Seungkwan - Weeping Woodlands - Shadow Lands

Seungkwan groaned as he opened his eyes. His head feels like it’s been cracked open, split into two, and was reeled back in. Everything was dark, he couldn't see anything but he can hear the unmistakable rush of water closely. The astral tried to feel the things around him, patting the musty ground around, he felt a mop of unruly hair.

“Hansol? Hansol?!” the astral let out a breathy gasp as he crept towards the nether. Cradling the nethers face gently on his palms, he then started to heal the other man.

“Hansol? Can you hear me?" the astral inquired as the nether started to groan in his wake. He was starting to worry for the nether still had his eyes closed even if he had healed him quite enough. Then, Hansol's eyes suddenly shoot open and the nether bolted to a seating position.

"Seungkwan are you alright? Are you bleeding? Are you hurt? Ouch my head hurts." The nether was in frenzy at first into checking the astrals welfare, then in a second he clutched his head tightly. Seungkwan appreciates how the nether cares for him, but he disproves the fact that he placed him first before himself.

Seungkwan immediately placed his hand on the nethers temples, healing the man and lessening the pain he was feeling. "That's what you get for standing up so abruptly. You should have stilled yourself first before checking on someone else." The astral reprimanded as the nether stopped hissing from the pain.

"I'm sorry." Hansol apologized a few moments as silence enveloped them.

"Shush, you don't have to apologize. I don't mind healing people. I actually like it." Seungkwan replied as he finally took his hand off of the nether's head.

"No, not that. Well I apologize for that too, but I'm sorry I was not able to take you out safely like I promised." The nether had his head bowed low, he looked ashamed and very regretful from the astrals point of view. Seungkwan's heart clenched at the sight. Hansol shouldn't feel apologetic at all.

"Hansol" The astral softly called for the nether, and the other man only hummed as a reply. Yet, he still had his head bowed low.

"Hansol look at me." Seungkwan called again. This time, he cradled the nethers face between the palms of his hands.

"Please?" Even with his face aligned right in front of him, Hansol still had his eyes glued on the ground. With his coaxing, the nether finally looked at him. Seungkwan's heart broke at the sight of the nethers teary eyes.

"Oh Hansol, my sweet, are you listening to yourself? You shouldn't be the one apologizing, but me. I keep getting hurt, and in return you have to save me all the time. I should be on my knees begging for your forgiveness and not the other way around." The astral hugged the nether tightly, wrapping his arms around the nethers torso. He tucked his head between the crevice of Hansol's neck and chest.

"You are so brave, and smart, and strong and I couldn't be more grateful that you're with me." The astral added, his voice a bit muffled from the fabric of the nethers leathery clothes.

"I'll always choose to be with you all the time, and no matter what happens, I will get us out of here." Hansol replied in return and hugged the astral back tightly.

"Are you lovebirds done? Your sweet little dialogue is starting to piss me off, makes me remember that the pearl of my life is still in deep slumber." The hold that Hansol had on him tightened as Seonwoo appeared after slipping the heavy cloth draped above their makeshift cage.

"I must admit though, I kinda thought it was endearing hearing it for a few moments, then it was too sweet for my liking." The man crouched to be in the same level as them. He was sporting a sinister grin that intensified as his eyes started to change into a deep purple color.

"What do you want from us?!" Hansol exclaimed, and Seungkwan can hear the hostility of the nether towards the other man.

The other man huffed mockingly and grin. "Oh come on Sol-ssi, you don't have to be so tensed. Breathe in and breathe out."

"Just shut your trap and answer me!" Seungkwan has never seen the nether angry. It was only shy smiles, worried looks, and apologetic gazes all the time. So, for the astral it was quite a shock to see and hear the nether looking very red from anger.

"Feisty, aren't we? This is a change, usually most of your kind just beg, cry, and wither to your cowardice. Not gonna lie, I'm somewhat liking it.” Seonwoo replied, looking amused, he had his right hand on the back of his neck scratching and pretending to think if he was going to give them the reason or not.

"Well, to answer your question, you are to wake my love from slumber.” The man finally replied not a second too short.

“My poor dear has been cursed to sleep internally by my own tribes people. They called him a monster, the spawn of the devil!” Seonwoo started to let his gaze travel around the place. As much as Seungkwan doesn’t want to acknowledge, the man sounded grievous as he recalled his love one.

Then the tone of Seonwoo’s voice started to change. It was full of anger and hatred as he spit his next words with venom. “But my love has given them everything they wanted. Fame, bountiful catch, and a never-ending pot of gold. Yet they still betrayed him, betrayed us. They took him away from me, they bounded and cursed him for all eternity once a group of young men from a different tribe found about him.

“They called him a demon and disproved his ways of living! Who are they to say that?! What gave them the right? My love will not survive without the blood of a sacrifice! He needed them to live!” This time, Seonwoo’s eyes looked at them with malice. The purple glow of his eyes looked sinister as it glowed through the silhouette of his body created under the first rays of sunshine.

“But now, my love will finally awaken.” Seonwoo’s voice echoed around the place and causing for the hair at Seungkwan’s back to stand up tall.

“Of course, with the help of you two. Both of you will give me your blood and energies and as the moon later shows itself, so will my love finally break from slumber! And we, shall be together again after a thousand long years of wait!” The man breaks out into a loud laugh, tears forming at the sides of his eyes as he reveled with the thought of being with his loved one again.

“We will never shed a blood for you! You freak!” Hansol screamed at the man as he stood up between Seungkwan and Seonwoo. The astral can see the how angry the nether was but the undeniable hint of fear was slowly creeping its way out of the brave visage that the nether created.

“Oh Sol-ssi, I didn’t ask you for it. I said you will give me your blood, and you will give it to me whether you like it or not. Simple as that. But we can get your blood later, we should start with draining you with your energies first.” The man slowly backed away from their cage and Hansol waited not a moment prying it open. In a mere second of holding the iron bars, the nether was thrown away by some invisible force wrapping around the cage.

“Oho, if I were you, I wouldn’t try doing that again. You see, Sol-ssi, the iron used in this cage is blessed and soaked by the blood of a hundred demon beast that roamed around the land of the dead. It has properties beyond human strength and a mere human like you wouldn’t be able to withstand it.” Seungkwan was now at Hansol side, healing the nether from the deep burns that he got from the cage.

“And you Kwan-ssi, it would be better if you stop healing that idiot and instead save the remaining of your energy for the awakening of my beloved.” It was the first time that Seonwoo directly addressed him. Seungkwan felt like puking as the dark miasma fogged out of the other man’s mouth as he spoke to him, and the sheer maniacal grin showing on his face creeped him to the bones.

“I would rather die healing my friends than waste my energy on someone as evil as you. You are beyond saving, you’ve let anger and hatred seep into your very being. You are selfish and for that you don’t deserve even a tiny morsel of my energy!” Seonwoo only hollered at the astrals reply. With tears on his eyes, he clutched his stomach and nearly fell to the ground from all the laughing.   

“Humm, but too bad you will give it to me anyway.” He then continued with a straight face.

“Shall we start?” the man said as he held two black crystal balls, grinning like a madman.

It was almost sunset and Seonwoo still got the both of them tied up to a glowing purple chain unable to move a limb. For some reason, the chain felt like it had magical properties that weighed them down to the point of not moving at all. His energy was being out of his body by a black crystal.

Seungkwan was almost out of energy and when the astral checked on the nether beside him, Hansol has already passed out. The astral tried to reach out and heal the man, but even through telepathy, the effort was futile.

With his last spurt of energy, the astral tried to communicate with anybody. He tried to do it earlier because he was too weak, but now he had to push his body to the limits and reach out for his hyung or to any of the astrals that he was with. Because if they were looking for him, the wavelengths of their channeling might have a big chance to cross with him.

Seungkwan tried to lengthen and widen the scope of his channeling. This is now or never. If he fails to communicate with his hyungs, then he might as well just pray and ask god to forgive him from all his sins.

About to lose the bits of his energy and cut the connection with his channeling, a static came through the astral.

“Kwan? Kwannie? Is that you my baby brother?” Seungkwan almost sobbed loudly if not for the fact that he felt too weak to even shed a tear. He finally heard Jeonghan’s voice for what felt like forever and all he can think of is just to listen to his brother talk all day. He wouldn’t even care if he nags him all day, he just wants to hear him speak.

“Hyung I missed you?” said the younger, and he can hear the older break into a sob as he tried to talk.

“Seungkwan, this is Seungcheol. How are you? Is Hansol with you? Please tell us where you are right now.” In the background the younger astral can still hear his brother sobbing so it was probably the reason why it was now the eldest nether talking to him.

“Hyung, I’m so sorry. Hansol has passed out. I did my best to heal him but we are chained and I can’t reach him.” Seungkwan replied as a tear started to roll down his now ashen cheeks.

“It’s alright Kwannie, you did amazing in reaching out to us. Now please tell us what are the things you see around you?” The nether tried to assure, but Seungkwan can feel the fear in the older nethers voice.

“A river, we are beside a river.” The astral answered breathlessly.

“Seungkwan, love, I know it’s hard but please let your channel open for a few moments. Me and the hyungs will trace you down, so stay with us baby, just a little bit.” Jeonghan finally spoke again, his voice sounded like it somehow calmed down a little.

“I’ll try hyung. I’ll try.” And Seungkwan started to zone out. He can hear Seungcheol continuously calming his older brother in the background and how will Jeonghan eventually break into another sob a few moments later.

“Seungkwan, love, hyung is near. We already know were you are. You can close your channel now baby. Just hang on for me, please.” Seungkwan only hummed, he was already too weak. He finally shut his channel that was barely connecting with the others. He just prays that others are close. The sun is almost gone and none of them knows what disaster is hiding behind the black mist.

Facts about the Fic:

• An astrals channeling is through the exchange of telepathic particles carried by the vibrating objects around them. They travel like sound waves if compared to our setting. However, there are times where in it is beyond the line of sight and astrals would lose connection.

So just like I promised y'all, here is the update before christmas!! I hope y'all like this, this chapter still contains a heavy amount of verkwan  but Jeongcheol has already made an appearance so rest assured that the rest of the boys will be present in the next chapter. 

Well that's all I got to say, I hope y'all have a happy holidays. byeeeeeee

and always remember that I love y'all. Also thanks to the readers who always takes a little bit of their time to leave a comment. <3