BAEKHYUN

The sun was high up, but the wind was quite chilly. I looked up at the unusually bright, yet frozen sun above me, listening for the sounds of the forest. It had been a while since the rites had been carried out, but I still felt uncharacteristically weak. I’ve trained with Shinhye for the whole week and as far as my powers go, I know that they’ve returned to their usual state before the ceremony. It was one fine day except for the bizarre movements of the creatures in the woods. It was unsettling and for once, I refused to go with Shinhye in it, but knowing her, she still persuaded me to.

One day after the rites were carried off, the view by the thundering river of Elyxo had cleared off. It was a trivial change as we’ve known that it would result to that since the powers of the Guardians were beginning to weaken, but they were still stronger. Aside from that, we’ve got too many things in our hands. The traditional visits were supposed to be taking place, however, we cannot afford to do that just now with the problems emerging from both Pyria and Genro. There had been sightings of numerous creatures that weren’t supposed to be in existence and I was afraid that the ones the Guardians have chosen to revive from extinction were the most dangerous ones.

First, there was the Orc, native Elyxians who enslaved themselves under the supremacy of the river with hopes to strengthen their powers. In turn, they were cursed to resemble such grotesque creatures. People from around the capital have been encountering them in the woods or in the prairies at the borders. When Sehun and Shinhye heard about this, they were forced to admit that they had a close encounter with one and had to go to the extent of slaying it. Still, we knew they were keeping some details of that day to themselves.

Chan Yeol was furious, but he couldn’t argue with either of them right after reconciling. It’s as if Shinhye’s views on matters were all that made sense to him as of late. I had the feeling he fancies her, but being the person she was, Shinhye didn’t show the least bit of interest towards us in that manner.  She was, for a fact, raised in the human world and knows naught of how Elyxian women behaved. Unlike most women who showed their feelings, she was rather reserved and quiet. She moved with the accuracy and subtlety of a trained assassin with the way she handled her swords. Very unsettling.

My eyes strayed to her. She was sitting astride a fallen log which was slightly suspended by the tree it was leaning to. Her jade eyes were looking straight ahead into the deeper corners of the forest as she sharpened a cutlass she had just made. The sound of grating metal against the smooth surface of the stone dominated and echoed through the surroundings. Once in a while, the blank look on her face would be replaced by that of a horrified mask or an angry look. I wondered what she had been thinking all along, but I didn’t dare disturb her.

“Baekhyun?” she spoke just when I thought she was going to shut me out from her system for the entire morning.

I looked up at her from the grassy ground where I sat. Her hair billowed in the wind as if it had a life of its own. “What is it, Shin-Shin?” I asked cautiously.

“Purists…what is their aim?” she asked without looking at me.

“I honestly do not get their point, but they’re against us.”

She nodded as her serene disposition contorted into that of anger. “How strong are they?”

Why was she asking me these things? “They should be of minimal threat, but now that the Guardians are siding with them, we can’t be too careful,” I explained.

“You hold a higher power.”

“That includes you.”

She turned her head towards me, her eyes dark with rage even as her once again calm expression dominated her features. “How do I kill them?”

I frowned at her. “Do not speak of such matters. We’re not that incapacitated for you to be plotting your own murderous scheme towards them.”

She scoffed softly. “I just want to be ready in case.”

I shook my head at her. “We won’t allow you to fight.”

“And then what, let me miss all the fun? No way.”

“Fun?” I almost lost my balance as I stood up. “Is that what it is to you? Just because you’ve killed an Orc, it doesn’t mean they wouldn’t be stronger.”

She smiled slightly. “You’re too serious, Bacon. I understand the gravity of the situation, but I’m trying to make matters lighter at least between the seven of us, if not physically then mentally.”

“But you’re not fighting and that’s final,” I told her sternly.

“Whatever you say.”

I shrugged. “All kidding aside, Lady Shinhye.”

“Aww. I just hate it when you –” She stopped in mid-thought, her eyes becoming glassy and blank as if she was seeing a vision of a foreboding future. The dark orbs at the center of her eyes constricted as her expressions tightened.

“Shin? Is everything alright?”

She nodded slowly, but heat radiated from her as if she would combust into flames just like Chan Yeol. She did have a part of all our powers, but I didn’t think it would manifest in such a calm situation. She shook her head and swallowed hard. “What are Earth Wolves?” she demanded hysterically.

“Did you say Earth Wolves?” It can’t be!

She nodded, fear etched on her perfect face.

I swallowed. “Did you see one?”

“I think I just did.” Just as she said the words, a loud crack reverberated through the forest. In the blink of an eye, the log she had been sitting on levitated, rising higher. “Wait for me,” she instructed firmly. Another crack echoed through the forest followed by dull, yet loud crashing sounds from above as a huge tree branch began moving by itself against the trees. It went on for a while until it fell a few paces in front of me and disintegrated into splinters which was then blown by a sudden breeze.

Shinhye descended from above the trees, looking like she ran a mile. “They’re safe. They got out,” she told me breathlessly.

Panic surged in while I tried to figure out what she had just said. “What? Who got out? What happened?” I returned to her just as how frantic she was a while back.

She shut her eyes and drew out breath. “I’m sorry if I’m giving you a heart attack. It’s just…”

“Just what?” I demanded, my blood running cold.

“Calm down, will you?!” she chastised me. “There were t-travelers. I’ve been keeping tabs on them for a while now.”

“And?”

“They’ve encountered an Earth Wolf.”

“Where?”

“By the river. I’ve tried to control it through one of the travelers’ minds.”

I just blinked at her. I didn’t know what stunned me more. Genro was by the great river and it was only in that place where the wolves existed. “That’s impossible.”

“I saw it…it looked like it was half-human.”

I stared at her in disbelief, knowing what she meant by her words. “Why were you reading their minds?”

“I was trying to do my own kind of survey around the area.”

I frowned when I realized something. “That’s good, but quite odd. What would Earth Wolves be doing out in broad daylight?”

At that, she grimaced. “I-it’s darker around there.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded. “Positive. It’s not shining like here.”

“I see. The Guardians must’ve –”

I was interrupted by the shift in her expressions again as she looked beyond my shoulder. We both heard swooping sounds coming from behind me. I moved backwards as she pushed me forcefully, but I still felt something small yet incredible fast graze my left cheekbone slightly and the next thing I saw were ghostly arrows that disappear into tiny water droplet right when they passed us.

“Are you okay?” she asked me. Her eyes widened. “Oh my. You’re bleeding!” she told me amidst the deafening sounds that sliced through the air. She reached over to me, but I pushed her off the way of four or so arrows darting towards her. I fell off to the ground, sitting when an arrow hit the spot on the ground just between my knees.

“Stay down, I told Shinhye as I inched towards her, forming a light barrier around us. It protected us from the arrows, making them go to wrack and ruin as they touched it. “Stay close.” I glanced at her, only to see her touching the barrier with her hand. “Don’t –”

“Ouch!” She jerked away from the barrier and stood close to me. “It’s stings.”

I rolled my eyes at her. “Of course, it does. What makes you think you can touch it?”

She sniggered. I don’t have the slightest idea how she managed to do just that. I kept my aplomb and crouched down. “Get on.”

“Huh?”

“Get on. Quickly! And hold your breath.”

She slung her arms around my neck and I sped off through the forest. Tree trunks were charred as we passed by. Arrows still rained on us, but as we reached the edge of the forest, it dispelled as if nothing happened. The moment we were on safe ground, I set her on her feet, wiping the dripping blood from my cheek.

“Don’t touch it like that!” she scolded me, swatting my hand away to have a better look at it. She winced at it as she slowly ran her finger below it. “That’s going to leave a mark.” Without warning, she dug into her pocket and handed me a piece of blue cloth. “Here you go.” She pressed it against my face and took my hand to replace hers. “Apply pressure on that. Let’s get you inside.”

SHINHYE

We’ve been attacked for the second time and now, it was with Baekhyun. I