avoiding another dagger that, this time, he catches. He’s not wearing gloves so the blade cuts into his skin but Yoongi doesn’t care. He’s armed and that was all that mattered. Taking a leaping jump, Yoongi quickly and calmly overwhelms the agent.

Yoongi still has the element of surprise- of shocking his opponents whether it be because of his stature, his mannerism, or his identity. And he uses it well.

Yoongi hears footsteps from the corridor underneath them and he hastens to get rid of the agent at hand. But the GI agent recovers, swinging his left arm hard and true and striking Yoongi across his side. Yoongi doesn’t sense anything rupturing but knows that he can’t take another blow there.

He swings his knee up, just as he brings down his forearms over the agent’s shoulders. They’re the same height, so Yoongi cannot use their height difference to his advantage. This was on equal footing and Yoongi thinks quick to gain power over the agent.  

The agent, however, seems prepared. He grabs Yoongi by his hair, yanking him backwards, his knee slamming into Yoongi’s lower back. He drops the knife from his hand, landing almost soundlessly over the thickly carpeted floors. This was why the agent had walked here- he was luring Yoongi out.

Yoongi sees stars for a brief moment but this momentary disorientation is all the GI agent needs. Yoongi finds himself lifted from the ground and his back bending backwards as he’s balanced over the railing of the balcony overlooking the living quarter hallway below.

Yoongi glances down briefly and notes that Zitao is struggling to remain calm as he’s being questioned. Yoongi pushes the hand grabbing at his throat away, letting his elbow swing upwards, landing in a quiet muffled blow against the sternum of the agent.

Winded, the agent stumbles back but Yoongi knows that the uniform absorbs most of the damage anyways. He was going to have to get to the weakest point quickly.

All armours had weaknesses in them- but this was not the case with the GI uniform. The all black uniform was almost entirely invulnerable and had no weakness. But Yoongi, unlike this agent in front of him, is experienced fighting other agents.

Sliding on his knees over to the knife, Yoongi strikes the blade down on the foot of the agent. The blade pushes past his foot, down past the soles of his shoes, and an inch into the floor below. Yoongi twists, pushing himself up on his arms, his legs swinging up to tie his legs around the agent and pulls him down on the ground.

Reaching behind him as he swings up, sitting down with purpose intent over the agent’s chest, Yoongi delivers the blade under the helmet, straight through the agent’s chin.

Breathing harshly but entirely quietly, Yoongi pushes off of the dead agent, finally feeling some of the pain inflicted on his body.

He quickly glances down and finds that Zitao and his guests were no longer there.

Jumping down the balcony, he lands quietly in front of the doorway. He listens closely,- he hears some movement and instantly he moves towards the side, sprinting for the hallway that lead to the gardens surrounding the living quarter perimeter. There were wide open balconies overlooking the woods, and he was on the second floor. He would need to put some distance between himself the crew he was tracking, to figure out whether it was only him that was being targeted or if the crew themselves were under threat.    

He could be potentially endangering the Long-Huon and Zhoumi as well by staying here.

In retrospect, Yoongi should have suspected this was going to happen. Too many of their agents had died, and at terribly high efficient rates. They knew. They knew and they were going to move against him. Against them. He’s almost out into the gardens but the moment he does, Yoongi senses them at once. 

He barely manages to avoid the figure that comes hurling at him from the woods, swinging upwards towards him through the trees. Yoongi senses another one approaching him from the back, and there’s more of the agents in the trees. He needed to pull them away from the Long-Huon inside lest he be dragged into the fight.

Yoongi runs straight ahead, using the wall as a lever and twists himself in the air, tackling an agent headed for him. His fighting movements are faster than normal, not being weighed down by his uniform though he’s never had a problem before. Yoongi has always been a speedy fighter, but today his movement seems to have increased twice over in speed. Though he’s unable to deliver the usual power at the end of his hits, he moves faster than the agents that try to converge on him.

There’s 4 on him on the balcony and using their slower and taller forms to his advantage, Yoongi climbs over them, his bare feet actually having more grip than he initially thought, easily twists the neck of one of the agents. Using his momentum, he pushes and dives off of the balcony, dragging one of the agents with him backwards, effectively breaking their back.

Yoongi lands on the balls of his feet, balancing himself as best he could with his injuries. But he can’t waste a single second. Yoongi counts them at 7. More could come. They were after all less than a hundred meters from where their home. No, not home. It was more like a storage facility, if Yoongi thinks about it.

A silent and accurately aimed reduced TeorSer shot is fired at him, singing his hair in the back as he darts straight into the woods, 3 of them at his heels.

Diving into the forest, Yoongi is already prepared.

This much was a fact,- no matter how trained, how efficient, how method the GI agents were, Yoongi knew that he would be able to defeat them all. Because the plain and simple truth being Yoongi had the upper-hand.

He was one of them. He fought like them, trained like them, he was them. But now- Yoongi can think beyond what they were capable of. And because of this- Yoongi knew he was going to defeat them all. He would probably come out with a few injuries- possibly some ruptured organs. Maybe a broken femur. But bones could be healed, organs could be regrown. But Yoongi cannot come back to life, so he knows he has to survive.  

The moment he steps deep enough into the woods, Yoongi turns back and counter attacks. They’re surprised,- not expecting such a reaction from Yoongi who seemed determined in running away. This surprise allows him to disarm and easily shoot one of the agents.

He keeps a mental check-list. 1 down, 6 to go. But during this moment, Yoongi finds himself forcefully kneeling as a sharp pain blinds him, radiating from the back of his knee. Had he not been expecting it, this socket would have popped out. Using the TeorSer in his hands as a shield of sorts, Yoongi blocks the knee to his head, firing in the process in quick succession. One of the TeorSer rockets past him, grazing his arm and the flesh on his arm cooks at once. ing his elbow back, he catches the agent approaching him from the back with resounding crack and grapples for his head at once just as another TeorSer fire is shot at him. The agent he pulls down takes the brunt of it and Yoongi manages to take down two more as they run towards him.

3 left.

But they all dodge away from Yoongi, ducking back to the trees.

Yoongi wonders if this is the first time any of them have had to actually fight against someone else other than a fat politician or panicked pirate-lord. Moving quickly, Yoongi pulls out the daggers from the side pockets of the fallen agents around him, staying low and practically crawling away. He hones in on hearing his surroundings rather than seeing. The GI agents were too good at staying hidden and in this dark forest, Yoongi can’t rely on his eyes without a helmet.

He hears the faintest whistle of sharp movement and Yoongi deflects the dagger thrown at him with the one in his hand and barely has time to brace himself as he’s tackled from his side. Hands are deftly reaching for his throat but Yoongi moves too quickly for a lasting result. Striking out right into his captives armpit, severing the tendons there, Yoongi doesn’t push back but instead collapses his arm, making the agent on top of him lose balance and collapse straight into the other dagger Yoongi is holding.

2 left.

Yoongi stands quickly, deflecting yet another dagger and rolling down when a steady flow of sharp metal blades fly at him, mixed in with TeorSer shots. But Yoongi moves closer and closer towards where the agents were.

His body is clearly fatigued so his movements, though so much lighter than before, loses speed. A few of the blades knick past him, but he can stand straight as he launches himself from the floor, pushing down an agent underneath him with his full body weight.

He’s thrown off and Yoongi had been expecting that- however the second agent remaining takes this as initiative to disarm and disorient Yoongi, his hands coming together in a thunderous clap over Yoongi’s ear.

Yoongi’s senses instantly drop away and he’s left completely defenseless. But his body is already moving, regardless of his senses being obstructed. His hands latch onto the agent’s wrists and he wrenches their arms apart, forcing them to arch inwards and Yoongi brings up a knee to gut the agent right at the hollow under his sternum. The blow is not as strong as Yoongi would want but it’s enough to get him close enough to pull out the dagger in the guard behind the agent’s back. Yoongi makes quick work of digging under the seam of the uniform and slices the agent open from back to chest, a wide arc of blood tainting his vision momentarily.

1 left.

With difficulty he blocks and defends himself from the onslaught of offensive attacks that don’t stop. Yoongi takes the brunt of it, unable to effectively defend himself. Rather than breaking his femur, Yoongi feels at least 3 of his ribs break and he’s sure his intestine has ruptured. There’s a cracking sound and Yoongi, despite his senses being limited, feels his collar bone snap. There’s something warm pouring around his face, and Yoongi knows it’s his own blood. He can’t focus and he knows he has to. But it’s proving nearly impossible.

He can’t extend his arms too much; rather than fighting, or even defending, Yoongi is flailing. He needs his opponent to get closer to him. Dropping down on his knees, Yoongi can only hope his plan works out.

It does.

The agent swings their arm downwards, elbow aiming for Yoongi’s head. But Yoongi shifts at the last second, the force of the attack landing on his shoulder and he knows it’s dislocated at once. But he ignores it and uses his good arm that’s holding the knife and s it into the side of the agent’s neck.

They stumble backwards and Yoongi feels the warmth of their blood pour over his shirt at a rapid pace. The agent twitches on top of him, arms still moving as though to fight Yoongi. Yoongi manages to roll the agent off, heaving as he does so. His ears are still ringing but Yoongi has to move quickly.

Yoongi tears the uniform off of the agent, stumbling in the process and nearly blacking out a few times before he is pulling it over himself. But he needs to move fast so that the uniform doesn’t disintegrate into nothing. The agent is a female of a species Yoongi doesn’t instantly recognize. But the uniform fits him well, the fabric shifting and aligning to his muscles and bones, fixing what needed fixing and supporting and conforming around his injuries, somewhat lessening the pain. He takes her helmet as well, pushing it over his head and readjusting himself to the visor. There was a risk to this, unlike with the helmet, but Yoongi needs this if he’s going to survive the night. If there were agents after him, then he would need to be ahead of them- in order to defend himself. And he can’t do that if walking is painful, let alone running.

He pulls the helmet over his head and he’s just in time to witness a strange glitch takes over the HUD visor and Yoongi is momentarily distracted.

[SYSTEM OVERRIDE_Y/N]

                [Y]

                [INITIATING SELF-DESTRUCT]

A strange blistering feeling rips through his scalp and into his skull and Yoongi removes his helmet faster than he’s ever moved. In a wave of black dust that disintegrates into nothing, his helmet crumbles apart. His heart is racing.

He nearly falls backwards but is saved the fall when his back comes in contact with a tree behind him. He slides down, his hands shaking, his entire body trembling. The uniform is really working to keep his body together.

He nearly died.

Yoongi realizes he’s sweating profusely, and there’s blood as well, staining the already blood soaked uniform twice over. His sense come back to him slowly. His breath comes out of him in loud shallow pants and the first thing he hears is the somewhat diminished but slowly increasing  high-pitched ringing.

The moment he is able to hear better and his vision also clears, Yoongi stands up and he’s only just a little bit disoriented. The uniform, though lighter than it normally would be seeing as all the weaponry attached to it is gone, is still heavy on him. But the weight grounds him and shapes him up. He notes that the bodies of most of the agents are entirely gone already. Save for the female behind him.

As Yoongi walks away from the woods back towards the Yisheng Headquarters, he doesn’t know why but he feels strangely guilty for leaving her out in the open.

The sky is darkening and Yoongi forces himself to concentrate. His mind felt strangely blank- almost lifted. He didn’t understand what it was- or why everything around him looked so strangely different yet so familiar. With difficulty, he jumps up and scrambles into the balcony of the Yisheng living quarters and peers inside. It’s empty- the Long-Huon had left. He checks to see if there were any signs of disturbances but all was safe. So the Long-Huon was safe. For now.

Stepping into the room, Yoongi looks for a screen of any sort he can use. This was the Anningan Yisheng’s room- he should have a screen he could use in here, and one that allowed him to connect to the crew members of the Stravechi Nava.

Leaning heavily against the wall, Yoongi carefully opens the drawers of the desk over which notebooks and diaries were scattered. He finds a slightly older model of a screen but finds that it’s still fully charged. And just as he had hoped, the Anningan still kept the communication frequency for the Stravechi Nava on this screen. Activating it, Yoongi digs around for a Comm-Device and finds another rather outdated one but it would do.

Accessing the channels from the GLA Tracking switch, Yoongi instantly finds the Long-Huon Lieutenant. He was on his way back to his own apartment, where the Heladian was sleeping in his strangely cryogenic state of unconsciousness. Yoongi watches the small dot of light moving across the tracking screen and to his horror, finds that he’s tilting forward, eyes closing. He can’t afford to get knocked out. He needed healing.

It was ironic because though he was in a place meant for healing, Yoongi can’t allow himself to be seen. He quickly exits the room the same way he had come in. Dropping down on all fours, Yoongi leaves behind drops of blood on the grassy floor. Swaying dangerously, Yoongi stands up and heads back into the woods. If he’s attacked now, he won’t be able to fight back effectively. But he meets nothing and no one. Had they truly thought he was dead?  

He needed medical attention. Immediately.

And the only thing he can think of is returning there.

He hasn’t been down there in a long time. He’s been away longer before- on missions. But this time, it felt wrong to even think of going back. But everything tells him to go back. His mind tells him that he was currently going through something called “gut instinct”. Pausing, Yoongi tries to think clearly again.

He needed the medical attention, and he needed a helmet. He would also need to arm himself again. There was no way he could carry out K’mara’s mission if he wasn’t able-bodied and armed.

His feet carry him, his body making the decision before he can fully comprehend.

He tries to remember everything about the place- this would be the first time he’s gone in after being aware. After being truly Awake. After understanding that this would be a memory for him to process. An epoch in the pages of his life.

Or would it be like every other time he as returned here.

The doorway is hidden rather openly. It’s a small shack of a room that has stairs that takes you down to another door.

Yoongi simply pushes through and he’s lead into an empty dome-roofed room. Low pedestals stood on the ground and he weaves his way around it. There was no security in this place. You didn’t need any either.

No one would ever think to ever look here. To ever come here.

There’s a door on the opposite end and Yoongi enters the narrow and cold hallway that turns left inwards.

The hallway is immensely long and dark. There are countless doors on either side. It’s utterly silent and the air is so still it was as though Yoongi was the first Being in an age to have stepped foot here.

He’s never thought about the other doors before. He’s never thought about what could be behind those doors. He’s never felt the urge to open them either. He’s also never known which of these doors was his. But his feet stop far into the hallway and as though by muscle memory, his body moves as his mind watches. The door swings open silently and easily. There are no handles. Just simply pushing forward.

It’s a small space. No windows. A narrow bed of sorts that lights up and throws light into the room. This is where Yoongi used to Sleep. Where he used to Dream. Where he was made Known of his missions.

It’s frighteningly empty. Beside the bed is a device similar to a helmet. On a shelf by the wall are his uniforms, helmets, and other gear.

It’s so empty and void.

Unable to help himself, Yoongi leaves the room and goes straight into the room opposite his.

An agent was Sleeping, helmet attached to their head. The glow of their bed illuminating the room faintly. Even with a living being inside the room, it felt deadened and lifeless.

Yoongi steps back into his room and quickly lays back down on the bed. This is the first time he’s aware as he’s being healed. The bed glows, clearly scanning him.

Mechanical arms unfold and work over Yoongi’s body and his head. He watches as his skin is re-sewn, his wounds sealed over with Tissueplast, and his bones knitted over. It’s faster, more efficient than the current standard of Medical Beds or Pods. Yoongi doesn’t feel any additional pain- he dimly realizes that this was probably because he was used to it.

Muscles burning and bones feeling like they were iced, Yoongi stands again. He reaches for a helmet, images of the helmet disintegrating in his hands comes to mind. He leaves the helmet and stocks up on his weapons and gear.

Yoongi steps out just in time to find a long line of agents walking past. He quietly joins them at the rear and easily takes out the rear agent. Silently immobilizing them and taking his place as he slots on his helmet.

He’s thinking of separating from the unit as they walk out when he realizes that this unit of 15 agents were headed after the Long-Huon Lieutenant and the Heladian.

[INCOMING JOINT MISSION FROM HEADQUARTERS]

[ACCEPT]

[RECEIVING DATA]

[MISSION 9357-2595-1109] 

[COORDINATES _SERDESAS]

[OBJECTIVE: ASSASSINATION]

[TARGET: LIEUTENANT HUANG ZITAO]

[OBJECTIVE: CAPTURE]

[TARGET: MIN-SEOK]

                [ASSASSINATION METHOD_HELADIAN ANTI-CORE]

                [IMPLEMENT_OBSERVE]

                [CAPTURE_INTERROGATION]

                [CAUTION_HELADIAN ANTI-CORE UNSTABLE]

                [PREVENTIVE CORE INITIATE TO STABILIZE]

                [CAPTURE_LIVE]

[MISSION 9357-2595-1109 EXECUTE IMMEDIATELY]

Yoongi studies his fellow agents- unaware of his presence amongst them. There was a saying from Earth- his own Human roots.

A wolf amongst sheep.

Or was he the shepherd?

They step out into the cool night, headed for a series of Drift-08’s parked under the trees.

Did they see it too? The light of the moon edging along the blades of grass, the sound of the rustling of trees in the wind, the way the ground is soft under his feet. Could they hear how wildly his heart was beating? Could they sense him, the anomaly amidst them.

But were they just like their rooms. Deadened and empty, unaware, unknown, and nonexistent?

Yoongi’s body is buzzing- not from the adrenaline of what just happened or the result of the medication working into his system. It’s not because of how if his fellow agents study him properly, he would be discovered and he definitely wouldn’t walk away from this fight, or how he’s become aware of his standing as a Being who was now fully accepting and understanding his place in the Universe. Of understanding where and why he was in the Universe. It wasn’t a fear of dying that had gripped Yoongi. Rather it was the fear of being utterly forgotten.

His body is thrumming, his senses overwhelmed and everything is reborn to him. He was living the first of his memories right here and now. He was living the past, the present, and the future of his being, his existence.

Yoongi feels Alive.

*

(Author’s Note)

Please don’t hate me when I say that I liked The War over Exact. I liked Exact a lot but The War just takes it for me. and also please never let Kim Jongdae my bias and my grown man of a son, write lyrics because if that ain’t some poetry about s then idk what it is anymore.

And does anyone like Game of Thrones.

Because I DO I LOVE GAME OF THRONES AND THIS SEASON IS ALREADY KILLING ME WOOOOO I AM SO READY FOR THIS

And to celebrate GoT7 (lol) I made moodboards!!!

BTS in Game of Thrones

Exo in Game of Thrones

Got7 in Game of Thrones

And if anyone is curious, I am House Tyrell. *cries because of Season 6*