Chapter 17

The Messenger

                “We’re half-brothers”

                Everyone’s mouths were wide open with shock. Katrina was especially surprised. Sure, she knew that Atlas had a half-brother, but he never really talked about him much. All she knew was that he was three years older than Atlas and had been living with his father somewhere in New York. Who knew Shindong would end up being related to her best friend? Of course, it shouldn’t have come as too much of a shock; it was no mistake that they looked a lot like each other.

                “That’s him?” Kyuhyun asked, stepping forward to take a closer look at his friend’s brother.

                “He looks just like you!” commented Sungmin, also coming forward to greet Atlas.

                “Your mom married two guys?” Philly asked out of the blue, causing everyone to turn his way. Atlas almost chuckled at Phillip’s outburst.

                “That’s usually how it works Philly.” He smiled, ruffling his blonde hair playfully before setting his eyes on Phillip’s new fluffy white wings. “Dude, how the heck did that happen?” he asked, gingerly touching a feather, causing it to shudder and gently fall to the ground. Phillip shrugged.

                “Dunno. Maybe I’m a mutant or something.” He mussed before suddenly jumping up and down in excitement, causing more white feathers to fall. “Does this mean I’m a super hero? Oh! And you could be my sidekick Atlas! We could be like ‘The Winged Boy and Wolf Wonder’ or something. And we could fight evil and-“ Phillip’s hyper rambling came to a halt as Eunhyuk suddenly pulled Phillip’s shirt up, revealing the heart-shaped mark. Phillip groaned in aggravation. “Oh no, not you too! Look, it’s just a birth mark! I know it’s unusually shaped, but it’s even in my medical records.” As Phillip explained this, Eunhyuk waved Donghae over, who also started to gawk at the mark. They both nodded.

                “Oh, I know it’s a birth mark.” Eunhyuk smiled, letting Phillip’s shirt down. “You’re abstract magic like us.”

                Phillip cocked his head in confusion. “Abstract magic?” He barely got the question out of his mouth before he found himself caught in the famous Donghae bear hug.

                “We finally found another abstract magic brother! Or would you be a cousin since you’re a Valkyrie and not a Phantom? Oh who cares? Welcome to the family!” Donghae beamed, still crushing Phillip in his embrace, though the blonde-haired boy didn’t seem to mind. All he cared about was getting his questions answered.

                “Again, what’s abstract magic? And who are you guys? And why is Katrina with you? And where are we? And who were those guys that kidnapped us? And how-“ His string of questions was cut off by Katrina’s hand covering her young friend’s mouth. Atlas crossed his arms.

                “Yeah Katrina, you’ve got some explaining to do.” He smirked as Katrina tried to figure out what she was going to tell him. Where should she begin? But before she had to answer, Leeteuk stepped forward.

                “We’ll be happy to explain, but I think we need to get inside. It’s getting dark out.” He explained. “It’s very nice to finally meet Katrina’s friends.” He gave them a small bow as Kyuhyun whispered to Yesung:

                Once back inside, Leeteuk explained everything to Atlas and Phillip over dinner. The three plus Katrina sat at one end of the table while the others talked amongst themselves. Eunhyuk and Donghae were very excited that they finally met another abstract magic person. They got to talk to Phillip some before Leeteuk took him away to explain, but they already thought he was a nice kid. They even helped him get his wings back against his back instead of outstretched, though it was tough for Phillip since they were still very sore.

Shindong was glad to be reunited with his brother. He knew they didn’t know each other very well and that they weren’t really fully related, but they had gotten along well together when they did see each other. Who knew that they would both have powers? He guessed their mom just got lucky.

                Siwon and Sungmin were already coming up with battle strategies for the next day. They had to get to Onew’s hideaway before he drained Madame Christine’s energy and then actually fight the evil one. Of course, making the plan would have been much easier if they actually knew the location of the lair. If only Christine’s messenger would get here already.

                On the other end of the table, Yesung, Ryeowook, and Kyuhyun just stared at the scene, watching Atlas and Phillip’s faces as Leeteuk and Katrina revealed the truth about the situation. Kyuhyun read their minds since he couldn’t hear them from the other side of the room and snorted whenever he heard Phillip’s childish comments. Yesung observed the two newcomers faces. Yep, those were the other two of the ‘plus three’ alright. This worried him though. They were just kids. The upcoming battle would be very dangerous and, if his gut told him right, fatal. Ryeowook also looked at Katrina’s companions, but his eyes were mostly on Atlas. He didn’t know why, but something about him made Ryeowook feel uneasy. Kyuhyun read Ryeowook’s thoughts and chuckled.

                “Aw don’t be jealous!” he lightly punched his friend in the shoulder. “He won’t steal your girlfriend. At least he probably won’t.” he snickered as Ryeowook punched back.

                “She’s not my girlfriend! We’re just close.” Ryeowook replied, blushing slightly.

                “Yeah,” Kyuhyun scoffed. “That’s why you keep on thinking about how she kissed you last night.” This earned Kyuhyun another harder punch from Ryeowook.

                “One: stay out of my head. And two: it was on the cheek, and I had just saved her from falling to her death. It was just a thank you kiss.” He explained, huffing as he took another sip of his soup. Both Kyuhyun and Yesung laughed at the sulking young man as Leeteuk finished his explanation to Atlas and Phillip.

                “So let me get this straight:” Atlas began. “You guys are part of an ancient clan of magic smoke people, Katrina’s mother got kidnapped by your psycho brother, Katrina can do this freaky time change thing, and now you need us to help you take down Onew and get Mrs. Daae back?”

                “That basically sums it up.” Leeteuk nodded as Atlas brightened.

                “Well count me in! I want to wipe that Key guy’s smirk right off of his pretty-boy face.” He grinned as he punched the air.

                “Me too!” Phillip piped in, grinning excitedly at the thought of adventure.

                “Of course,” Atlas added pointing to Katrina, “If your fate rests in her hands, we’re definitely in trouble.” This remark received a firm slap to Atlas’s forearm.

                “Shut up wolf breath!” she laughed, causing Atlas to smile. He was very glad to be back with his friend again. Leeteuk stood up as everyone finished their dinner.

                “Alright everybody, listen up. Apparently Onew is planning to kill Christine tomorrow, so we’ll have to leave in the morning in order to find his hiding place. Everyone go get some rest.” Everyone started to get up and transport to their rooms before Leeteuk added, “Oh, and Ryeowook?” Ryeowook looked up from picking up the dirty dishes. “I’ll need you to scout out the north while astral projecting again. But don’t take Katrina; it’s too dangerous.” Ryeowook nodded, though he was disappointed that he wouldn’t be spending time with Katrina again tonight. Katrina was sad too, but at least now she could talk to Atlas tonight.

                “Then Atlas can be my bodyguard right?” she asked Leeteuk, but he shook his head.

                “Sorry Katrina, but I’d be more comfortable with you being watched by someone in the clan.” He explained as Katrina pouted slightly. Darn it. Shindong laughed as he walked up to Atlas and put his arm around him.

                “Yeah, besides,” he remarked, “I need to catch up with my brother, if you don’t mind.” Atlas laughed in reply and gave Katrina an apologetic smile.

                “Sorry Katrina. We can talk tomorrow on the way to the lair, if we ever find out where it is.” Atlas and Shindong walked out of the room, laughing and teasing each other as Katrina looked on with a small smile. At least they were bonding. Phillip pouted.

                “Then who am I going to stay with tonight?” he asked before Eunhyuk and Donghae walked up to him.

                “You can stay with us.” Eunhyuk offered as Donghae hugged Phillip again. Philly laughed.

                “Sounds good to me! Good night Katrina!” he smiled as the three walked out of the room as Philly remarked to Eunhyuk, “By the way, nice tattoo dude.” Katrina shook her head as Eunhyuk’s groan and Donghae’s laugh echoed through the halls. It seemed like Philly could make friends wherever he went. She looked towards Leeteuk.

                “Then who’s going to watch me tonight?” she asked. She hoped it was someone she could trick easily. She had to get on the roof tonight to meet Taemin for whatever reason. Leeteuk looked around before pointing to Yesung, who was busy helping Ryeowook put away the dishes.

                “I’m sure Yesung would be happy to watch you tonight.” He got Yesung’s attention and explained his duties. Yesung nodded as he placed the last bowl in the cabinet. With a small bow towards Leeteuk, he grabbed Katrina’s hand and transported them to Katrina’s room.

                Or at least, that’s where she thought he was taking her. However, it turned out that they arrived not in her nicely decorated room, but on the very top of the Haven. The wind blew their hair around as Katrina looked at Yesung incredulously.

                “Why are we up here?” she asked. Though this was the place she wanted to go, she had figured she would meet the Valkyrie alone. Yesung gave her a look, which Katrina knew conveyed the sentence:

                “Do I look stupid?”

                Katrina shook her head. “But how did you know?” she asked. Yesung reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. She took it and observed the hand-drawn picture on it. It showed Taemin, Katrina, and Yesung on the roof talking. There was also a flock of what looked like bats in the background. She wasn’t sure exactly what they were though; the illustration was a little fuzzy. Katrina gave the picture back. “Well thank you for bringing me here Yesung.” He smiled in reply. “You are going to stay with me right?” Katrina asked. “I want to make sure I have back up if Taemin tries to attack me or something.” Yesung nodded, giving her a big hug. Katrina smiled. “Thanks Yesung.” She repeated.

They eventually broke their hug and sat down on the roof, waiting for Taemin to arrive. Minutes passed, and Katrina was beginning to wonder whether the winged boy would show up at all when she suddenly spotted a black shadow on the horizon. She was sure that it was him. Sure enough, it was. Taemin flew as fast as his wings could take him, frantically looking behind him every few seconds. He had to be sure that he lost them. After a few minutes, he finally perched on the roof right in front of Katrina and Yesung. Taemin breathed a sigh of relief.

“Oh thank goodness you made it! I was afraid that you wouldn’t come!” he exclaimed, suddenly embracing Katrina in a warm hug. Katrina froze, not knowing what to do. She looked into his eyes to find that they were a warm, chocolate brown, the same color they had been when he gave him the message. Suddenly, remembering his mission, he let Katrina go. “I don’t have much time before they find me again, so I’ll try to make this quick: Madame Christine sent me to tell you where she’s being held captive. Onew has her in the icy ruins near Yakutsk, Russia. Leeteuk will know where it is: He and Christine went there once while scouting for locations for the Haven. He should be able to transport you all there. Oh, and Madame wants me to tell you to bring the book Ryeowook gave you. You’ll need it to fix this whole mess. Now-“

“Wait a minute!” Katrina exclaimed, barely comprehending Taemin’s fast-paced ramble. “Aren’t you supposed to be the bad guy? Why are you helping my mother?” she asked. Taemin’s black wings dropped slightly as he looked down towards his toes.

“My brothers and I are not evil,” he started, “we’ve been possessed.” He looked up at Katrina’s shocked face and started to explain. “Our clan is usually very peaceful, but a couple of months ago, we found this guy named Onew lying in the forest almost dead. We’re very friendly towards the injured, so of course we went to his aid. However, as soon as we tried to help him, spirits of pure evil exited his body and forced themselves into our bodies, using us as hosts. Now we’re forced to do the spirits’ bidding. They plan to destroy the Phantom clan for whatever reason by using Onew to the energy out of each individual member, starting with your mom.”

“Whoa wait,” Katrina interrupted again. “Back up. The spirits are using Onew? But that means…”

Taemin nodded. “Yes, they’ve possessed Onew as well. In fact, he’s been possessed for a long time. He can barely fight back against their power anymore, and his energy is almost spent. If the spirits keep occupying his body for too much longer, they’ll drain his life force too. I’m lucky that Christine was able to remember the spell to expel spirits from the body so that I could come to you. Unfortunately, the spell was so powerful that she could only cast it once at a time without passing out from exhaustion. She’s already tired as it is, poor thing.”

Katrina looked at Taemin with horror as he revealed this information. Taemin winced.

“Sorry. Anyway, you need to bring the book so that you can help her with a more powerful version of the spell. It should be able to free me, my brothers, and Onew at the same time. Oh, and Phillip’s coming too right?”

Katrina nodded.

“Good. His presence will probably help us be able to fight against the spirits’ influence. He is our prince after all.” Taemin smiled as Katrina cocked her eyebrows.

“Prince?” she asked, but Taemin wasn’t able to elaborate as they all spotted a black mass in the distance. It was the flock of ‘bats’ in Yesung’s drawing, but as they got closer, Katrina realized that they weren’t bats at all. “Are those… butterflies?” she asked. She didn’t know butterflies could fly at night or look so… foreboding. Taemin’s eyes widened in panic.

“They found me!” he exclaimed as he turned to Katrina and gripped her shoulders until his knuckles turned white. “Remember all that I said. Russia. Book. Phillip. Please save us. We’re counting on you!” He looked behind him. The butterflies were getting closer. “Now both of you: hide!”  He exclaimed as he pushed the two behind a window arch where the butterflies couldn’t see them. Taemin frantically looked around him. There was nowhere to run to. He couldn’t let the spirits possess him again. He just couldn’t. He blindly soared to the left of the flock, trying to make a run for it, but as soon as the butterfly spirits spotted him, they came upon him at unbelievable speed and started to surround him, rendering him helpless. Katrina and Yesung looked on in horror as the butterflies started to force themselves into Taemin’s mouth. Taemin tried to scream, but he couldn’t as he squirmed in midair, choking on black butterfly wings. He wouldn’t be able to hear himself anyway since the only thing that was registering in his ears was the spirits’ screeching, menacing voices.

TRAITOR!

MUST CONQUER!

MUST CRUSH!

MUST DESTROY!!!

Taemin gave one more terrified cry as the last of the butterflies scurried down Taemin’s throat. He coughed as the spirits’ evil power started to take over. He closed his eyes, trying to gather his breath, and with a shutter, his consciousness was shut off. The spirits had fully taken over again. Taemin opened his eyes. Katrina saw that they were just two black, lifeless orbs like before. He looked around, scanning the area for enemies, but found none. With that, he took off towards the north, back to the lair. Katrina and Yesung watched him as he disappeared over the horizon from where he came. They were both breathing heavy from adrenaline as they looked at each other. What had they just witnessed? It took a few minutes, but they eventually calmed enough to think straight. Things had suddenly changed. Katrina stood up now that the coast was clear.

“We have to tell the others. Now!”

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Yay! I've finally updated! ^^ Sorry guys, I kind of have limited access to a computer right now, but hopefully I'll still be able to update at least once a week. I've been waiting forever to write this chapter. I absolutely love Taemin :) Too bad he's being taken over by evil butterflies though :/ Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter. As always, please subscribe and comment, and thanks to those who have already done so :D

~Justjoking <3