Sehun felt himself floating. His awareness sharpening. The feeling was familiar in some way like he had experienced it somehow, but his memory was hazy to remember exactly where and when. Blinking his eyes open, Sehun winced from the sudden brightness assaulting his vision, that prompted him to shut his eyes back the next moment . It felt like he had been in darkness for long and his vision hadn't adjusted. After a moment or two he tried again, this time slowly, until his eyes was able take the brightness. He gazed up, noting the familiar ceiling. With a groan, he sat up to look around. He was in a room, it was really familiar, but the furnitures told him otherwise. Looking through the window, he saw lush leaves. The tree of life. He was in Lyfe. Running a hand through his hair– head, he froze when he felt the lack of hair on one side of his head. What in the name of hells? He had to see a mirror. He quickly stood up and regretted it instantly. Pain sliced through his head and Sehun faltered to a stop, hand tightening around the headboard that he hadn't an idea when he had gripped. He shook his head slowly and resumed walking. With every step the pain grew, until his eyes blurred from the agony with tears and he was almost driven to his knees. Vague memories were coming back in a rush, until it became clear. It felt as though hundreds of people screamed in his ears, clamored for his attention, each voice demanding a different thing. Sehun bit down on his lip to avoid crying out and was only distantly aware of the taste of blood in his mouth.  When the sensation came to a stop, another replaced it, that he wished the first would have remained. The physical ache was preferable, than the one in his heart. Sehun clenched his eyes shut and bit back a sob. Wei Ying. Thorns grew in Sehun's chest and pulled him to his knees. Wei Ying  His insides twisted and he couldn’t stop himself from folding over. Wei Ying. Sehun clawed at the wooden floor, till his nails broke and blood soaked his fingers. Wei Ying was gone. And he had been response. Had taken half of Wei Ying's soul. The sorrow shredding Sehun tore loose, filling the silence of the chamber with his screams. The door bust open and he couldn't look up to see whom it was. Too ashamed to face any of Lans. To his luck it wasn't any of those but Kai. Familiar arms came to wrap around his body, and Sehun clutched his mate as he cried, grateful when Kai held him close without question. His mate could see through him. Could feel Sehun's emotions and thoughts as though they were his own. Another– more people came into the room. His birth parents amongst them. "Sehun–" Eunhyuk began to say, but Kai shook his head at the elfin king. No one spoke after that. They all stood and listened to Sehun's sobs. He didn't let go of Kai, not until three dragon whelps pushed against him, vying for his attention or probably to soothe him. He gathered them up into his arms, wishing everyone would leave him be. He just needed his babes and mate at the moment. He needed the comfort only them could bring. "Don't do this to yourself Sehun." Irene said. Sehun flinched from the sound of her voice as though physical struck. "What happened to papa isn't your fault, but you'll never agree with me." Damn right he wouldn't. He would forever live knowing he had caused Wei Ying pain. The worse part was that he had enjoyed taking his soul. Had felt himself latched onto Wei Ying's soul greedily, like the parasite he was. Sehun had never considered being a dark soul a curse like many people believed. However after what he did to Wei Ying, he truly agree with them. He shouldn't have been born in the first place. Why did they even go through the trouble of getting him back? They should have just let his souls fade and cease to exist. That way Wei Ying would still be okay. "I am sorry–" his voice broke, tightening around his whelps. "I am so sorry." "I know you are." It was Lan Zhan and Sehun wished the ground would swallow him so that he wouldn't ever face Lan Zhan and see the look he would gaze him with. Surely Lan Zhan and his children would hate him. They had to. He'd been the reason they would probably never hear the sound of Wei Ying's voice, or the feel of his touch. When the dark elf's souls had left his body, Sehun had regained a part of his awareness even though he hadn't been conscious, which was how he knew what had happened. From what he had heard, Dae'in had said there was no cure. The boy must have been wrong right? Sehun was a ing dark soul and an elf, what good were his powers if he couldn't help the one person he cherished the most? Sehun wouldn't rest until he find a way to restore Wei Ying's soul even if he had to give up on his own. There had to be a solution somewhere, somehow. That shouldn't be the end for Wei Ying.  Kai hid a wince as his fingers tighten around Sehun"Would like to see him?"he asked. Sehun gazed up at his mate and he was sure even without a bond the hope in his eyes was obvious to Kai. "Can I?" He asked in low tone. Did he have the right to see Wei Ying? Would the Lans allow him to get close to him? That wouldn't be the only problem, what if his dark side decided it wanted more of Wei Ying's pure soul after having a taste? Sehun felt sick at the thought of the sweetness in Wei Ying's soul.  No, he was in control of both souls. He would not only see Wei Ying but would surely find a way to undo the damage he'd done. "Of course you can. They'll be taking him back to Coaster Z today. You should go see him." Sehun's eyes involuntarily gazed at Lan Zhan and his daughters, steeling himself for the inevitable. But what he saw was the opposite of what he had expected. They offered a nod. And Wendy even attempted a smile, that came out strain."He's in the next two rooms down the hall." She told him. "Go." She nodded once again as if to assure him. They were all wearing funeral clothes. They must have held a mass funeral for the dead, that had lost their lives during the war. Jungkook was holding an urn, his eyes down. When Sehun look at Kai, the dragon let out a sigh. "Taegun is one of the fallen." He told him. Oh Gods. They had lost many good people.  Placing the whelps in Kai's arms, he slowly stood, eyes casting down. He stopped in front of Jungkook, to offer his condolences before he made his way out with fast strides to reach the room Wei Ying was. Reaching the room, he pushed the door and froze. The room was mostly silent, save for the beeps of machines attached to Wei Ying that echoed in Sehun's ears, that might as well be the sound of bombs going off. Two elfin doctors and two sliver dragons were having a hush discussion amongst themselves. Sehun had a sense of Deja Vu when his eyes landed on the warlord. Wei Ying had been in a similar situation months ago when the assassins had injured him while in mid shift.  Forcing his body to move, he walked further, the four people noticed him, as they all turned to greet him with a bow. He didn't acknowledge them, his focus was on his foster dad. Wei Ying's eyes were open, Sehun would have thought he was gazing at the ceiling and would gaze his way any moment. He had prayed, desperate it would be the case, to the point of shutting his eyes and opening them, hoping to see the sight he desired. But no, Wei Ying remain the same. His gaze was frozen. "We'll leave you." One of doctors said and jerked his head to door. "Wait!" Sehun called out. "What type of treatment have you administered?" He needed to know all the options he had left. "Everything you could think of my prince." The elfin doctor said, his tone solemn. "Even the nectar of the tree of life?" The tree of life was rarely used for healing purposes, due the  fact that all elfin people depended on it for survival. However it could be use on special occasion, like Wei Ying's. It was believed to save a terminally ill person, and could even regrow a person's damaged organ or limb. "Yes, it was the first thing we did. His eyes responded for a few seconds when tested with a flashlight. But nothing after. He's still unresponsive." Don't lose hope. He told himself. You'll find the way. "Has Park Jimin visits him?" He know the sea elf could be their best chance at finding a solution. He got the knowledge. "He has" the elf said. "He said magus Choi might have known what to do if he were alive." It meant all the best magic healers and scientist hadn't and wouldn't be much of a help.  Sehun jerked his head in a nod."I won't give up." He said more of an assurance to himself. Reaching Wei Ying, he hesitated for a moment, before taking a hold of his hand, vaguely aware of the people leaving the room. "Wei–" he began but shook his head. "Papa." He called, his breath hitching with emotions. It was something Wei Ying had wanted to hear him say for as long as Sehun had been with the Lans. And Sehun hated himself even more to wait this long to say it, when the Zerg couldn't give a response. When he wouldn't be able to see the happy smile that would surely grace Wei Ying's face. When the warlord wouldn't be able to pull him into a hug, patting his head while muttering 'Brat, it took you long enough ' giggling afterwards. Wei would be so happy that it would radiate off him, to everyone around him. Sehun's lips trembled as he tried to hold back another sob. But failed. His grip tightening, he let it out, and more spilled from his mouth. "Papa, please." He didn't know what he was asking for. For Wei Ying to forgive him, or to respond. Probably both. "I am so sorry." He cried, finding it hard to breathe, as though an invisible hand was squeezing his lungs in the most painful way. "I never wished to hurt you. You of all people should know that." He bent over resting his head on Wei Ying's chest. Feeling his heart beat, a reminder he was alive but not in the way a person should be.   "I will fix it– you. I promise." At the moment Sehun would sacrifice his life a thousand times to fix his mistake. The greatest mistake of his life. Clenching his teeth, he extracted a part of his light soul to push into Wei Ying. Wishing desperately it would make a difference. Nothing. "Please take it, I don't want it. Take it all. Just, just –" he choked on another sob. "Come back."  Two familiar pair of arms came to wrap around him. "Don't waste you soul." Wendy said. He didn't even know when his sisters had walked in. "Dad had tried that, but it didn't work." No Sehun's would be different, it should be. Half of Wei Ying's soul was in him, maybe his body would feel it and recover. He wasn't even sure he had said that out loud until Irene said.  "Still it won't work, it's not like you stored it somewhere." She said, her voice catching at the end. "I am so sorry." He mumbled, his body shook with emotions, mostly self hate. "We know." Wendy said, running a hand up and down his spine. "We know." She repeated. He cried his heart out to the point of nearly fainting, and his sisters held him. Sehun had never cried this much in his life, had never felt helpless. It wasn't until Lan Zhan stepped in, muttering "it's time" that Sehun allowed Eunhyuk to drag him out and watched with heavy heart as they carried Wei Ying in a gurney to the spaceship. Not having the strength to hold up, he slipped onto the ground, his eyes drifting shut.
*** Three years later.

 

Sehun smiled watching three dragon whelps happily chasing each other on the rooftop, close to safe side like Sehun had asked them to. Always energetic and happy to see their parents that were still roaming the Galaxy. But Sehun and Kai always make time for their babes, no matter how busy they get or the fact that the whelps were in Eunhyuk and Donghae's care. Especially now that the whelps growth had reverted to how it should for normal whelps. With the dark soul defeated there was no need to exert themselves and grow fast. And Sehun was glad his babes would have a normal childhood, and wouldn't miss out on the experience to grow in stages. Aurora that was being chased by Dae'in, made a sudden loop– a trick she had learned from her uncle Junmyeon– grinning when she pulled it off at the first try, then a corkscrew, that had her brother flapping his wings to mimick her actions. Jae joined them, letting out sounds as though finally discovered the excitement of corkscrew. Reaching Sehun, all three landed in front of him, asking to be pet. With a smile, Sehun ran his hands down their distinctive scales. Satisfied, they let out purrs as they scattered and found a position under Kai's massive wings. The sun was warm, the sky cloudless and bright, the view stretching out in all directions, the beach glistening beautifully in the sun, with some children running along it. Sehun should be afraid, but the huge paws cradling him made him feel safer than he ever had before. Kai was stretched out like a gigantic cat, wings lifted high enough to provide shade and respite from the winds whipping about the top of the castle. His golden scales shiny and a heavenly combination of colour in the sunlight. Each scale along his legs were as big as Sehun's palm, the hand-like paws tipped by talons were a brilliant white and sharp enough to score stone and concrete. Sunlight danced over Kai's scales, and the shimmer was something he would never tire of seeing. Kai was the most beautiful being Sehun had ever seen and he hoped that he would never take how he felt for granted. Below them on the castle ground, dragons and elves went about doing their thing that brought another smile to Sehun's face. Immediately after the war, Eunhyuk had retaken his throne, rulling alongside his husband like he had done for centuries. The elves in Zetex-0 had finally come home, and every other elf across the Galaxy that wished to return. His Hayrik had surprised him when the king had allowed the dragons to remain, to share the planet, something Kai had been deeply grateful for. Sehun knew his mate would've kept his words and find another place for his people. It was exciting as well as surreal to see elfin and dragon race coexisting. Though mostly not in the same space but in the same planet. Eunhyuk had given the dragons four cities to live in. Each city in a certain region of the planet (North, South, East and West) putting in mind the dragons different nature and climate adaptation. His Hayrik's generosity didn't stop there, he had promised to expand the cities as dragon population grew . All the elves in those cites had been given the choice to choose any city they wanted to move in. But those that had a dragon mate, or simply chose to stay with the dragons were allowed to do as they wished. Which not many had taken up the offer . Considering what the dragons had put the elfin race through in the past, it would take time before the elves trust them