Ch.9 

Overpowered

From the moment they awoke the next day they knew something was up. It was too quiet and too dark. 

It didn’t take them long to realize that the power was out. His phone was dead since he had yet to charge it since coming back, but Seungyoon’s phone was so full of messages and missed calls it felt like an old joke by now. 

    "Why does everything happen when we decide to try to catch a few hours of sleep?" Seungyoon mumbled to himself scrolling through his notifications. 

Mino got up from the bed and pulled apart the curtains from his huge bedroom window only to reveal the usual city skyline. The river was twinkling cheerfully in the early autumn sun yet something seemed off. 

    "The power is out in the entire city. The power plant of the river supposedly collapsed and parts of it is now in the river" Seungyoon said his voice dripping of disbelief. 

    "Not going to be an easy fix to get that up and running again" he replied, memories of the night before was beginning to dig their way to the surface of his mind now as he smelled the smoke still lingering in his hair and on his skin. 

    "Something sent it into the river to begin with though" Seungyoon said thoughtfully. 

Only now did it dawn on him what Seungyoon was saying. They would have to go down there and check it out. Wouldn’t they?

    "I’ll make some calls" Seungyoon mumbled and got off the bed, walking into the living room. 

He picked out some fresh clothes from his wardrobe and headed to the bathroom. He would not head out to another fight reeking of smoke from the previous day. 

    "Please hurry up so we can get going. Seunghoon and Jinwoo are already on their way" 

Seungyoon spoke to him through the bathroom door. He hurried up like requested, but felt on edge, as if him going there would be a mistake. Why he felt this way he couldn’t understand, Seungyoon had healed him so physically he was fine, but mentally.. He didn’t like to admit it, even to himself, but he felt really out of it. 

He was still struggling to understand himself and his powers. His own skin tingled constantly like some itch he couldn’t scratch. He was fearful that he would eventually lose control and harm someone. 

What if his frustration the night before during the fire had erupted as flames instead of light. He would have killed that poor father and his child. 

Just the thought of it gave him chills, he was even more fearful of his skills now than before, because now he had begun to realize exactly how powerful he actually was. 

Grappling with his own thoughts and emotions the entire drive out to the power plant he jumped in his seat when Seungyoon touched his shoulder to alert him that they had arrived. 

    "Are you okay? I understand if you need to stay behind after everything that happened yesterday" Seungyoon said not letting go of his shoulder.

    "I’m fine, just a bit tired" he lied, unable to meet Seungyoon’s eyes as he said it. 

Seungyoon didn’t push the case however, because Jinwoo just opened the car door urging them to get moving. 

It was quite a walk down to the power plant from where the car had stopped. It was smoking heavily from it and the smoke looked strange in the usual way. Seunghoon seemed to have noticed it too because he said: 

    "There’s definitely something else than flames creating that" while pointing at the black particles evaporating into the air through the cracks of the broken structure. 

Mino felt himself sigh in exasperation at the sight of it. He was sick and tired of fighting these creatures, of worrying and from never having time to recover. Feeling the tension build in his body just thinking about it he thought he knew how to end this quickly. 

    "I would like to try something before we all go in" he said suddenly, stopping in his tracks as he said it. "Yesterday I figured out how to release a lot of my power all at once. I don’t have full control of it, I can’t tell for sure if its going to be light or flames.." He explained, trying to sound confident although he was still somewhat clueless. 

    "You want to go in on your own" Seunghoon said, watching him carefully. 

    "I really don’t" Seungyoon began, but stopped mid sentence after they had exchanged one glance between them. Mino needed his support in this and Seungyoon knew deep down that it potentially could wipe them out if Mino failed and they were within range. They had been lucky so far, but there were no guarantees it would last. 

    "I suggest that Jinwoo fly me down there. I give it a shot, if it works he fetches me before it caves in/the river drowns me.. If it doesn’t work you get your asses down there quick and help me" he said trying to make it sound simple and easy. 

Jinwoo and Seunghoon both agreed right away. Seungyoon only watched him, worry evident in his eyes. 

    "I can’t heal you if you are dead. Remember that. So don’t you go die on us.. On me" Seungyoon said. Adding the last part in a low voice. Seunghoon was so hyped he didn’t catch it, but Jinwoo looked from one to another studying their expressions. 

    "I’ll get him out of there way before that" Jinwoo said, giving Seungyoon one of his confident heavenly smiles. He could see that Seungyoon tried to smile back, but it became crooked and a bit halfhearted really quickly. 

Focusing on his rage and confusion from earlier in the day he signaled to Jinwoo that he was ready to go. They had decided on a spot that looked reasonably stable on the side of the power plant furthest from the river. 

Sparks were flying around them as they landed. Cut wires bouncing on the ground from the surging electricity cut of from its regular loop. The air was mixed with the foul smell from the creature residing bellow and the smell of destroyed factory materials like oil and dust. 

    "Okay, so keep communicating with us as much as you can. I’ll be up there" Jinwoo said and kicked of right away soaring upwards until he was almost out of eyesight. 

He gave himself a small pat on the back for going down there alone, when all of this had begun would he have preferred to stay back home. Now he knew that he could make a difference, but deep down was his reasons much more egoistical. He just wanted some peace and quiet, to be able to spend a normal day with his boyfriend. 

The word boyfriend rang in his mind, he felt an urge to say it out loud and he almost did before remembering the intercom being on. Instead he said: 

    "This is for us" And planted his palm firmly onto the cracked ground beneath his feet. 

A wave of fire flew out around him, like an extending orb pushing out in every direction. The ground started shaking and the familiar sound of a creature emerging from the depths started filling the air. 

The hollow screech was something he would never get used to, and as he stared deep into the single red eye of the monster threatening his city, his river and his favorite people he felt an urge for vengeance he had never felt before. 

    "It’s now or never" he said calmly to himself before taking an assertive step forwards towards the manifestation of evil before him. He felt his powers surge in every fiber of his being now and for the first time in his life was there confidence in his skills present in his mind. 

He focused all his energy, visualized what he wanted to achieve and went for it. 

A part of him had wanted to take aim, but before he could do so had the wave of white light erupted around him blasting outwards in every direction. 

The light was blinding, but he could still see the outline of the shadowy creature as the light hit it and carved straight through it. This time was there no body left to fall back into the depths, this time it was all gone. Singed of the earth once and for all.

Blinking a little he heard the yells of Jinwoo cheering from far above into the intercom. 

    "You did it! I can’t believe it. Two attacks and it’s gone!" Jinwoo’s voice was becoming harder to hear through the swishing of air hitting the microphone as he flew. 

Soon he was back beside him, grabbing him by the chest and threw him into the air. 

    "Keep this up and we could remove this threat from earth for good!" Jinwoo exclaimed excitedly. 

    "Sure sure, but I could really use a break you know" he said trying to mimic the high spirits of Jinwoo, but the last attack had drained him completely and he was thankful that it had worked because he could not have mustered enough energy for a second try. 

    "Let’s get out of here" Jinwoo said and pulled him with him into the air before he got the chance to reply. 

Within a minute were they back with Seunghoon and Seungyoon on top of the hill. They both cheered for him, relived that there was one less threat to be dealt with. 

    "That’s it, the rest of us can just go and retire" Seunghoon said giving him a pat on the back. 

    "I’m completely exhausted though, so if that hadn’t done it then I would have needed your help" he admitted, shivering with what felt like a fever. There was no doubting they all had been pushing themselves hard lately, but with the fire and now this was he way past his limit. 

    "I’m sure that lightwave thing of yours could have taken out at least ten of those. Come on, you scorched it right into oblivion" Seunghoon said gesturing to illustrate the lightwave. 

They walked slowly back to the car waiting down on the road where they had left it. Jinwoo still got his wings out and occasionally kicked of to fly a couple of meters before landing and walking again. 

It was the first time Mino had seen Jinwoo play around like that. He had always gotten the impression that Jinwoo didn’t like his wings much, but maybe that was slowly changing for him too. 

Not that he really liked his powers still, but he felt more in control now and that made him feel a lot calmer. 

    "It was quite a view from up here. We felt the wind of it although the light didn’t reach us" Seungyoon said, walking up closer to him. "You did well, but I would have preferred to have been down there with you" Seungyoon continued, linking his arm with his. 

Smiling a little he was somewhat pleased that it was Seungyoon who was upset over getting left behind this time. He knew the feeling from when he had found out that Seungyoon had gone and put his life on the line only to ask for him before sinking into a coma. 

    "I’m glad you enjoyed the show" he teased after making sure Jinwoo and Seunghoon was out of earshot. 

    "I’ll give you a show" Seungyoon muttered back, eyeing him mischievously. "Don’t you leave me behind like that again. Watching you down there on your own was agonizing beyond words" Seungyoon admitted while looking of into the distance now. 

    "I only wanted it to be over and for everyone to be safe" Mino said suddenly feeling the need to explain. 

Seungyoon only scrunched his nose and frowned. Mino got a feeling he couldn’t win this discussion seeing as it was all about feelings and not logic. He still felt a need to elaborate, but they were almost by the car now. 

    "I wanted you to be safe" he said before opening the car door for Seungyoon, getting in after him. 

He didn’t respond, he only gave him a sulking look. So he was still not forgiven? Needing to be forgiven for saving the day.. He had not seen that one coming. 

Seunghoon and Jinwoo went on and on while driving back to the city, parts was just repeating their observations and theories the other was future plans. In the end he got so tired from it he decided a nap would be better. 

Unbuckling his belt he let himself slide sideways in his seat until his head was resting in Seungyoon’s lap. He gave him a slightly disapproving pout, but didn’t say anything. 

It didn’t take long before Seungyoon started playing with his hair, slender fingers brushing gently through his hair over and over again. This is happinesshe thought before slowly drifting of to sleep. 

He was relived to see that they had pulled up in front of their apartment block when he woke up from the car coming to a halt, but his happiness was short lived as Jinwoo informed them they would be attending their first press conference in the evening. 

    "Get some rest, I’ll send someone with a suit for you later" Jinwoo said turning in his seat. Feeling dizzy he only gave Jinwoo a small nod and got out of the car. He imagined them all showing up at the press conference in matching maroon suits like he remembered Jinwoo having worn previously. Sniggering at the thought he rubbed his face as he kept wobbling towards the entrance of the building. He was already looking forward to seeing Seungyoon in his suit.

    "Hey wait up" Seungyoon called after him. Turning and squinting at Seungyoon because of the strong sunlight directly up ahead he stopped. 

    "Thought you were going with them" he mumbled as Seungyoon caught up. 

    "Nah, they are going home too" he replied opening the door for him. 

He could sense that Seungyoon was still sulky about the whole fight thing, but he got no energy or wish to bring it up again. 

Surely he would come around soon when Seungyoon realized he was only doing them all a favor by removing a big threat like that in such an efficient way. 

Standing in the elevator he felt hot, not y hot, but actually burning with a fever hot. 

    "I think I’m brewing on something" he told Seungyoon feeling his eyes watering and the warmth of his own breath around his face. 

Seungyoon put a hand to his forehead and confirmed his suspicion. It felt nice, the touch of his cool hand against his burning skin. He had to hold back not to complain when Seungyoon retracted his hand.

    "You are burning" Seungyoon said simply before pulling Mino with him out of the elevator. 

    "I always catch the autumn flu around this time of year" he mumbled feeling even dizzier than before.

    "I don’t think this is the flu" Seungyoon replied, sliding one arm around his waist, pulling him with him towards his own apartment. 

Kicking of his shoes he had to lean on the wall to keep steady, there was no denying he probably had pushed himself too hard, but this fever was unfamiliar to him and it made him uncomfortable. 

    "Do you think this is something you can fix?" He asked weakly while pointing in a swirling circle around his head. 

    "Normal fevers, sure, but I think this is something else" Seungyoon replied grabbing one of his still swirling hands, pulling him towards the bedroom. He began ing his shirt yet neither of them made any suggestive jokes although Mino got a few good ones he could have said, had he found the energy to say them. 

    "Give it a try or just wait?" he asked rolling onto the bed after having removed his shirt. The cool sheets felt amazing against his skin, but it only took a minute before the fabric clung to him and he felt uncomfortably hot again. 

    "I can try, but I think it’s just the exhaustion manifesting itself in such a way that you literarily can’t do anything for a while" Seungyoon said while placing one hand on his forehead and one on his bare chest. 

Mino let out a small sigh at the sensation of Seungyoon's cool touch, he thought what Seungyoon was saying made sense, but he still hoped to make a quick a recovery. 

    "I want to wear the maroon suit" he mumbled, closing his eyes, waiting for the usual sensation of Seungyoon’s healing. He felt his skin tingle a little and squinted up only to see Seungyoon leaning over him, their faces only a couple of centimeters apart. 

He looked so beautiful, eyes twinkling in the blue light that had just begun to fill the room. If Mino could only look at one moment from his life over and over again for the rest of his life then this would probably be it for him he thought. Even if the healing didn’t appear to be working. 

Putting up a slightly trembling hand he reached out to close the small gap still left between their faces. He might be running a record high fever, but he would never turn down an opportunity to sneak in a kiss. 

Even Seungyoon’s lips felt cold compared to his and it only made the kiss better. Cradling one hand around his nape Mino kept pulling Seungyoon closer even though he wasn’t attempting to pull away. He soon began to feel breathless however and in the end was he the one sneaking in small gasps for air as his dizziness worsened even more. 

    "You need to rest. It doesn’t seem like I can do much to help you this time" Seungyoon said before pulling away. He was struggling to keep his eyes in focus now, but he just needed to know that they were okay so he said: 

    "I wanted to try to end things quickly because I wanted us to have more time together not fighting" he said, realizing it was a pretty badly formulated sentence he grabbed Seungyoon’s hand, making sure he didn’t leave before he had finished speaking his mind. 

    "I want more days where we try new food, watch the river, for you to cook pancakes for me again.." Seungyoon laughed at that part. "Going to get groceries even.." his voice trailed off as he struggled to form full sentences. 

    "We will have days like that. After today are we one step closer" Seungyoon said, his voice so soft and low it felt as Mino had let his head sink into a pillow made completely by Seungyoon’s voice alone. Intrigued by this thought he tried to visualize such a thing.. it would make for such a nice painting.. But before he knew it he had drifted off to sleep. 

He woke up to complete silence. His first reaction was to check if the power was working, which is was so the back up power supplies must be working for the entire city now. 

Unable to put a finger on why he felt so uneasy he got out of bed. He felt better, not as hot as before, but still not fully recovered. He walked into his living room hoping to see Seungyoon there, but there was no one to be seen. He glanced over at the kitchen island where his phone was. There was no note and after checking his phone he found that there was no messages either. 

Maybe Seungyoon had gone up to his apartment he wondered as he headed for the shower. 

It was still odd, he thought stepping into the hot shower. Clear communication had always been their thing, he himself would have said something if he was the one who left. Mid-shampooing he realized that maybe Seungyoon had left in a hurry. His stomach made a sickening jolt at this thought and he speed up, showering faster than he had ever before. 

As soon as he stepped out he checked his phone again. Nothing. That didn’t mean anything though, the other might have known he was out cold (hot really) from the fever. 

He decided to call Seungyoon right away, it just went straight to voicemail. What did that mean in this day and age he wondered. That his phone was dead? Turned off? Deciding not to overreact just yet he got dressed quickly and found the extra key Seungyoon had left him the previous night they had spent together. 

Anxiously he pressed the elevator button once, then twice and.. He was about to push it a third time when the doors opened. 

He stepped inside and pushed the button taking him to the top floor. 

He rang the bell to Seungyoon’s apartment first once and then again. There was no answer or sound of movement behind the door and so he locked himself inn. 

Walking down the shining white floor he couldn’t help but to look for clues as to where Seungyoon might have gone or to what could have happened. 

One part of him felt really ridiculous for thinking that something had happened because he got no information to support that theory, but he just knew. Something was off. 

Looking into the kitchen he saw nothing unusual, but no Seungyoon either. The place was mostly dark and completely silent. His last hope was that Seungyoon was sleeping, why he would be sleeping here he couldn’t understand, but he still hoped. 

Knocking on the bedroom door once he impatiently opened it. No one there. 

He was already on his way out of the apartment again when he called Jinwoo. If someone knew anything he would. 

    "Hi hi hello where is Seungyoon?" He asked walking into the elevator now. 

    "Oh, you are up already?" was Jinwoo’s answer. 

    "Yeah, but answer my question will you?" He replied stepping out of the elevator at his floor. He hurried into his apartment and picked up a jacket and the bag with his suit. If his hunch was right then he might end up needing it again. 

    "Ah.. He went to the hospital. The baby you saved weren’t doing so well" Jinwoo explained casually. 

    "Why doesn’t he answer his phone though?" he asked more to himself than Jinwoo. 

    "He doesn’t? Thats really unusual for him" Jinwoo sounded worried now too. 

    "I can’t explain it, but I got a bad feeling. I woke up and.." he suddenly realized that Jinwoo wouldn’t know that it was unusual for Seungyoon to not be there when he woke up. 

    "I get it, I get it" Jinwoo cut him off. Mino doubted if that was the case but he weren’t going to argue the case now. "His suit got a tracker in it. If he brought it with him we can use it to find him" Jinwoo said sounding in a rush now. "Go to the hospital and check on him and I’ll check my computer before getting back to you" Jinwoo instructed. 

He was already walking out of the building when Jinwoo had said this. There was a taxi stop not far away and so he practically sprinted down there. He was going to look like a real idiot showing up stressed and sweating at the hospital to find Seungyoon playing happily with some baby. He just had to go with his gut feeling on this.

Luckily for him was there a taxi waiting at the stop and so he was soon on his way into the city.

Looking angrily at his phone he hoped Jinwoo would get back to him soon. While he waited he tried calling Seungyoon again only to get the same result as last time. 

He was paying for the taxi outside the hospital by the time Jinwoo called him back. 

    "So the good news is that he is actually wearing his suit and I know where he is" Jinwoo hesitated.

    "And the bad?" Mino asked urging Jinwoo to continue.

    "The bad is that he is not at the hospital.. And his vitals from the suit kinda indicates that he is unconscious" 

He froze up at the sound of the word unconscious.

    "Wait, what? Where?" his mind was racing, but not as fast as his heart. Fear and worry was overtaking him more and more with every second. 

    "Some commercial building on the other end of town. I got a bad feeling about this because the company that owns it has been making inquiries about some of our research.." Jinwoo’s voice trailed off. 

Mino got a pretty good idea what kind of research it was they had inquired about, but why they knew about it to begin with was beyond his understanding. Weren’t such matters strictly of records and kept quiet about? The only ones that could have blabbered was the patients really.. And wouldn’t they keep the secret as thanks for being saved? His mind was spinning with questions, but his body was working on it’s own.

He found the same taxi driver who had taken him into the city and told him the address. Jinwoo told him he was fetching Seunghoon and meeting him there, but they both knew that if he got there first would he most certainly not sit around and wait for them to get there.

Authors note: Another chapter! We are on a roll! Cliffhangers.. Gotta have a few right? Ah the next chapter.. Hot and angry Mino coming to save his love.. Something to look forward to right? xD

I initially planed on only making this story 10 chapters, but I’m not really close to wrapping anything up yet so we will see. I got 50 hours worth of night shifts ahead in the coming week so I might not be able to update next week, but we will se. I’ll do my best ^-^ ❤️

Thank you all for reading and subscribing! We are getting close to a 1000 views, thats pretty exciting! And I believe it’s one of the most upvoted stories I’ve ever written *u* ah thank you so much for your support! For the next one I’d like to grapple with another popular trope.. Vampires maybe, or detectives like I mentioned before. Feel free to drop suggestions in the comments too! (or find me on twitter @Eiryia :)

Lastly I’d like to mention I’ve made a playlist for the story. Mainly for myself and it’s a bit all over the place with different genres and such, but do give it a listen if you feel up to it!