OH MY GOD!!! I JUST REALIZED THAT I COPY PASTED THE UNEDITED VERSION OF THIS CHAPTER.. THERE WERE SOME THINGS I CHANGED.. DAMN I ED UP SO BAD AND I'M NOT EVEN HIGH!

Chan – Unidentified town – Beyond the three Realms

“Breathe in, breathe out” Chan thought to himself as he heard the loud sounds of varying drums and trumpets filled the air. To say that he was panicking was an understatement. He was having an internal turmoil were different voices battle inside his head, all discerning the height of his cowardness.

From afar he can hear people, their loud steps and hushed whispers brings more agitation to the middle grounder. He can feel his legs shake, knowing that if he were to stand up, he'll most likely slump to the ground in fear.

When the procession ended, Chan thought he'll finally had some semblance to relief, only to be filled with more dreading as momentary silence filled the place. The middle grounder can feel his stomach churn, the non-existing contents inside his abdomen about to rise up to his throat as he heard the towns people loudly mumbling the demonic sacrificial chant. 

“I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I'm such a coward. I can't do anything to save you." 

Screams started resonating around the town square, and Chan tries to crouch even tighter. The girl was wailing, it sounded painful and maybe, if he blocks the noises better it will disappear. 

He will disappear.

Chan, even from a distance can hear the girl begging. There's desperation in her voice, a clear sign that she will do anything just for them to spare her life.

Hearing the girl made Chan feel even guiltier. With how the girl begs, she sounded like she still has many things to do. Her cries for help seem to tell the middle grounder that her life still holds many wonders that is bound to be discovered. While Chan feels like life has given up on him, the girl sounded like life is just starting for her.

“Plea-” The girls staggering voice was harshly shushed and Chan had to bite his lips so hard in order for his sobs to be tucked away. He can already taste his own blood, but honestly the emotional wreckage he was feeling exceeds the physical pain he is bringing to himself.

“Why am I such a coward?”  Chan tugs a fistful of his hair. Everything was slowly blending in as one and the sounds inside his head were getting stronger and stronger.

“Why am I so useless?” The young middle grounder frantically opens his eyes and busted the metal door open. He couldnt breathe and his chest hurts. His little hiding place was way too small and big for him at the same time. He feels pain everywhere and he figures he might as well just end it all.

“Why am I even born?”  Scooting out of the door, just enough for the upper part of his body to come out. Chan numbly took out his dagger axe from the emblem on his right palm. With eyes void of any emotion, the middle grounder lifted the weapon. He started to align the weapon straight to his chest. However, before the middle grounder can even bring harm to himself, a loud explosion was heard.

Distracted, the young man slowly lowered his weapon as screams filled the air. Through the darkness, he can see fire. A fire so big it even requires life to continue burning. People were floundering everywhere, fearful that the fire might eat them alive as well. Some were running aimlessly, frantic eyes losing sight as to where they must go. The mass hysteria disturbing the once mum town got so out of hand to the point that the dark alley Chan was residing did not go undisrupted.

As the middle grounder sees a burning man running his way, Chan went back inside his hiding place and shuts himself in. Through the metal door, the young middle grounder can hear the man's anguished screams and burning flesh. It was awful and the young man now has an even stronger urge to puke.

Chan continued to hide as a series of explosions filled the town once more. He began to crouch once again into a tight ball as buildings started to crumble and ashes polluted the air. The middle grounder couldn't remember how long it took before the screaming stopped and the crashing of establishments ceased. He honestly thought it was never going to end. 

When the middle grounder failed to hear anything other than the soft crackling of fire nearby, Chan slowly crept out of his hiding place. He was speechless after seeing the aftermath of the destruction. Everything turned into ashes, black and depressing. Trying to make out the things around him beyond the smoke proved to be a hard thing to do. However, something caught his attention.

There was a purple glow not far from him. There were two to be exact, and when Chan tried to look closer, his heart seemed to stop.

Right in front of him is the girl he saw earlier. Her hair disheveled and dried tears obvious on her face. Her eyes were glowing purple and she's looking at him with so much intensity in her eyes as if asking Chan why did he not help her. The middle grounder can feel shivers running through his spine before an uncontrollable urge to sleep took him. 

The next thing he knows is he is waking up inside his little hiding place. Birds can be heard chirping and the busy mumbling of consumers and sellers filled his ears. The unmistakable smell of cooking bread wafts through the wind and Chan, has never been so confused his entire life.

Was it all just a nightmare? Did none of it happened? Chan slowly emerges out of his hiding place, he wants to spread his wings but it's too risky. Slowly walking to the sunlight, the middle grounder can feel his jaw dropping from the sight. The town looks fine, there were no burning buildings or screaming people. The sky is blue and free from any dark clouds.

“Hi, you look new." Chan heard a soft voice beside him the moment his feet touched the light. Turning to look at the stranger, the middle grounder immediately freezes.

“Uh, hi?” The girl once again asked, but Chan is left speechless. His thoughts left him nothing to utter as it starts to fill up with questions.

Brain running wild, a prominent question struck him. Just how? How in the realms is he talking to the same girl about to be sacrificed by the entirety of the town last night looking unscathed and healthy?

“Jeonghan hyung needs help.” Jihoon announced as he and Soonyoung looks for the others. They were on their way to meet Seokmin and Jisoo halfway while looking closely for their other missing friends when Jihoon felt the familiar chimes only Jeonghan can give off. The astral, still moving, tried to communicate with the other man as fast as he can.

“He's panicking. He says his injured and Seungcheol hyung is still unconscious.” Jihoon continued, stopping on his tracks as he starts to feel how distressed Jeonghan is becoming. Soonyoung is now looking at him. His face is pale, probably worrying for Chan. However, the other man looks even more worried as Jihoon relays what is currently happening to Jeonghan.

“A-and” Jihoon paused. He feels like his lungs just failed him. He slowly reached for Soonyoung, the contact finally letting him breathe.

“He also found Chan.” Jihoon breathlessly adds as he looks at Soonyoung straight on the eyes. The astral gazes at the man in front of him. Soonyoung is looking back at him, eyes widening as he tries to wrap everything that Jihoon said. His mouth is slack open and eyes starting to get watery. Jihoon did not waste a moment to wipe the few tears that fell off the other man's face.

“They found my brother.” Soonyoung finally spoke lowly. He sounded breathless and Jihoon wouldn't blame him.

As much as Jihoon feels for the middle grounder, he answered with urgency. “Yes Soonyoung, they found Chan. However, we need to hurry because Jeonghan hyung told me Chan is also unconscious and trapped inside a very narrow cave." 

Skimming through the forest as fast as the astrals wings would allow him, Jihoon who was carrying Soonyoung arrived with bated breaths. They were greeted by the image of Jeonghan leaning on a boulder, sporting a pair of bloody wings with a few nicks and scratches here and there. Seungcheol's head on was on the astrals lap. He was still unconscious and Jeonghan was continuously carding his fingers on the hair of the other man. The older astral thankfully was not panicking anymore, the explanation that Jihoon told him about the probable cause why the nether is still unconscious worked. 

“Hyung what happened?” Jihoon asked as he landed Soonyoung first on the ground. 

“Hyung where's Chan?” Soonyoung questioned as well.

“Don't mind me here, I can heal myself. You should first get Chan out of there.” Jeonghan smiles at them reassuringly while pointing on a small opening on what was actually a cave. 

“I have no idea how in the realms did he got there, hell I don't even know how we got here in the first place.” Jeonghan added, tiredness and exasperation mingling together in his voice. 

Soonyoung hurriedly walked to the small entrance of the cave, grimacing as he crouches down to look deeper into it. Jihoon from the side can see how narrow it looked and the astral couldn't help but wonder how can one fit through it.

“Hyung are you able to move?” Soonyoung asked Jeonghan wearily.

“I think so, Jihoon would you mind helping me?” the older astral answered. Jeonghan carefully lifted the unconscious nether on his lap with Jihoon and Soonyoung, who quickly made his way to the older astral and help.

“I'm sorry hyung. I know you're hurt, but I will need to break some parts of this cave to make a bigger opening so I can get Chan out of there.” Soonyoung suddenly said as he helps Jeonghan up his feet.

“You don't need to say sorry Soonyoung, I understand.” the astral replied with a bright smile.  “However, you must be careful. Some of the rocks might fall at Chan and hurt him badly.”

Giving a reassuring smile to the oldest astral, Jihoon watches Soonyoung walk back to the opening of the cave. The middle grounder looks tired and obviously stressed. His shoulders are slumped and the bubbly smile that Jihoon was starting to get a hang with after a few days of travelling with him is gone. The bandages that he secretly replaced and tightened the midnight before is starting to get loose, and Jihoon is starting to get irked by it all. He watches as Soonyoung heaves a deep breath while closing his eyes, he watches as fatigue makes home on his features. He watched the middle grounder, looks at the exhausted man willing his body to procure his weapon. 

Soonyoung started breaking his way to his younger brother, he started to smash both of his spine like swords at the rocks but it looked like it wasn't budging, even a crack was not visible. Yet, Soonyoung continued, he never stopped hitting the cave, he never stopped even if all his efforts doesn't seem to bear any fruit. 

Soonyoung looked tired and pale, and Jihoon can see that if Soonyoung continues, he'll pass out. But Soonyoung is as stubborn as the rocks of the cave and Jihoon's chest hurts as he watches him.

Jihoon wanted to help, he couldn't bear watching the middle grounder do it all by himself. He slowly made his way to Soonyoung whilst summoning his weapons. Wielding his twelve daggers that was currently suspended in air, the astral aimed at the same spot Soonyoung was hitting.

“Jihoon” Soonyoung breathlessly called, looking at the astral with scrunched up brows.

“You don't have to do this. I know you're tired, you've used enough of your energy to find and communicate with the others. Don't mind me-”

“I want to help, and I'm not tired so don't stop me.” Jihoon curtly replied, eyes trained directly to the cave. He sounded stingy and Jihoon admits to it, however Soonyoung had seen him crumble into a handful of tears too many times and Jihoon has to keep the strong and stoic facade he's been wearing for a long time in order to keep his dignity. 

The two continued hitting the hard rocks that doesn't seem to budge at all, Jihoon can feel his whole body ache but refused to voicing it out. He looks at Soonyoung, the other is covered in sweat and breathing harshly. Jihoon can see the slight trembling of his limbs from overwork but only a tsk escaped the middle grounders lips. The astral can feel that it was only a few moments before Soonyoung's body gives up, what he didn't expect though is for it to happen after blinking his eyes.

“Soonyoung, I think you should sit for a while.” the astral comments as he helps Soonyoung to get back on his feet.

“No, I can't. I have to get Chan out, he needs me.” the middle grounder replied, obviously ignoring his aching body.

“But you're exhausted Soonyoung! You've used too much of your energy, you need to rest!” Jihoon answered with his voice raised, he is pissed and also worried and combining those emotions together only makes him antsy. So when Soonyoung looks at him, hurt lacing on his green orbs, Jihoon felt guilty. 

“But I can't. Not until I get Chan out of there.” the middle grounder calmly replies, his head bowed low and still struggling to stand up. There was a slight tremble in his voice and Jihoon can bet with his life that Soonyoung just shed a few tears.

Guilt starts eating the astral even more, he knows what it feels to worry for someone. Being unable to communicate with Seokmin for an hour or two was hell for him, but Soonyoung looks like he was on the verge of passing out and just the thought of it tugs Jihoon's heart in a hurtful way.

“Soonyoung!” Jihoon froze as he hears a familiar voice, he starts withdrawing his arms that he was about to wrap around the middle grounder. He badly wanted to hug him, comfort him like how Soonyoung did when he was hysterically searching for Seokmin. He wishes he can wrap his arms or run his palms on the man's face like before when they were alone, but he couldn't. Because people might think he's weak just like how they used to see him years ago.

Hastily moving aside, he lets Wonwoo wrap both of his arms around the middle grounder. Jihoon watches as Soonyoung tightly wrap his arms in return, burying his face in the crook of Wonwoo's neck.

“I'm sorry. I'm such-I'm such a worthless brother Won.” Jihoon hears Soonyoung's defeated mumbles muffled through Wonwoo's clothes.

“Hey, hey who told you that? You're such a good brother Soon, what do you mean worthless?” Jihoon can see Wonwoo rocking the middle grounder and Jihoon wished he can do the same thing.

Jihoon starts to slowly back away and sat next to Jeonghan. The older astral was quietly whispering things to the still unconscious nether, whom Jeonghan maneuvered in a sitting position and was now resting his head on the astrals chest. He can still hear Soonyoung mumble complains about himself at Wonwoo, but honestly the middle grounder doesn't need him now because the nether is there to give him warmer hugs and better comfort. So Jihoon ignored the image he's currently seeing and decided to close his eyes and talk to Seokmin instead.

Facts about the Fic:

• The weapon every noble possesses through their emblems holds a special connection with their past or even current lives. Soonyoung wields two massive swords made of bones and sharpen to perfection. From a different person’s point of view, it might look flashy and heavy. But flashy is what defines Soonyoung and the sword is not at all heavy if it was him that was using it. It was believed that Soonyoung, in his past life has killed a giant beast, probably a demon beast, to explain the existence of his loud weapons. It is one of the reasons why the people in the Middle Grounds are so enamored with him and why the young kids in their realms looks up to him so much.   

If you're waiting for this update, I'm really sorry. Lockdown really dampened my spirit and I kinda lost the will to write.. But I think I'm back on track now