Of Fallen Wings & The Six Tails

 

6. The Woman of Bygones Past

*****

 

Atop the high clouds they stood, the winds whistled a gentle breeze against their ears as the sun rained its vibrant glow upon them. The fragile whiteness beneath their feet would break instantly if any lesser beings stood upon them but thankfully, they were not of the lesser kind. As one person stood before the other in slight confusion, the other could only close in slowly, embracing him into a tight, affectionate hug, startling him from its warmth suddenness and her rather curvy physique. She leaned her head on his shoulders and comforted him as she began to speak.

 

“You big troublemaker…....” she uttered, trying to keep her voice calm. ".......I missed you."

 

Feeling a bit embarrassed but just like before, a sudden air of nostalgia hit Sakuya from out of the blue. He couldn’t pinpoint why as he stared down atop her head, taking note at how comfortable he felt currently. All he knew was that this woman had a history with him and was clearly affectionate towards him considering that she had a nickname for him as he did for her...in the past at least. He slowly embraced her just as she did and it calmed him from his thoughts as they stayed there for a few tender moments under the sun.

 

“Your presence feels so familiar and yet, I just can’t seem to remember anything about you besides your name….Eunbi.” he said with a hint of regret in his voice.

 

A small sigh escaped her breath, unbeknownst to him that he was a cause of many in the past.

 

“A close friend and a teacher of many things to that youthful yet curious mind of yours. I mean you’re speaking my language right?”

 

Letting go of him, she stood before him and held his shoulders in comfort.

 

“....you taught me then?” he questioned.

 

“Not only me but another also helped out thankfully.” She frowned for a micro second before continuing. “You not remembering things is gonna be a hassle, to say the least.”

 

Scratching the back of his head, he bowed to her politely and whispered a small “I’m sorry...”. As he raised his head to look back at her, he noticed her eyes scrutinized every part of him as she scanned him from head to toe and back again. As her eyes shot back to his own, he was no doubt feeling a bit under pressure as his forehead creased with worry under her watchful eyes. Thankfully, her small giggle managed to calm him for a moment as she patted his shoulders to comfort him.

 

“So uhh...is there anything else I should know about you?” he asked, pondering the relationship they had in the past.

 

“…..you’ll know in due time.” she assured him. “...but for now, we must keep this short.”

 

He felt a sudden tightness in his chest from hearing that since he knew she had a connection to him somehow. His brows pulled in a downward cast as he began to question her.

 

“Short? Why? If you know of my past, can’t we just talk a bit?” he pleaded, eyes begging to at least hear something. Intrigued by his confusion, she asked a question herself.

 

“Sakuyan...can you not fly back home to Nippon to speak to your family? Your clan?”.

 

His face grew dark as recent memories bit at the forefeont of his mind. “.............I’ve tried.......many many times but I can’t.” He looked towards the ground. “Once I get even near, my body suddenly shudders violently enough to the point of blackout. In fact, you’re the only person I’ve met so far who knows my past as far as I know..."

 

Her heart sank as she watched him. The Sakuya in front of her had an aura of sadness that she couldn’t shake off, unlike his past self who was still serious but only gave positive vibes where he went.

 

His eyes wandered back up to her as he took a small step towards her. “So as the first link to my past, can I rely on you to make me remember who I once was…thats more than just vague shadows that plague my mind?”

 

A smile grew on her face as she nodded to him, breaking the frown he once had into a wonderous smile of his own. She raised a pointed finger toward him as to lecture him as it took his attention.

 

“However, we can only talk just a little bit considering the situation at hand.” she voiced sternly.

 

He questioned with a tilt of the head. “What consideration?”

 

“That you are almost depleted of energy...a big no no especially in the state you are now. My rice cakes special in that it could heal any internal or mortal wounds but your case is different considering that you woke up way too early.”

 

He only gave her a confused look as he kept her in his focused gaze.

 

“From your resurrection of sorts.”

 

His head tilted even more as his eyes widened a bit after finally getting confirmation of something that plagued his thoughts for a while.

 

“Wait...so it WAS a resurrection? Was- ...was it from you? But why?”

 

A sigh escaped her lips once again. She knew he wanted answers but she knew that she couldn’t tell him everything he wanted now as she could still feel his energy slowly draining. Despite not doing much besides talking, it was too much of a risk she thought.

 

“I know you have many questions but considering your body as of now, let’s save that for another time okay? I’ll tell you as much as you want to know but for now...”

 

“But I-”

 

She quickly held her palm in front of his face to startle him which worked.

 

“Trust me in me Sakuyan, another time okay? Now when did you wake up?” she queried with a rather serious tone. He sensed this change and held his questions for later even if he felt the growing anxiety to remember his past.

 

“........34 years ago, give or take.”

 

Eunbi stared at him in silence for a moment but he could see that she seemed troubled by his answer. She turned around and walked towards the edge of the cloud they were on and looked down as she brought one hand to her chin. He followed suit and stood right beside her as he looked at her side profile, wondering what she was thinking at the moment.

 

“......then that’s even earlier than I thought.” she stated. “And that makes me wonder what exactly happened that awakened you…..”

 

“Huh?”

 

She turned to him with a solemn expression, knowing the seriousness of the situation.

 

“A resurrection takes at least 200 years so something must’ve happened that led you to awaken earlier than scheduled.”

 

“Wait ... so when exactly did I die?”

 

“175 years ago...that means you woke up 59 years too early.” she replied without missing a beat.

 

“I’m guessing that’s a bad thing huh….?”

 

It didn’t take long for him to know that her eyes already answered him with its sad gaze.

 

“It explains why you don’t remember much because your memory is jumbled….fractured in a way...”

 

Eunbi suddenly placed a hand on his face and shook her head slightly from side to side.

 

“Because of your early awakening, your mind and body didn’t fully recover. You are…." She froze for a moment. ".....how should I say this...” she uttered softly, a bit of hesitation in her voice as she bowed her head.

 

“........I’m what?”

 

“.........decaying.” she whispered.

 

“De…..decaying?" His ears perked up at the word since it’s not exactly a word that describes anything good.

 

Eunbi looked back up at Sakuya and nodded. "Yes......slowly but it should be noticeable. However, if you use your powers too much to the point of almost depletion, it results in more rapid decay."

 

Sakuya kept silent for a few moments as he let his thoughts anchor on the word as Eunbi continued to study his reaction. She saw that he tried to speak but words didn’t leave his mouth as he continued in his thoughts. A frown slowly formed on his face as he finally managed to utter something.

 

"Is that why I always feel like my energy is constantly draining? Kuroryu sensed that as well but he never knew the cause so he always told me to meditate in thunderclouds so the lightning can charge my body.....”

 

Looking at him with unease, she questioned. “I''m guessing you do this rather frequently?" to which he nodded to confirm.

 

“Hell, even my memories …..is that why I can’t seem to hold them together? Even the smallest of things seem to disappear from my thoughts unless I hear them from another. I get random flashes of memories that I can't connect because every one seems to be from different times of my life.”

 

Hearing that this was worse than she thought, she nodded to confirm as she fought back her eyes from watering. "Sakuya....I will try my best to get you back to normal, even if i-"

 

“But why resurrect me at all?!” he lashed out suddenly, startling her into a fear that she knew was coming sooner or later.

 

“.......I don’t think you’re ready to know yet.”

 

“Why?! I don’t remember the details of why I did what I did but I took the risk and got punished for it with death. And not just any punishment, it was Divine Punishment Eunbi…..that means that me being alive is agains-”

 

“We know okay?! It’s not like we didn’t think this through Sakuya! It took a whole year to gather our thoughts to bring you back!!”

 

A trace amount of tears flowed from her eyes and down her cheeks as she took his hand unto her own. Seeing the pained expression so vividly on her face, a heavy sense of guilt quickly ran through his body as he whispered out an soft “I’m sorry.”. She held his hand tight for a few seconds before letting go.

 

“You don’t have to apologize...we just thought what was best for you for your sake.”

 

“.......who’s we?”

 

Looking back down at the clouds below their own, she fiddled with the hem of her sleeve for a bit before wiping her eyes and answering. “As much as I want to, I can’t tell you in your state of mind right now. Just know that your resurrection came with a cost……...”

 

She glanced at him nervously again, placing a hand on his closest knee. “But it was a risk we had to take……and now you’re back because of it.“

 

“And from it, I guess the tales of doing resurrection were right. If anything managed to interrupt it, side effects would occur from small to large. As an example, your emotions will run wild from time to time...just like earlier.” she added.

 

He averted his gaze from her with guilt shown plainly on his face. Who wouldn’t have known about that incident he thought?

 

“......you know about that?” he responded.

 

“Of course. I mean sensing your energy that I haven’t felt for 175 years was quite a bit shocking, to say the least ...let alone feeling it amplified into a bolt that was summoned from anger.”

 

She raised her hand to grip his face and steadied it to look straight at her again.

 

“You’ve never summoned a bolt that mighty against another nor were you prone to such rage Sakuya….”

 

As if he hadn't already felt guilty enough, to know he unleashed something he never did before held onto him like a dark cloud in his thoughts.

 

“I don’t know…..I don’t know what came over me at the time. I just know that after a male Kumiho attacked me, my anger started to steadily grow until I saw red…..only red. It felt like my ego took control of me and my mind could only watch from afar as I went overboard in trying to intimidate the man…...to even go into my Daitengu state.”

 

She lowered her hand back to her body as her eyes narrowed slightly causing Sakuya to form a small bead of sweat on his forehead. For such a beautiful woman, her gaze when slightly agitated was quite intimidating to say the least.

 

“Well, now you know huh? And overboard is an understatement Sakuya. I was down there 20 miles away or so from the impact and felt it from the bottom of my toes to the tips of my hair. The amount of energy that bolt generated could probably be felt over 150 miles for those who are spiritually attuned to life energy like us. If anything, it’ll no doubt draw beings of all kinds into the area.” she criticized as her voice grew serious.

 

“ really? I guess I *POW*...OWWWW! W-what was that for?!” Sakuya yelped as he started rubbing the upper part of his arm where Eunbi punched him, not expecting her fist to pack such a wallop in them. She brought a pointing hand forward and began shaking it back and forth in front of his face as if scolding a child.

 

“The next time you go down there, keep a low profile!”

 

“B-but I do!” he leaned away from her, still a bit wary of getting another punch or so but luckily, she brought both of her hands to the side of her hips and kept it there.

 

“Then HOW did you get into a fight?” she asked as she anchored her attention on him, knowing full well that Sakuya was never much of a person who gets into fights.

 

“Ehhh well...uhh .... a male Kumiho shot at me from out of nowhere basically? I mean, I was just standing on top of a large tree earlier in the morning and then I became target practice the next moment after. Other things happened afterward of course....”

 

“.......and why were you doing that? And not being disguised as a crow or raven even?! Joseon doesn’t have Tengu like in Nippon you know?! If a normal human saw a man standing on top of a tree, what do you think they’d do?”

 

“Run?”

 

“And if they were a Hunter?”

 

“.....…also run? Kekekek-” *POW* “OWWWW!”

 

“As much as I miss your lovable weird laughter, this is no laughing matter!”

 

Feeling a bit pressured by her, he started rubbing the back of his head nervously with a slight grin growing on his mug.

 

“Okay, okay….but to my defense, I was waiting all night till morning after I felt the pulse of a Dragon Pearl in the city yesterday...”

 

Instantly her mind cooled as she heard of his reason. She crossed her arms and gave him a knowing look as she looked back down at the layers of scattered clouds below them. Thousands of miles below, she stared at where Pusan was, only just the size of a cherry from how high they were.

 

“.........so you felt it too huh?” she questioned silently.

 

He kept his attention to her as there was finally someone he can talk to about the subject of Dragon Pearls. Being an extremely rare item, humans don’t have much knowledge of them besides tales so hearing information from other beings was a welcome change.

 

Keeping her gaze down below, she began to sit down on the weightless white nothingness they were on and seeing her more relaxed actions, he did the same as he sat cross-legged beside her. He laid his head on one hand propped by his elbow as he stared at her waiting for an answer while silently admiring her beauty.

 

“You...were you looking for it Eunbi-noon….err..Eunbiyan?”

 

“Me? I have no need for it but considering what I know of your situation now, I’ll keep a wide lookout for it. And let me guess, Kuroryu wanted you to search for it?” she answered back.

 

“Yeah, he told me to find one but he did say it would be a hard task…….hell, I’ve been trying ever since I woke up for decades but I've had no such luck so far besides a few blips of its power.”

 

“I see….and it makes sense since he was the one looking after you during your resurrection. If anything, it tells me that something happened that awakened you earlier than expected...BUT, we must save that discussion for later, shall we? Do you have any other things you want to tell me before you go?” she questioned as she turned her head to focus on him again as his eyes darted away trying to avoid letting her know that he was staring a bit.

 

“Hmmm…..”

 

Moments passed until he finally shot up from his thoughts.

 

“Oh yeah, after my uh...outburst of sorts….my mind was pretty out of it until a Kumiho friend started calling my name, waking my confusion in the process. The location was a few miles from where I fought and I didn’t even know how I got there in the first place.” he informed.

 

While she listened to his every word, mentioning another Kumiho stuck out to her.

 

“….so there was another Kumiho?”

 

He glanced back at her as a grin curled around his lips. “Yeah, a curious Kumiho I met over a month ago. Her name was Hyewon.”

 

"An what's your relationship with her?" she questioned, wondering about the grin itself as it looked a bit mischievous.

 

"Ohh….uhhhh....f-friends I guess?"

 

Her eyes narrowed slightly at his answer, sensing more than what he was letting on.

 

“Suuuure…...friends. And I’m not surprised ...considering your love of the Kumiho kind.” she sarcastically mumbled, the last bit almost in a whisper.

 

“Ye-........h-huh? Wait, what?”

 

A serious look grew on his face, pondering what she meant but her head turned away at the moment so he couldn’t see her face.

 

“.......nothing.” she murmured out disappointedly.

 

“Wait, did I know anoth-”

 

"Sakuya."

 

"....yes?"

 

She shifted her legs to the front of her and hugged them while she turned back to him. Leaning close to him like a curious cat, it caused him to back away just slightly in worry again.

 

"What's your current knowledge of the Kumiho if I may ask?"

 

"Did I kno.....wait.....did she had a beautiful voice that sang beautiful melodies from her head?"

 

"......I'm afraid you are mistaken Sakuya."

 

".....are you sure? I swear I have memories of a singing Kumi-"

 

"Answer please: your knowledge of Kumiho." she commanded.

 

"Alright alright......uhh....that they are similar to the Kitsune of Nippon? Kekekeke...am I right?"

 

She finally leaned away and watched the clouds passing nearby silently. In her mind, she questioned just how many memories he had forgotten since it seems like he doesn’t remember much of anything. Does he even remember anybody from his family….friends….clan….past loves?

 

"So you've forgotten that too huh? Expected...and sad really." she stated, be his memory loss.

 

"Ehhh? Any reason why?" he asked.

 

"Nothing for the time being. As for Kumiho’s and Kitsune’s, they are similar but there are key differences that I will not say…for the best interests of your trust in her. But If you intend to befriend and trust this Kumiho or *ahem*.....further your 'relationship' with her, please ask what her intentions are."

 

Her info intrigued him as he finally sat up to listen more carefully. "......is there something I must know? Because it sounds a bi-ahhhhh...uhh...."

 

She leaned very close towards him, startling him a bit whilst shooting his eyes wide open.

 

“Have you two…...kissed?” she pondered, raising her brows in interest as her eyes studied him like a hawk.

 

“....errrr……kiss? What is a….oh...that weird ritual.”

 

Her eyes widened at what she just heard, her mind going a bit crazy now knowing that Sakuya forgot more than just mere memories but physical ones as well. “Weird ritual?! Whaaaaat?! No it’s not!! And coming from YOU of all people?!! Don’t tell me you forgot what a kiss was also?!” she choked out, a bit angrily…...too angrily.

 

“Errrrr…..no I didn’t! It's when the mouth goes to another mouth and they *chu* *chu* *chu*!” he yelled out as he waved his hands in front of him with lips puckered, making fake kisses.

 

*TSK* “Your actions speak louder than your words you dolt! Let me guess...you forgot what it was until she kissed you am I right?!” she rapidly poked his arm with her slender fingers as he tried to defend himself.

 

“Owwowwoww! Is….isn’t this a bit priva-”

 

“Y-you don’t even need to answer…*cough*Icanalreadytell*cough*.....idiot.”

 

“What’s it’s got to-”

 

She raised one hand to stop him and got up from where she sat. Crossing her arms, she looked down at Sakuya and explained.

 

"A kumiho’s kiss is more than just a kiss, which is why they are so eager to kiss someone so quickly.”

 

He followed suit and got up as well, intent on learning things he had forgotten.

 

“…...really? Are you sure?”

 

Eunbi’s head drew back as a groan accompanied the roll of her eyes as it landed on the center of his chest.

 

“Sakuyan…..there’s reasons why Kumiho can easily make beings fall for them and it all involves a little kiss that goes deeper than you think…...a lifeline if I may say.” she softly tapped where his heart was as her tone grew lighter.

 

“Infatuation sets inside the target and they’ll grow fond of the Kumiho more quickly than they would any other folk or beings. In most cases, it might not be as romantic as you think…..”

 

Sakuya’s posture went slightly stiff, wondering about the past couple of times he was with Hyewon. It made sense since she was always eager to kiss him despite their short handful of meetings. His thoughts were cut short as he felt a soft touch on his shoulder. Sakuya’s eyes traveled from Eunbi’s hand and back to her soft gaze as she spoke again.

 

“So for your sake and hers, if you plan on pursuing this thing between you and this Kumiho, remember that trust is the foundation for any new and budding relationship. It blooms once you both acknowledge each other as equals and will finally blossom when both can share love and happiness with each other ....”

 

Her hand that was on his heart went to cup his face gently, causing him to grow slightly pink from her touch. She closed her eyes and summoned a deep breath before opening it again to meet his gaze.

 

“So please...have a real talk with this Hyewon the next time you see her."

 

He felt the sincerity in her words but felt a hint of disappointment as well. It bothered him but he had a feeling that he shouldn’t press on the matter as he nodded a yes in agreement.

 

"…..I will."

 

"Because a broken heart will always make you do stupid things……...very stupid things." she ended.

 

“It’s best for you to go back to Kuroryu now Sakuyan...”

 

 She brought her hands back towards her as she grasped them together in front of her hanbok.

 

“But…” He reached out his hands towards her slowly, wanting her to stay and talk a bit longer.

 

She solidly shook her head in dismissal as her gaze grew sharp.

 

“No if, and or buts. Now Sakuyan, we’ll talk another time….especially about your past.” she said with authority in her voice. He understood that she meant it and then nodded knowingly. Thinking for a moment, he never knew why he never searched for his past ever since he woke up

 

“Then when can I see you again?”

 

Eunbi’s head shot up and pointed up into the infinite azure sky above them.

 

“......whenever there’s a Full Moon at night, just gaze up upon it and think about me.”

 

Looking back with a warm, comforting smile, she nodded again.

 

“I’ll come then.”

 

A bit sadden that it was going to be easy to speak to her more, he wondered why. “So I can’t talk to you anytime I want?”

 

“As much as I want to, I have important duties to fulfill that I can't neglect.”

 

He gave her a solid nod to tell her he understood. “I see. Well, I guess I’ll see you sooner or later Eunbi noo-”

 

“Yaaah, don’t make me hit you again Sakuya! It’s Eunbiyan okay! You gave me that nickname so you better keep it in your memories or I'll force this fist to make you remember!” she cut into his sentence with a raise of a closed fist as if she was about to hit him. He unconsciously raised his hands in defense as she bit her lip with a playful yet sneaky smile. She chuckled at his response as he only looked at her with a bit of fear. 

 

“Yabaiii-*POW*OWWW!”

 

She hit him in the arm with surprising strength as he rubbed his arms where her fist impacted.

 

“What was that?!” she teased, abit agressively at the fun she was currently having.

 

“Yabe-”

 

*POW* *POW* *POW*

 

“OWW OWW…...that actually hurts you know?!”

 

“You darn troublemaker!" Pointing towards some higher clouds miles above them, she yelled with vigor in her voice. "I have to go now you so hurry up and get back to Kuroryu! I’ll keep an eye out until you reach him!”

 

He let out a silent laugh as watch her pout, happy to know there's a link to his past that he can finally talk too. “Goodbye for now I guess. And hopefully we can talk more once we meet again. I might not gotten everything I wanted today but you helped paved a way to know my old self again. Can I get a farewell hug?”

 

For an instant, he saw a sparkle in her eyes as she let a smile grow widely on her face before diving headfirst into his arms with unrelenting glee. As she did her best to snuggle in his shoulders, she made sure she took her time to enjoy the moment as he did. “I’ll help you on your journey just like the old days.....I'll make sure of it." As they reluctantly let go of each other, they nodded to each other as they backed away slowly.

 

"Goodbye.....and take care love....”

 

She turned around causing her dress to sway gracefully as she began to walk away from him. He would be lying if he didn’t feel a bit of sadness watching her leave after such a sudden meeting with someone who knew about his past. She had answers but considering the state that he was in, she seemed to know best for him as he kept his lingering gaze on her.

 

Cupping his hands against his mouth, he yelled. “Eunbiyan, prepare to bring more rice cakes next time! If anything, I want to know more about you than just your name!”

 

A few meters away from him now, she stopped and turned with a smile.

 

“You have my word.”

 

With one last bow to her, he levitated off the cloud slowly as he stretch opened his hidden wings with a firm shake of his back. As she watched in wonder, Eunbi always admired how wonderful the black glowed in it's shimmering pink light as it flapped gracefully in the air. After not seeing it in almost 2 centuries, she took it all in as Sakuya levitated farther away from her.

 

"Thank you.....Eunbi."

 

Forgetting to add something, she yelled once again to grab his attention. “Sakuya!"

 

“As I've said before, your body and mind aren’t what it used to be.”

 

“So beware of letting your energy get too low again….”

 

“Because doing so will have a high risk of making you lose control of yourself like earlier today.”

 

“Understood?”

 

“Now go.” she ended.

 

He gave her a final salute as he finally flapped his wings to build momentum. “Goodbye for now!.”

 

She waved back, excitingly rocking her hands back and forth. “Ja mata, Sakuyan!”

 

Her ending their goodbye in Japanese hit him with a sense of nostalgia as he waved back. Maybe it was something they used to say back in the day he thought. “Kekekeke….ja mata to you as well Eunbiyan! I'll see you soon okay?”. With one mighty flap of his wings, he took off like lighting and with a clap of thunder, it signal his exit into the atmosphere above.

 

Now just a bright speck in her view, she let out one last sigh.

 

"175 years and my heart still aches…….."

 

--------------

 

Footsteps ran everywhere, hooves clattered on the ancient stone floors and the various yelling in the background didn’t stir Jin as he stopped his patrol in the currently restless city. Leaning on the side of a merchant building, he blew out a whistle earlier as he waited for a response.

 

*wheeeeeeeeww*

 

There it was as his attention turned to where the whistle came from. With her blonde hair that stood out so vividly among the sea of black, Chaeyeon's smiling face was a welcome sight to the younger hunter.

 

With a wave, Jin happily yelled out to his teammate and leader. “Noona, you finally came! Pretty chaotic out here huh?”

 

As she approached, they saluted each other with a beat of their chest with one hand and keeping one hand outstretched perpendicular to their body with the other. With their short Elite Hunter formalities out of the way, Chaeyeon roughly patted his back affectionately like a sibling as he smiled in response.

 

“Yeah yeah yeah, quite a day eh Jinnie? Let’s head somewhere a little more private shall we?" She gestured while pointing to an alleyway that had lower foot traffic than where they were currently. As they walked side by side, they could only take in the scenes before them as people ran back and forth here and there. It seemed like a whole different city than before since a lot of people left for nearby towns while the remaining population just speculated openly on what to do next. As they got to their destination, a back alley of a rarely foot traveled pathway, they looked around a bit to make sure nobody was near them as they started their upcoming conversation. No person on-site besides a few people who were far enough to not hear them.

 

"So aside from the crazy event that just occurred, any luck so far on the investigation?” Chaeyeon whispered.

 

"So-so but this area is definitely a hotspot for weird and supernatural events, to say the least. In just these past few days, I’ve taken down a few semi-Feral Kumihos rather frequently…"

 

Chaeyeon's brows raised in interest as she crossed her arms. "How many?"

 

He raised one hand up and opened his palms widely as he used his other hand to point at it. Surprised by the number, grew round as she gave him a bug-eyed stare in response.

 

"5?! Really?! That much in a few days? You’re lying.....right?” she doubted as her forehead lined with worry. He shook his head side to side with a serious look on his face as she pressed her finger against her lips to think about the new info.

 

“Dead serious.”

 

Chaeyeon went to lean against a nearby wall as a tired sigh escaped her breath. She took out an apple out of a bag she carried and showed it to Jin, who refused it as she blew on it before wiping it off.

 

“Aiissshh, how troublesome…..and here I thought I would relax in the beautiful beaches of Pusan a bit. But still, that’s definitely an odd occurrence then since we rarely get semi-Ferals, let alone regular Ferals….but 5 in just a few days? That’s no coincidence." she stated as she took a large bite of the apple.

 

*chomp*

 

Jin walked towards Chaeyeon and leaned beside her on the wall, looking forward at various objects in front of them as he whispered something else.

 

"Here’s the kicker though, they all have similar bloody scratches on the back of their necks." he added, causing her to narrow her eyes as she munched away.

 

"Seriously? The same kind of scratch that we’ve been seeing from these past few months with the mysterious black liquid mixed in the wound?"

 

"Yes, all in the same area of the nape as welll. There was actually one Feral that we had to kill a few days ago and it had a scratch too, yet bigger and deeper than usual. It matches with about 30% of other Ferals we’ve taken down before not too far from here right? It's all got to be connected somehow and there’s definitely someone or something behind this..."

 

Chaeyeon brought a hand to her chin as her eyes shot at various places in the environment. Something was on her mind and the newly acquired info intrigued her greatly. She continued eating her apple as she got off the wall to pace back and forth while Jin watched her silently as he waited for a response.

 

“Thinking about it, it is almost similar to those Vampire beings from the West.” *chomp* “Y’know, those undead revenants the foreign Hunters talked about at headquarters? Don’t they change humans in a similar way or something like that?"

 

Jin cocked his head slightly as he thought about it a bit as he began massaging his chin.

 

"Yes, they’re similar but from what those foreign Hunters said, their feasting and converting methods are different. The only way a Vampire can convert another is if they shared their own blood with its target while when they feast on humans, they bite and draining their blood through their necks but they can’t transfer their blood the same way to convert them.”

 

*chomp*

 

He took one hand and made a slitting motion to his wrist as he spoke again. “Usually they’ll cut their wrist and force their blood into their victim's mouths willingly or not to make them into one. For the Semi-Feral and Ferals Kumihos we’ve encountered, they clearly had claw marks rather than bite marks.”

 

“Mmm...well that rules out that Vampires are the cause.” She looked and examined her own hand and nails and continued. “Also we debunked that they could be knife marks since knives leave a smoother cut in comparison.”

 

“Exactly. The claw would have to naturally be able to secrete a venom or poison right? As far as I know, no animals, creatures or beings in Joseon have a claw, rather than fangs, that poison or venom strong enough to infect a being such as Kumihos to the point of making them Ferals.” he thought about it a bit more until another thought came into his head. “Dokkaebis, Gwisins or even Kumihos themselves…..none have abilities such as that.” He began scratching his head and wondered if he missed any other creatures but none came up in his mind. Chaeyeon took one last bite from her now fully eaten apple before throwing the leftover core away towards a trash container nearby. As it hit the sides to plop near the bottom, a few hidden rats hopped out and ran away in fear.

 

The sight made her neck tingle in disgust as both of them glanced at the rodents scurrying away into small holes of a nearby worn down building. “Uhhgghhh. Ya know, maybe it could be a foreign creature aye?”

 

“Could be. I mean we just learned of Vampires not too long ago right?”

 

As a thought popped in her mind, she entertained the idea to Jin. “Thinking about it….how about if a Vampire tried to convert a Kumiho? Would be pretty wicked huh? You fought a regular one right?” she teased.

 

Jin instantly shuddered as he remembered fighting with the only Vampire he’s ever met at the edge of the night not too long ago. Even with a group of Hunters with him, it was a battle that wore him down since he had to learn tactics on the fly fighting against it.

 

“Eugh, don’t even say that noona. Just fighting one Vampire was dangerous enough...really dangerous! A hybrid would be a literal nightmare! And how did you even know about that? I was gonna tell you in a few..."

 

Chaeyeon let out a hearty chuckle as she patted Jin’s shoulder to comfort him.

 

"Sorry Jinnie hehe! As for the Vampire, I actually heard about that story from the Occult Shop duo I talked to earlier. They were quite informative on supernatural events that occur around here and seemed to know a lot. If we need info on various things, we should go there more often.” she suggested as she walked toward the middle of the alley to look at the sky. A weird black energy flashed in her view for a blink of an eye before disappearing just as fast. She sensed something in that brief moment as she gestured Jin to follow her to another area.

 

“I’ve never been there but I guess. Also, news spreads like wildfire huh?” Jin commented.

 

As they began drifting from the back alley into another, all she let out was a single “.....yeah.”

 

Foreboding energy crept in the air as she began seeing more and more of this mysterious black energy coming from somewhere in front of them like flakes of ash drifting in the wind.

 

“This-...this is why we do this right? To have more knowledge on the supernatural beings and phenomenon around us.” she continued as she followed the broken trails of black that flowed like the wind in front of her as Jin followed behind unaware of Chaeyeon’s actions. She took notice that they were walking towards a less populated part of the city as the buildings grew more and more worn down.

 

“I guess so…...also something smells…..you don’t smell it noona?” he stated as he looked around for a bit and then back to Chaeyeon. He saw that she nodded side to side gesturing that she couldn’t so he dismissed it, unable to see what Chaeyeon was looking at as she kept her pace towards the rapidly suffocating atmosphere. Her muscles began getting more tenser as they continued walking but she kept her cool since this was just another day in her work.

 

“But anyway, as if Semi-Feral and Ferals aren’t enough to deal with but Vampires as well? Tiring. Well, that and the flying being who summoned the Red Lightning...." Jin rambled on but the last part caught Chaeyeon’s attention like a fish on a baited line.

 

Even with all the thoughts going on in her mind, Chaeyeon stopped in her tracks as Jin came and stopped right beside her.

 

She blinked rapidly as hung agape at what she heard. "Wait……..a what now? That was caused by a being?! You’re joking right?"

 

Jin shrugged his shoulders in response. "Rumors noona….rumors. The source? This crazy old man was speaking in public earlier about a flying being that has wings as dark as coal...a Demon supposedly. He seemed intent on it being true and someone in the crowd backed him up on the claim. Apparently they know each other since they’re both hunters and the old man was on Geumjeong Mountain when it happened. That and him finding a rather large and peculiar black feather at the impact site itself….."

 

Chaeyeon closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose, not sure what to believe since events keep unfolding back to back like laying bricks on the ground. "And you’re telling me this now?”

 

“I mean we were mostly talking about our investigation right? It would naturally lead to talking about this.”

 

She opened her eyes again and looked forward to the black swirling abyss of energy that blotted the sky in her view. The dark energy caressed her skin with a sense of dread but she stood firm against it even if her muscles told her to run.

 

“Aisssh…….but a Demon? I won’t believe it until I see with my own eyes." she remarked as if she was ready to face a threat sooner or later.

 

"And that’s why I’m glad you're here noona. With your talent and mine, nothing can hide from us two. Speaking of which, I’ve been catching a hint of something weird in the air for these past few moments...."

 

Jin stepped forward a bit and started to sniff the air around them, his face wincing in disgust as he continued more and more. A small chuckle escaped Chaeyeon’s lips, knowing that her partner finally caught on after all this time.

 

"Finally got a whiff of something eh? Good. And who's to say that I haven’t been following an energy trail for the past few minutes?”

 

He glanced back at the older woman and raised his arms in protest, wondering why she didn’t tell him earlier. “Really? I was wondering where we were going but didn’t think even about it. What color is it?”

 

Her face grew serious as an uneasy frown slowly grew on her face.

 

“......black……”

 

“What?!”

 

Chaeyeon surveyed the sky above them and the surrounding area of dilapidated buildings, turning in a full circle to take in the view before looking back forward. “The whole area looks like a drizzle of ash flowing steadily in the wind…..like a miasma of twirling darkness that’s concentrated at that one particular area over there....” she pointed at a broken-down building a few hundred yards away that looked abandoned for years. For the most part, they were basically at the Pusan’s outskirts where she could see the forest only a few hundred feet away from where they were.

 

Jin looked up at the vivid azure sky but saw nothing of the sort despite the tense atmosphere they were in. “It’s that bad?! But it’s so sunny out with a mostly clear sky!”

 

Chaeyeon began plodding forward as Jin followed suit but turned to him, bringing her index finger to to shush his loud voice. “Shhhh….we’re still on the trail and it's getting thicker.”

 

He came up even closer beside the older woman and started whispering in a bit of panic. “But noona, most of my team is still at Geumjeong Mountain! Shouldn’t we wait before we investigate more!?”

 

“The keyword is 'investigation' Jinnie, it’s part of our job right? After the event of the Red Lighting, we’re not gonna cause an incident so close to the city when people are already pani-”

 

Jin immediately went 2 steps ahead and placed a hand in front of Chaeyeon, prompting her to stop. 

 

“W-wait noona….that smell…...I know it.”

 

He sniffed the air around them and caught a scent that made him narrow his eyes.

 

“…..the stench of very old blood. Heavy….very heavy.”

 

Chaeyeon pointed at a certain area and Jin nodded to confirm.

 

“Is it concentrated over there then noona? The smell is thick enough that it's giving me a slight headache.” he pinched his nose but even still, the pungent smell infiltrated his dog-like sense of smell and made him want to gag on air.

 

“….this must be serious if it’s this bad.”

 

He made a gesture for Chaeyeon to follow him as they started sneaking around the area for the source of the smell in a completely broken down building with barely any walls up. Broken wood and bricks overran the floor as they crept around the perimeter of the site but they saw no signs of blood or bodies. As they got closer and closer, they stopped after they finally saw a man sitting in a rather open area where overgrowth took over the land where wood and bricks were laid. With his back turned towards them and judging from his stance, he was deeply meditating they thought.

 

“It's that man over there……” he took a larger sniff as he watched the man from afar. “, it's so overwhelming….I don’t think I can even fight in this condition.”

 

Focusing her gaze on the stranger more, Chaeyeon could instantly tell what creature he was from the kind of energy he possessed. “His aura…...he’s a Kumiho.”

 

Jin’s eyes widened in surprise, a bit taken aback since he’s seen dozens of the species yet none had a stench as dreadful as him. “A Kumiho? But I’ve never smelled one so drenched with the smell of death ....”

 

“........he’s no ordinary Kumiho actually…...something is very off about him.”

 

Her eyes never left the man as she continued studying him from afar. Before, the dispersed ash-like energy was now flowing freely from his body, whipping violently against the environment in her view when nothing was physically happening to it. The two could feel their skin crawl just by looking at him and felt it freely in the tense atmosphere.

 

".....his aura. It’s twisted…..very dark…..sinister in a way…..ancient most likely.” her words stilting and halting with each word, not knowing what to think.

 

“I have a really bad feeling about him noona…...are we still going through with this?"

 

She firmly shook her head side to side. “No…...I know damn well that if we confront this man, we’ll probably perish instantly. I’m not stupid enough to gather more info on a foe like him so let’s take our mental findings and go back.”

 

With a quick gesture of her head telling him to move back where they came, Jin slowly backed away as she did the same. Moments passed and as they finally got out of the concentrated area of tension, they both let out a breath of release as they started pacing away from the scene. None said a word as they finally broke into a sprint as they got hundreds of feet away from the site and back to where the rows of the dilapidated buildings were.

 

“……. . My heart feels like it’s dying noona! In these past 3 years of working our job, I’ve never felt anything like that before ....”

 

“......how the hell doesn’t the city know about this place? Does nobody even check this area?” she added.

 

“I mean war has been far in between so I doubt they’d look through ruin parts of the city, especially on the outskirts.”

 

“I’m gonna report this as soon as we get back an-”

 

*fwwoooooooosshhhhhhhhh*

 

An arrow flew through the air, grazing Chaeyeon’s cheek slightly as blood began to drip slowly onto her neck and down the collar of her uniform.

 

“W-what the hell?!” she wiped the wound with the back of her hand as she scanned where the arrow came from. Jin closed in, guarding in front of her as he drew a knife out from a sheath hidden on the inside of his uniform.

 

“Noona! You okay?!” he yelled as they looked back at where they just came from. They spotted a person in a flowy black cloak standing on top of a broken pillar of a building where they just passed by. The stranger had a bow aimed at them as they watched for their attacker’s next movements.

 

“Yeah…...I’m okay! I guess we weren’t in the clear huh….?” she muttered whilst taking out her own knife and holding it out in front of her. They stared at the figure but it didn’t move.

 

“That’s definitely not him…….”

 

Reading the strangers aura, Chaeyeon instantly knew what they were going up against.

 

“Another Kumiho….an underling it seems….”

 

In the blink of an eye, the stranger disappeared where they stood and quickly appeared just a few meters away from the two. The stranger opened their hands wide and spun once in place, causing 6 small balls of sweltering hot flames to orbit their body as the person got into a fighting stance. The two saw that the figure wore a black mask to cover their mouth but noted that the stranger had a feminine set of eyes that glowed an eerie bright white with it’s fox-like irises. With each slight movement, a trail of light seemed to emanate from her eyes that gave off a ghostly glow, making them shudder at its intense gaze. She let out a faint ghostly chuckle shortly before she finally spoke to them, chilling their already tense nerves.

 

“..…..shall we begin?”