Chapter 1 - Three Years Later

An intercom buzzed in the quiet bedroom, though Hong Ja Young hoped it would be quiet.

“Ja Young. Breakfast is ready.” She groaned in her pillow and wished for Ji Eun to just leave her food in the fridge, but the intercom buzzed in again. “Don’t make me drag you out of bed, private.” Yong Guk’s voice boomed through. She blindly reached for the button on her wall by her bed and groaned, “Screw you.”

“Don’t test his patience, Ja Young. You know how... aggressive he can be,” she warned. Ja Young inwardly sighed and said to herself, “I don’t have a choice, do I?” She rolled to her side but instead of staying on her bed, she fell and landed on her back. She rubbed her head and muttered, “Great. What am I? A kid?”

Standing up on her bare feet, she was about to take off her shirt to change but someone blast her door open to attack her.

“Good morning Hong Ja Young!” Him Chan hollered while trying to pounce on her. Alarmed and annoyed, she let go of the hems of her shirt and punched his nose, sending him flying back into the hallway and created a dent in the wall.

“You idiot. Think of a better way to wake me up, will you?” She grit her teeth as he wiped his nose and attempted a cool laugh.

“Well done, private. I have nothing left to teach you.”

“You didn’t have anything to teach me,” she rolled her eyes.

“I’m supposed to be a respectable leader to you especially! Why do you always abuse me?” he faked a sob as she hopelessly sighed.

“Then why do you attempt to harass me every morning? Don't make me report this to Hyo Sung about you, old man!”

"Who are you calling old man?" he screeched in a high pitch as she slammed her door shut, nearly smashing his face into it.

She shook her head and shouted behind, “Tell Ji Eun I’m up.”

“Roger!” she heard. She walked up to her bedside table and opened the top drawer, revealing the feather ring she once had the right to wear as a proud Argent. If she could transfer her life energy that was laced with her Argentic power, she could call for help from where she was, no matter how far away she was. ‘If only,’ she thought.

She spotted her sword by her closet, ready for her to take with her and reminded to herself that today was a big day. She smiled and got dressed.

Ja Young slid down the banisters and landed gracefully on her feet before little toddler Bang Min Soo could stumble in her way. She picked him up and carried him to the kitchen where Yong Guk was sipping his black coffee, Young Jae typing away at his portable computer, Him Chan holding his nose (which had been repetitively broken by Ja Young's fists before) and Ji Eun finishing up her cooking.

“There you are,” she chirped and took her son from Ja Young’s arms. “Your plate is on the counter. Oh, I almost forgot.” She reached into her apron pocket and pulled out a very small parcel.

“This came this morning. It’s strange because there’s no return address.”

“Thanks,” she said as she took the package. Ja Young grabbed her plate, placed the parcel aside and sat down beside Young Jae who was too busy to notice. As she slowly bit into her toast, her thoughts trailed back to on a review of her life.

Three years since Hye Young was buried beside Wu Fan’s second grave. The land was no longer named The Land of the Dead but The Land of the Flowers, Seizo where the sun shined every day. She visited hers and Wu Fan’s graves every year by herself.

When she left the society, the first place she went to was Kuno. It felt very foreign to her, even though it was where she was born. She walked through her neighborhood where no one could recognize her. The humans couldn’t care less for the war between the Argents and the Daemens. When she arrived at her house, it was barricaded with construction. One of the workers said that it was empty for nearly two years and the residents could not be found. Ja Young let them carry on and she left her country without another word.

The next place she went was Wu Fan’s first grave in Huang Pan where he laid his life to save his comrades many years ago. She greeted him with high honour before laying flowers by his stone. When she left the site, she took a boat and a train to Notro where Ji Eun used to live. She was preparing for her wedding at the time and planned on moving into a house constructed by B.A.P crew after her honeymoon.

Ja Young watched Min Soo sloppily eat his food on his high chair as she remembered Ji Eun’s big day in largest church in Notro. B.A.P served as Yong Guk’s groomsmen with Him Chan as his best man. Ji Eun’s friends, Hyo Sung, Hana and Sun Hwa were her bridesmaids with Hyo Sung as her maid of honour.

Ja Young attended invitingly to celebrate the newly wed but didn’t expect to catch the bouquet during the reception. She embarrassedly thought of Kai and how he would about it. Him Chan tried to flirt with her for the umpteenth time but ended up leaving the ballroom with a slap on the cheek from Hyo Sung and his first broken nose from Ja Young.

Min Soo’s birth was the happiest moment of Ji Eun’s life, while Yong Guk’s hand needed tending from her squeezing it so much after several hours of labour. Ja Young remembered how fond of the little boy she became when she first saw him washed from Ji Eun’s blood. He looked so precious and small. When she took the liberty to help her friend raise him, Ji Eun willingly gave Ja Young the title of Min Soo’s godmother. 

Although she was happy while working with B.A.P, her heart still ached for her friends she fought alongside to save her sister, how she wanted to see their faces again, hear their voices. Ja Young’s resolve wouldn’t allow her to go back on her word, no matter how painful it was. Before she went to sleep, she frequently rubbed her arms for some warmth, imagining the man she loved by her side.

“Hey, private! If you don’t want to be tardy again, you better get it in gear before the rookies wake up,” Yong Guk snapped her to her senses, realizing that she barely ate half of her meal. She snuck one piece of scrambled eggs and the rest of her toast into and ran out of the kitchen to get her sword.

“Ja Young! Your breakfast!” Ji Eun hollered to the stairs where she disappeared.

“Jong Up can have it!” she said back. She skipped two stairs at a time until she dashed into her room and picked up her sword. She placed her parcel on her desk, saving it for later at night. She opened her large window wide and leapt out. She safely landed on the ground and ran to the back of the house and into a secret passage Young Jae and Dae Hyun made for her two years ago. Her heeled boots clanked on the cement path surrounded with metal walls until she arrived at the doorway to the base.

When it opened for her, a smell of gasoline and metal mixed with the cool temperature from the air conditioning welcomed her. She walked briskly to her favorite training room, which was the biggest and had the most variety in holographic obstacles. Instead of self-teaching today, it was her big test whether she would be worthy of being B.A.P’s seventh member for their new project. She wrote her written test and passed with flying colours thanks to Young Jae’s intense cramming sessions and Ji Eun's 'brain food'.

While stretching by herself, someone entered the room. she looked up and saw Dae Hyun walking in with comfortable clothing.

“Dae Hyun?” she called and he gave a suave salute. 

“You ready?” he asked her while handing her a towel and water bottle she forgotten to bring.

“Yeah,” she confidently answered, “Thanks to you and Jong Up.”

“Don’t thank us just yet. These guys could be tougher than you, private.” Yong Guk developed a habit of calling her ‘private’ ever since she first arrived at the base. Ja Young didn’t particularly mind, but it was better than being called ‘kid’ or ‘squirt’ like he used to when she first arrived. Her nickname grew on the rest of the B.A.P members with the exception of Zelo, who was technically younger than her.

“I can take them on.” He gave a knowing smirk as they bumped fists.

“I’ll keep that in mind, alright?” She rolled her eyes and stuck out the tip of her tongue. Dae Hyun left the room into the next where the rest of the crew were going to discreetly monitor her test.

Soon enough, more fighters came flooding in wearing the same black uniforms with fist guards and chest pads. Ja Young was going to fight in a one versus twenty-five situation. B.A.P was specifically searching for someone with exceptional fighting skills that could assist their crew. Ja Young initially refused their offer and asked if she could be trained for three years before being tested. Admiring and respecting her determination and integrity, Yong Guk agreed.

When the proctor commanded her to step near the entrance of the room, the men stepped into their battle positions. Some had bats they used for martial arts while others readied their fists. One of them in front cockily scoffed, “This will be a piece of cake.” Ja Young raised an eyebrow before she took her own battle position. “Just because you’re a girl doesn’t mean we’ll go easy.”

“Just because you guys are bigheads doesn’t mean I’ll go easy,” she retorted. He was sure that one of his veins popped in anger as he became the first to charge towards her with a growl. She only stuck two fingers into his open mouth and threw him down on the floor. Young Jae, Jong Up and Dae Hyun stiffled their laughter while Zelo remained indifferent. Him Chan held the side of his jaw in slight horror and Yong Guk raised an eyebrow in amusement.

That was it. Ja Young made the first move, which prompted three more to have a go. They were surprisingly easy to read. Perhaps her training with Tao on the Gunga Mountains did stay with her. She punched the first one in the stomach, kicked the second away and palmed the third. She blocked the next strike, squatted and punched his stomach.

When she stood up, another fighter tried to grab her neck, but she hooked her own arm around his and held him captive while kicking another. When he was out of the way, she swung her bound opponent and he skid sideways on the floor tripping the others. The next fighter attempted a flying kick but Ja Young flipped him by his leg and he landed painfully on his back. She continued to punch her way through the crowd, including bending a head back and chopped his chest.

Two managed to take a hold of her arms but she stomped on their feet, kicked their legs at an abnormal angle and swung them away. By then, she was about to face the next twelve who each held bats. One of the fallen fighters tried to sneak behind her but she stuck her foot back and hit him in the groin by accident. She turned her head towards him and muttered, “Sorry.” She shrugged her shoulders and returned to her stance. The first rookie that approached her raised his bat too high, so she gave him a clean uppercut on his jaw and kicked him in the chest. She twisted the next fighter’s arm to parry the third’s bat. She quickly knocked their heads against each others and stole their bats.

Some of the defeated men were standing up again, ready for more. They all charged towards her but she dropped and created a windmill with her legs to repel some of them. They were all coming towards her in roughly two lines. She tripped each of them by hitting them on the stomach to make them bend and hit behind their legs to make them fall.

After bulldozing through ninety percent of her enemies, three remained, each with bats. They nodded at each other and attacked her with their weapons. She blocked each one, creating a rhythmic pattern of wooden bats drumming until she kicked the center fighter who doubled over. She bent down to make sure he landed on her back, socked the other two in the face with her bats and finally flipped over the center expert.

From the corner of her eye, she spotted the one who she accidentally kicked him where it hurt the most. She was about to pass him by, until he weakly attempted to hit her. She feinted a kick to his groin, which he flinched. Instead she flicked him in the eye and pushed him down again, completing her test.

The proctor stopped the time limit on his stop watch and nodded at her. She sat down on the bench and took a thirsty sip of water. She wiped the sweat with her towel while waiting for her results. She listened to the groaning experts writhing on the floor, grumbling about how they were beaten by a girl.

B.A.P filed back into the room with impressed looks on their faces as they discussed with the proctor about her test. Yong Guk led his crew to Ja Young with a happy smirk and flashed her a badge with her name engraved on it. She sighed in relief, knowing that she passed.

“Gotta hand it to you, private. It’s not every day you get to meet someone as strong as you. It still amazes us,” Young Jae mused.

“Although she’s too cute to be stronger than me,” Him Chan bent down to the same level as Ja Young. He was about to pucker his lips to steal a kiss on her cheek but Ja Young beat him to it by pinching his nose very tightly. He yelped in pain as he held his poor facial feature in outrage.

“How mean. It’s bad news already,” he whined.

“Well, that’s what you get for hitting on a taken woman,” Young Jae scoffed. “Don’t forget about Hyo Sung, womanizer.”

“Who are you calling ‘womanizer’, computer hermit?” He babbled while the brain had a look of shock crossing his face for a split second before shoving him a death glare. “I dare you call me that again.”

While they were pointlessly arguing, Jong Up gave a dopey smile as he ruffled her hair, “Good job, private. I guess you’re one of us now.” Zelo flashed a robotic grin before running out of battery. Yong Guk rolled him out of the room so he could recharge.

She smiled but she didn’t feel so complete than when she was a part of Faction Twenty Four. She plastered a good-natured smile and thanked him. Deep down, she was still envious of his Argent status. She didn’t want to admit it but ultimately there was nothing she could do about herself.

“Something wrong, private?” Dae Hyun peered into her eyes, but a little too close for comfort. Despite her pet name, she could hear the concern in his voice. She shook her head and said, “No, it’s nothing. I’m just taking this in.”

At the very least, Ja Young hoped that everything would still be alright.

After a festive dinner in the household, the crew went to their rooms and fell asleep after a long day’s work. Ja Young offered to tuck Min Soo to bed but Ji Eun nudged her to rest too. She obliged and lightly trudged to her room. She changed into her night clothes but before she went to bed, the parcel from earlier today grabbed her attention. 

Ja Young tiredly opened it with her pocket knife and took out something she did not expect. Her fingers touched something cool and rusty. When she grasped it in her hand, she pulled it out and her shock made her drop the knife and the box.

It was Kai’s ring, damaged and abandoned.