Start of Chapter 4 (by hiikyoung)

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  That morning was a restless one for most of them. Some were excited while others were equally nervous and anxious. Sora sat with ChunHee, watching the other girl cutting up the fabric of another hanbok. Minah was busy double checking their bags, making sure they had everything they needed for their journey tomorrow. Min Hyun was with her, talking up a storm about nothing really, though Minah didn’t seem to mind, quietly nodding as the other girl spoke.

                “We all don’t have to wear those, do we?” Min Hi asked, looking over the work ChunHee was doing, “I’d rather wears pants.”

                “For the last time, no. These are just for me and Sora,” ChunHee resisted the urge to roll her eyes. That was the third time Min Hi had made her dislike for dresses known to them.

                “Ooo, that’s pretty,” Min Hyun exclaimed, leaving Minah to watch her work as well, “can you make me one?”

                “Maybe the next time we stop somewhere,” ChunHee laughed.

                “We better get going soon,” Minah interrupted them, “The emperor wanted us to meet out guide in the city first and then head off to the ‘Mystic Mountain’ or something like that. There’s supposed to be an old woman there who can get us started on our journey.” Minah shrugged.

                In the other room, the remaining girls were also getting ready. Sookyung and Kyunglim were looking over a scroll together while Yerin looked over their shoulders with mild interest. Mi-cha sighed before flopping onto the bed dreamily. She was loving this adventure they were going on. It reminded her of the fantasy stories she’d read as a kid. Not to mention they were in a beautiful suite of sorts, guest of an emperor. How cool was that?

                “What are you reading?” Yerin asked the pair, Deu Lae coming up behind them to look as well. She remained quiet however. It was better to listen to them first.

                “Something one of the emperor’s advisors let me borrow. Says here we have to go to the mountain top to meet an oracle and start our journey,” Kyunglim responded, “it sounds so complicated. Why do they need so many of us to find some stones?”

                Sookyung shrugged in response. A knock on the door followed by a voice alerted them that they needed to leave soon.

                Outside the boys were getting the horses and carriages ready. A few grumbled about why they had to do the manual labor while the girls stayed indoors, but most were eager to get the journey started. Their guides would meet them in the city soon enough. A few moments later and the girls were beginning to file out of the palace, supplies and bags in tow.

                Kikwang noticed them and looked to the other two boys he was with, Myungsoo and Sungyeol. Motioning to the girls with his head he asked:

                “Which of them are yours?”

                “W-what?” Sungyeol sputtered, his face turning a little red. Myungsoo simply regarded him quietly, though he definitely looked surprised as well.

                “I need to know what girl to stay away from. They’re all very beautiful, so it’s going to be very difficult for me to choose.” He smiled innocently, though his tone betrayed his teasing.

                “You don’t need to choose anyone,” Dongwoo’s voice came up behind them and he gave Kikwang a good slap on the back of the head. Kikwang rubbed his head, though his smile didn’t leave his face, “And just for the record, stay away from Minah. I know your reputation.”

                “A-and don’t bother Mi-cha, I mean, any of the others!” Sungyeol exclaimed as well. Myungsoo sighed, shaking his head. Clearly this guy was trying to get them riled up.

                “I get it, I get it,” he held up his hands in apology, “and I’ve got my eye on someone else right now, so your ladies are safe. Speaking of which,” he swanned off to join some of the girls. One visible stiffened upon seeing him and made a b-line to enter the carriage as he approached.

                “Want to bet which of them,” Myungsoo pointed to some of the other men who were watching Kikwang carefully, “kills him first?”

                “So, what do you think?” Hoya asked Woohyun as they saddled some horses, “This will be our first time away from the palace.”

                “It’s going to be dangerous. Hopefully we can get there and back in one piece. Those people from the other kingdom have been spotted in the forests lately. We have to be careful.” Woohyun grinned little when one of the girls, Yerin if he remembered correctly, approached them, “Hey little girl. Going to try and sweet talk your way into one of our hearts today?”

                “Like I’d ever want to win your heart,” Yerin rolled her eyes before looking to Hoya, “do you have any extra bows or arrows?”

                “Well…”

                “Don’t bother to try. Hoya here won’t fall for your charms either.”

                “That’s not why I’m asking!”

                “Riiight,” Woohyun laughed while Yerin seethed. And thus the banter continued, each trying to take a jab at the other with Hoya completely forgotten.

                Ignoring them, Hoya looked off to see that Kikwang guy talking with a few of the other girls…namely ChunHee. His brow furrowed at that. What was he up to? And why did Hoya care? Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he continued to listen to the pair argue near him.

                “Yeobo!” Deu Lae shouted to Taemin, waving, “I’m riding in the carriage first! I’ll see you later!”

                “Bye sweetie!” Taemin laughed before turning to meet the gaze of the others, “what?” He aked, shrugging, “we’re close.”

                “Ahh,” Himchan sighed, “I wish Sookyung would play with me like that. Oh, they must be our guides,” he looked towards two men who were heading their way on their own horses.

                Min Hi had joined them and her eyes widened in surprise at who one of the boys were. The JR lookalike met her gaze and he rolled his eyes. The other man was the first to extend his hand in greeting.

                “Hello, I’m Sungjong! This is Jonghyun, but we call him JR around here…”

                The rest of his introduction was lost to Min Hi. How did two boys who looked so much alike, from different worlds, end up having the same name and nickname? Her head felt a little light.

                “Are you okay?” Taemin asked her worriedly.

                “I’m fine…”

                “Let’s get going,” JR spoke, looking to Min Hi a little in contempt before leaving to join the remaining members of their group.

                “Ah, yeah, so we’ll be taking your group to the mountain top…” Sungjong began again.

                Their journey was uneventful at first. They stayed on the main roads, most of the girls riding in the carriages while others either walked or took turns riding the horses. The boys stayed mostly on the horses themselves, although a few would get off to offer them to one of the weary girls when the walking turned into hours. Sungjong and JR both briefed a few of the others on their destination to meet the oracle who would aid them.

                “The plan is if we get separated we can all meet there regardless,” Sungjong explained.

                Hours later they were away from the city, travelling through the forest on a well-used road. As the forest got denser around them they began to realize it would be too dangerous to go much farther in the dark. They were getting ready to make camp for the night, the starry sky above filled with more stars than any from the other world had seen before. Without the bright city lights they could see everything, It was a beautiful sight to behold. However, something definitely didn’t feel right…

                Just as they were ready to sleep for the night a loud noise drew all of their attentions. Cries and shouts echoed around them and lights from torches burned nearby.

                An ambush of men clad in black clothing was upon them. In the confusion, some fought, others hid, and more were driven apart in to the forest. They weren’t prepared for an attack so close to the city, but their ambushers had counted on that. Clearly they were working for another kingdom and had heard of the group from another world.  With most of them separated in small groups or pairs, they could only hope they survived long enough to make it to the mountain in the morning.

Meanwhile, elsewhere....

"My lord, we've intercepted them."

"Good. We only need the women alive. I find it strange that men from their world would also come seeing as only women can touch the stones..."

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End of Chapter 4 (by hiikyoung)

(kiyo's note: I am sorry I posted this late. I didn;t check my mail yesterday. i've posted announcements in the announcement acct. please read those. thank you!)