Kai stopped the car as per Luhan's instructions, he glanced at Yoongi who just packed his car beside his. He exited the car and moved to open the door for Luhan but Jungkook was already doing it, so he made his way over to where Namjoon stood taking a look at the place. Kai took a look at their surroundings as well. The place look abandoned, and Kai for a moment wondered if Luhan really did led them to the right location. "It's the perfect place for illegal experiments" Yoongi said, placing a hand on Kai's shoulder. "I've gotten reports from unknown sources complaining about this place, but my superiors wouldn't allow me to go through with the investigation. And I suspected it belongs to someone with influence and power, they probably knew that which was why they kept declining my offer to investigate" He jerked a little when Luhan came to stand next to him. "But good thing I am not here as an officer. Today" Kai nodded and was about to say something when Luhan suddenly grabbed his hands. The merman looked like he's in pain for a moment before taking a deep breath."Brother here" he pointed at the building ahead. "Walk now. Brother is pain. bad" That's all Kai needed to hear before bolting into a sprint but before he could move further, Yoongi grabbed his arm, halting him."Slowly there, cowboy. Do you really think you can knock on their door and get your merman back just like that?" He scoffed. "He's right. They may be a group of ed up people but I doubt they are dumb. There will be a lot of locked doors, high fences, guards, cameras and . We need a plan." Namjoon agreed. "I don't ing care, didn't you hear what Luhan said? Sehun's in pain." He pried his arm off and continued toward the building, he heard Yoongi cursed under his breath and Kai didn't have to turn to know that the others were right behind him. ! , what could've possibly happened to him ? ! "Please be okay," Dashing toward the building, Kai kept chanting the same short prayer like a mantra. "Please be okay..." Kai was never one for morning workout sessions but now he ran like his life depended on it. The short while from where they parked the cars to the building felt like an eternity, even though in reality it was just a few meters away. And when he finally broke into the building stumbled onto the titled floor, Kai had to pause for a second to catch his breath.  It's a medical building just like Yoongi had said, and Kai was surprised to see the inside neat and clean. Please please don't be hurt, Kai pleaded with tears stinging in his eyes. There were many doors and he didn't know which one would lead him to Sehun thus he pushed through the first door that came in view. It was a huge lab, with several tanks and medical equipment in it, his eyes scanned around it but it seemed empty. No one was inside, Kai quickly exited the lab and pushed through the next door he saw, it's almost the same as the previous one, just that this one was a tad smaller, unfortunately it was empty as well, Kai realized after taking a proper look. He furiously wiped his tears before exciting the second lab. "Let's spilt up" he said when he joined the others in the hallway. "Yeah I was thinking the same, the place is just so ing huge." Namjoon nodded. "Luhan!" Baekhyun called. "Can you still feel Sehun?" Luhan nodded. "Yes me feel brother–" he made a gesture with his hands. "Big here" "Where exactly?" Kai pressed. "Not know, but brother in building." Kai nodded. "alright, we should spilt up. Then" "What es spilt up mean?" Luhan asked. Chanyeol quickly began to explain in the language the mer understand better. And the mer prince made an O shape with his mouth. "Let's go in pairs" Namjoon suggested. "I will go with Yoongi, Kai should go with Luhan and Jimin in case they needed to communicate." "Baek and I will take the other wing" "What about me?" Jungkook asked. "Just come with us" Namjoon said. "We'll take the right." "It's not in pair anymore. Why not just say we should team up?" Jungkook made a face. "Whatever!"Yoongi waved a dismissive hand. "Be careful, we don't know how many guards are in here, because I am certain whoever owns this place won't leave it unguarded." Chanyeol told them. "Yeah, call for help if any of you needed it" With that Yoongi, turned and made for the stairs. Kai and his team continued to check inside those rooms they came across. It was in the fifth one that they saw a huge tank with two mermen swimming back and forth anxiously. Luhan quickly rushed to them, and began speaking in their mer tongue. Jimin joined in the conversation saying something Kai didn't understand and he just stood there like an idiot watching them. "Taehyung said Sehun was taken to the main experimenting room that is two doors away from this room." Jimin told him. Taehyung, that's Namjoon brother, and who's the other merman with him? Kai didn't have the time to ponder on that as he quickly ran out of the there. it was hard to see clearly in the room, it was a little dark and most part of it is destroyed.(he could barely make out the dead bodies littering the room.) Yet Kai's eyes like a magnet to iron immediately fell on a figure lying on the floor a few steps away from him. With harshly beating heart and a flipping stomach Kai moved closer, and then promptly fell on his knees when he saw the scene from up close. Sehun was lying there, unmoving with his caudal fin still by the water on the floor. But then he felt something burning under his knees, he hissed in pain when he realized that, it was no water but something acidic. Despite the pain, Kai's whole focus was on Sehun.  It was Sehun laying on the floor but Kai barely could recognize him. From head to toe, the merman was covered in burnt-like bruises and ugly blisters. At least half his scales peeled off, leaving his tail gashing, bleeding and swollen with visible muscle underneath.  It took everything in Kai to not throw up. Instead, his hands immediately hovering over Sehun's body but not daring to touch him. The sob that broke past Kai's lips was so heart wrenching even to his own ears, it opened the floodgates of tears. He just sat there by himself, crying. Loudly at first; his sobs laced with desperation, fear and anger. And then silently; his cries saturated with pain, resign and abandon. He heard some shuffles beside him, and Kai turned to see Luhan holding his hand over his mouth as he cried. He tore his eyes away from the older and focused them on Sehun. "Sehun? Sehun– baby, oh god what have happened to you- why?" If losing his mom(when she had fell into coma) felt like heartbreak, seeing Sehun right now felt like his whole body was being torn from limb to limb. After being momentarily blinded by agony, Kai slapped himself. He didn’t have time for this - Sehun didn’t have time for it. The merman didn’t show any sign of waking up, or that he could hear him but there were a barely noticeable rise and fall of his chest. He was alive! Kai felt relieved to a tiny extent. That’s good… that’s really good. He burst into action. Gathering the merman into his arms as carefully as possible ignoring the burning sensation in his hands, tucking Sehun's head into his neck. A weak moan of pain fell from Sehun's lips upon being jolted. "Heal him, or give him breath of life. You have the same powers as him don't you?" Kai snapped turning to face Luhan. "Yes myself have power but myself es no heal brother." "Why the hell not?" "Myself no have big power for heal brother. Myself take him back in ocean." Luhan said, walking beside Kai. "No, you're not taking him away from me." "Me no take brother away, father's, mother help brother heal in ocean. Important or brother dead. Only father's mother with big power for heal brother." Even with Luhan's poor wordings, Kai understood what the other just said, Sehun would die if he's not taking back to the ocean. Sehun needed his grandmother to heal him. And Kai would be damned to let him die, he would  make sure his fiance was safe. "Okay, but I am taking him myself, I am not leaving him like this". "You ground-walker, you no mermaid how enter ocean? Father's mother cave deep inside ocean ." "I can breath underwater." "You come ocean, idea bad. Mermaids not like ground-walker" "I don't care about what's a good idea right now, I just want my lifebond to be safe." Luhan clearly wanted to protest but he sighed and nodded.
With a bleeding heart, Kai wasted no more time and set to get Sehun back to the ocean. The merman was so dangerously dry and he wondered how Sehun still have a tail(he should be changing with how dry his skin felt). The burnt skin instead of wrinkling was starting to crack and peel off too, making Kai tremble from worry. Just how long had he been lying there? Kai was torn between wanting to run to get Sehun into the sea as soon as possible and not wanting to jolt him in the slightest. He was about to exit the building when the others joined him, they all gasped at the sight of Sehun. "Oh my God!" Baekhyun broke into a sob. "I need to take him into sea, he needs his grandmother to heal him" he didn't wait for their response as he continued toward the car. "Kai the place was empty. Except for dead bodies. " Yoongi said opening the back seat for Kai. "But we've got Taehyung and his father, they told us Irene was behind it, Tae's step mom but she was no where in sight." Kai wanted to ask questions but, he couldn't bring himself to do that right now all he wanted was to take Sehun to safety. "Thanks hyung, I will talk to you when I make sure Sehun is safe." Yoongi nodded, patting Kai's shoulder a few times before stepping away. "I will drive." Chanyeol offered, taking the car keys from Kai . "We'll be right behind you" Jungkook told them waving his car keys a little. The drive back home felt like it took forever in Kai's opinion, he held Sehun close, The sweet and caring merman, whose smile could make flowers bloom and whose voice make angels fall in love was in indescribable agony. All because Kai failed to do what he was supposed to do. Because he was incapable and weak, he couldn't protect him.  it was frustrating and unsettling to see and feel the person you love in pain, and not be able to make it better. To be powerless. He made a promise to make Irene pay for what she did to his Sehun, in that moment he felt so much hatred for the whole world, that it was almost suffocating. He wanted to punch everyone who ever hurt his lifebond and would continue so in the future. Sehun deserved acceptance and love more than anyone. He had never hurt anybody so why was he the one getting hurt? And he prayed, he pleaded, he begged. Asking whoever god throned the heavens to have mercy; to give back Sehun his life and health. Urging them to punish him instead if it meant Sehun would be rid of the pa