“Another one?!”

“Stop whining, we’ve got work to do!”

“But that’s the fifth one today!”

“I’m sorry if this doesn’t allow for breaks between,” grumbled the older man who pushed by the two squabbling, walking briskly down the street.

Staring after him, JungMin turned around and cuffed the younger off the head, earning a shriek.

“See, now he’s pissed, can’t you stop complaining for one night?”

“I’m sorry,” protested the man beside him, covering his head to avoid being brained. “It’s just these missions give me the creeps.”

“Don’t make me call your brother to come get you,” JungMin rolled his eyes, before turned around to jog after the man who was leaving. “Wait up Kyu!”

“No way are you calling him, he’ll want to help,” HyungJoon protested, running after them.

“Then maybe I should call him, we need all the help we can get, especially when you’re no help at all.”

KyuJong shook his head at them both. “Leave KiBum out of it, he just finished a long day. We can take care of this one by ourselves.” Turning around to continue walking, he smiled as the two continued to bicker in hushed tones. It was always like this, but for all their arguments, they were a tremendous help and he didn’t know what he’d do without them.

“Are you two done? We’re supposed to be following quietly.”

JungMin and HyungJoon both shut up instantly, looking around the area. “Who are we following again?” HyungJoon asked.

KyuJong’s eyes were focused on a figure in the front, weaving between the crowds. To all others around them, it was a normal middle-aged man on his way home after a long day of work, paying no attention to those around him.

But in KyuJong’s single, silver eye, hidden by bangs grown specifically for that purpose, his form was surrounded with taint. A black and red aura curled around him in wisps, and when the man half-turned to avoid bumping into someone walking the other way, normal black eyes were stained over with blood red.

“Just keep quiet, follow behind me and get ready.”

There were those who lived in the city who shouldn’t…those who masqueraded as normal people, and were anything but. None of them were clear on the specifics…their superior mentioned something about a second Pandora’s Box, 25 years ago…but they knew what their duty was.

Because when KyuJong reached puberty and one of his ordinary black eyes turned a startling silver, he had been able to see things no one else could. And like the dozens of other chosen children around the world with what they’d come to call the Sight, he had become part of those whose duty it was to rid the world of these creatures.

The moment came as the man they were following turned into an alley, presumably to head back to a small apartment off the main streets. KyuJong followed after him quietly, JungMin and HyungJoon silent now that they had picked up on whom they were following. For all their jokes, they knew how serious this was.

Serious enough for JungMin to quietly release the safety on the handgun hidden in his jacket. At the same time, HyungJoon pulled out a small spray bottle from his pocket, uncapping it.

The light pop of the cap coming off made the man in front of them pause, not moving for a long moment. KyuJong held out one hand for the other two to stop as well, watching warily from behind his bangs as the dark aura around the ‘human’ started to grow, morph.

There was no mistaking this one.

KyuJong brought down his hand sharply and stepped to one side, JungMin moving into place with practiced ease. The gun came out of his jacket and he aimed, pulling the trigger.

But the bullet never reached its target, the man disappearing on the spot. Startled, KyuJong looked around for the aura again, shifting to press his back against JungMin and HyungJoon’s in a triangle.

“Where is it, Kyu?” JungMin murmured, gun out and ready.

“I’m looking, it’s fast,” KyuJong replied, pushing his bangs out of the way so he could see better, mismatched eyes searching the darkness. He could hear shuffling noises around them, heart rate quickening.

“It’s a narrow alley, it can’t be too far awa—” HyungJoon shrieked as the man appeared right in front of him, face distorted and mouth stretched out in a maniacal grin, razor teeth showing.

The bottle in HyungJoon’s hands was knocked away, the youngest grabbed by his collar and thrown against the wall with a shout. Diving for the bottle, KyuJong picked it up and whirled around just as the man morphed, shedding its human disguise like a second skin to reveal the demon underneath, bone structure twisted and skin dark gray, eyes glowing red.

“Move Joon!” JungMin yelled, firing again. The bullet ricocheted off the wall as the demon disappeared again, going after the redhead and knocking him over.

“Catch!” KyuJong tossed the bottle at HyungJoon who was closest to where the demon was pinning JungMin down, the gun skidding across the ground. HyungJoon fumbled slightly before aiming the bottle at the demon. 

“Yah!” He yelled to get the demon’s attention, and the second the creature looked up, he sprayed it with a faceful of holy water.

Shrieking in pain, the demon staggered back and clutched at its face before disappearing. JungMin sat up, one hand against a scratch along his cheek that dripped a small amount of blood.

“Where the hell did it go?”

KyuJong looked around for it, silver eye catching on a flash of red around a corner. “It’s running. Come on!”

“Why can’t we ever get them on the first shot?” HyungJoon whined as he and JungMin got back to their feet and hurried after KyuJong, the older man running after the demon.

They couldn’t let the demon get away; they’d seen what these creatures did to people, tore them into mangled pieces and took on their appearances, masquerading as them. They never let a demon go if they had the choice.

They chased the creature through the alleys, trying to gain some ground, but the demon was fast. KyuJong was glimpsing the aura less and less, straining his vision to catch it.

Finally, he had to stop. “I lost him,” he panted, leaning against the brick wall beside him. JungMin and HyungJoon slowed to a stop beside him, just as out of breath.

“We were so close too,” JungMin groaned, wiping away the blood from his cheek before resting against the wall beside KyuJong.

“Four out of five still isn’t bad,” HyungJoon tried to look on the positive side.

“It should have been five out of five,” KyuJong murmured, looking at the youngest. HyungJoon met his silver eye and swallowed, looking away with a nod.

JungMin watched them both. “Well, let’s head back, I think we’re done for the ni—“

BANG!

The gunshot that rang through the alley startled them all, KyuJong jumping away from the wall and looking around frantically.

“What was that?” HyungJoon asked, eyes wide.

“I have no idea…it came from this direction.” KyuJong took off again, the other two right on his heels.

Turning the different corners, they were just in time to see the demon they had been chasing writhing on the ground. Terrible screeches left it as it slowly dissolved, disappearing from the world. KyuJong stared at the spot as the dark aura completely evaporated.

A man standing at the other end of the alley lowered the gun in his hand, clicking the safety back on and slipping it into his pocket. He observed the three who’d just appeared, lips quirked slightly to one side.

“…Uh…” JungMin stared at him, and at the shorter man standing behind him. They’d never seen these two before.

“Are you part of the Seekers of this city?” asked the man who’d shot the demon, looking at them.

KyuJong took a startled step forward. The Seekers was the name given to those who hunted the demons. At first it had just been the chosen children with the Sight, but that term had grown to include mediums and paranormal investigators like JungMin and HyungJoon. “Yes, we are,” he said carefully, staring at them. “Are you…”

His unfinished question was answered as the dark-haired man behind the first one came forward, brushing his hair out of his eyes to show one silver eye. “We’re traveling Seekers.”

“…Woah,” HyungJoon murmured, staring at them both. The other man had tilted his head to one side, revealing a silver eye as well.

KyuJong snapped out of the startled daze he’d been in, bowing deeply. “My name’s KyuJong, these are my friends JungMin and HyungJoon,” he offered, looking up at them after a moment. 

“HyunJoong,” replied the one who’d killed the demon with a nod. “This is my partner YoungSaeng,” he motioned to the shorter man beside him.

“Do you need a place to stay?” KyuJong offered, a little out of his element. They’d never had any Seekers come into the city. It was just their small group of seven. Only two of them, KyuJong and HyungJoon’s little brother KiBum, possessed the Sight; the others were paranormal investigators, mediums, or just best friends who knew far more than they should.

And in one day, two Seekers from the outside world appear, both possessing the Sight.

HyunJoong shook his head. “No, we have our own accommodations. When do you next meet?”

“Tomorrow at noon,” KyuJong replied. That was their next group meeting, to go over any new developments. Well…their next formal meeting anyways. Their group was so small and tight-knit, they met practically every day anyways.

The brown-haired man nodded, watching the three others come closer. “Where?”

“One of our apartments…uh…I can give you the address,” HyungJoon said hesitantly. They weren’t used to people coming in from the outside at all, the youngest fumbling as he got out his wallet to pull out a business card.

Watching them as HyungJoon gave them the card with his address, KyuJong’s eyes continuously went to their own silver ones. He’d only seen the silver mark of their Sight on himself and KiBum, and couldn’t look away. Glancing towards HyunJoong’s silver eye, he blinked in surprise.

His eye…it wasn’t completely silver. It was rimmed with a light rose…like an albino’s pink. Which didn’t make any sense; HyunJoong’s other eye was black, and his complexion was completely off for an albino.

He might have seen very few people with the Sight, but he knew that wasn’t supposed to happen normally.

“We’ll meet you then,” HyunJoong nodded, taking the business card and slipping it into his jacket pocket. He turned and walked away, YoungSaeng observing them for a moment longer before following after him.

KyuJong turned back to the other two to see them as stunned as he felt.

“Daniel’s going to want to know this right away,” HyungJoon said, pulling out his phone to send a text.

“Were we expecting anyone?” KyuJong asked, JungMin shaking his head.

“Not as far as I know…”

“His eye was weird, did you see?” HyungJoon asked, looking up at them. “It wasn’t fully silver like yours, KyuJong hyung.”

“I saw,” KyuJong murmured, leaning against the wall.

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, we’re not going to figure anything out just standing here,” JungMin sighed. “Let’s get back home, we’re going to see them again soon anyways.”

KyuJong nodded, straightening with a sigh as he brushed his bangs back over his silver eye. “Sleep sounds good right about now.” He glanced back at where the demon had died before turning to head back onto the main streets, his two friends right behind him.
 

“Is your brother up?”

“No, he’s still sleeping.”

“This late? The others will be over soon!”

“Then you get him up, I do it every day.”

Footsteps came closer to the edge of the bed, and then backed up. HyungJoon mumbled something incoherent into his pillow, burrowing his face in it.

Suddenly someone landed on the bed beside him, half-squishing him, and HyungJoon shrieked, flailing around on his stomach in a lousy attempt to be free. The next thing he knew, he was being rolled out of bed and he landed on the floor with a thud, in a tangled mess of blankets and pillows.

“Time to wake up!” Cracking his eyes open, HyungJoon looked up to see a grinning face far too cheerful for this time in the morning.

“Get off, SooHyun,” HyungJoon groaned, swatting at the man sitting on his legs. “KiBum, get your maniacal boyfriend off of me!”

“Why, he’s having fun,” KiBum chuckled from the doorway, both his black eye and silver eye showing his infinite amusement as SooHyun refused to get up off his older brother. The doorbell rang behind him. “Oh, that must be Kevin.” He padded off.

“KiBum~!” HyungJoon whined, and shrieked again as SooHyun started to tickle him mercilessly.

Heading to the door, KiBum unlocked it again and opened it. Kevin smiled widely at him from the hallway, and then blinked at the dying screams coming from inside the apartment.

“What’s going on?”

“Oh, that? SooHyun got here early and woke HyungJoon up.” KiBum stepped aside so his best friend could come in.

The younger man tried not to laugh, eyes dancing. “Your brother’s never going to sleep in again.” He stepped in and slipped out of his shoes before going down the hallway to the living room.

KiBum closed the door and headed after him. “He says that every time, and yet he still does it.” He leaned into his brother’s bedroom, where SooHyun was still tormenting him. “Okay, I think he’s had enough hyung.”

SooHyun rolled off of HyungJoon with a laugh, the older brother groaning in pretend pain as he lay sprawled out on the ground.

The doorbell rang again, and KiBum went back to get it, opening the door for KyuJong and JungMin. “You just missed SooHyun waking HyungJoon hyung up.”

“Oh darn,” JungMin pouted, KyuJong laughing as they stepped in. By the time they got to the living room, HyungJoon had appeared in proper clothes, sulking as he sat as far away as he could from his brother’s boyfriend.

“Is Daniel hyung going to be here soon?” Kevin asked, curled up on the couch and playing with the TV remote. “There have been a lot of demons lately, right KiBum hyung?”

“Seven last week,” KiBum sighed, making a face as SooHyun pulled him down to sit beside him before settling against the older man.

“We got you beat, five yesterday,” HyungJoon groaned, trying to settle back down for sleep. “I’m running out of Holy Water.”

“Not to mention the proper bullets, they’re murder to get,” JungMin grumbled, tapping his fingers against his knees.

“We’ll ask Daniel hyung to help us get some more, he’s got all the connections and I don’t like you going into those shady shops,” KyuJong frowned. “And as for Holy Water, it’s hard finding a priest with a strong enough faith to bless the water. I really don’t know how Daniel finds these people.”

“He’s definitely got all the right connections,” Kevin smiled, resting his head back against the couch and closing his eyes.

The doorbell rang again, KiBum standing with a sigh when he saw HyungJoon wasn’t moving. “Well, we’ll be able to ask him in a few seconds.” He padded over to the door, unlocking it again.

When he opened it though, it wasn’t their superior he saw. Eyes widening at the two men, KiBum quickly ducked his head slightly so his hair fell in front of his silver eye, hiding it.

“Uh…can I help you?”

The shorter one of the two stepped forward with a polite smile. “We’re here for a meeting.”

“A…” KiBum trailed off, eyes widening when the dark-haired man’s head tilted to one side and a silver eye peeked out from behind long bangs. Staring, KiBum stepped back after a moment. “Uh…Hyung!” He yelled behind him.

HyungJoon scrambled to see what was going on, peeking around the corner. His eyes widened to see the two standing outside. “O-oh! YoungSaeng sshi…HyunJoong sshi…”

At the familiar names, KyuJong got up from his seat and hurried to the front door. He hadn’t thought the Seekers would actually show up, some part of him wondering if the encounter had been real. “KiBum ah, it’s okay, let them in. It’s nice to see you both again,” he bowed politely as KiBum shuffled back out of the way, YoungSaeng and HyunJoong stepping into the entrance.

“Hope we’re not interrupting,” HyunJoong smiled, taking off his shoes.

“No, our leader hasn’t arrived yet so the meeting hasn’t begun,” KyuJong shook his head. The others had gotten up to see the new arrivals too, looking utterly confused.

KiBum moved away from the door, grabbing his older brother’s sleeve on the way by and tugging him back towards Kevin and SooHyun. SooHyun was looking at the two newcomers in confusion, Kevin’s lips parted and eyes wide in shock.

“Who are they?” KiBum asked his brother in a hushed whisper.

“Uh…two traveling Seekers,” HyungJoon swallowed, glancing at the others. “You okay, Kev?”

“Y-yeah,” Kevin swallowed, blinking as he snapped out of it. “They have silver eyes too.”

“Yeah, they helped us out with one of the demons yesterday,” HyungJoon continued, glancing over his shoulder nervously at the two new Seekers who were bowing politely as KyuJong scooted around them to close the door again.

HyunJoong looked around at the people present as they all moved back to the living room. “This is all the Seekers in Seoul?” he frowned lightly, glancing at YoungSaeng. “We heard there were more.”

“It’s only us,” KyuJong shook his head, motioning for them to sit on the couch as JungMin and HyungJoon got more chairs out of the bedrooms for everyone. “Daniel sshi, our leader, says there used to be more but then the amount of demons skyrocketed and the Seekers either left for their own protection, or were killed.”

HyunJoong nodded slowly, looking at each person in the room in turn. “How many with the Sight?”

“Right now, only myself and KiBum ah,” KyuJong replied, motioning to the younger brother. “JungMin ah and HyungJoon ah are paranormal investigators and SooHyun ah’s our medium.”

Nodding in understanding as each person was named, HyunJoong’s gaze went to Kevin, whose own eyes widened slightly. “And him?”

“A nosey best friend with horrible timing,” KiBum chuckled, and Kevin smiled nervously, not breaking HyunJoong’s gaze.

Nodding slowly, HyunJoong looked away after a moment, turning back to KyuJong who seemed to be the group’s spokesperson with their leader missing. “You say there’s been a high amount of demons in the area?”

KyuJong nodded. “Even with exorcising an average of three demons a day between both teams, the number is constantly increasing. We can’t keep up with only two teams.” He, HyungJoon and JungMin were in one team, with KiBum, SooHyun and Kevin (after much arguing) in the other. Daniel was far too busy keeping tabs on everything to join a team himself; they rarely saw him.

YoungSaeng pursed his lips, leaning forward with his elbows against his knees. “We have a theory about that, but we’d like to wait until your lea—“

The doorbell rang, and HyungJoon laughed nervously. “That must be Daniel sshi.” He hurried to get it, clearly not comfortable in the newcomers’ presences. YoungSaeng was okay, but HyunJoong’s stare was beginning to become unnerving. Especially with that strange, silver eye rimmed in rose.

The door clicked open, and there was hushed conversation in the entrance way before Daniel and HyungJoon reappeared a moment later. “You both must be HyunJoong and YoungSaeng sshi,” Daniel smiled politely as he bowed. The two on the couch stood to return the bow, only sitting back down once Daniel had taken a seat.

“What brings you both to Seoul?” Daniel asked, his hands clasped in front of him as he smiled at the two.

YoungSaeng spoke up first, glancing at HyunJoong before turning back to Daniel. “We’ve been working throughout South Korea, and have noticed a pattern in traveling demons. They all seem to be originating from this city. There was a similar incident in Japan a year back, and after comparing both cases, we believe we have found the reason why there are so many demons in the Seoul area.”

Daniel frowned at that, the others listening intently. “And that would be…?”

HyunJoong glanced around the group again, before looking back at Daniel. “We believe there is a demon nest here, in Seoul.”

“A…nest?” HyungJoon looked nervous; that didn’t sound good. KyuJong looked confused, but both JungMin and SooHyun had paled.

“Are you serious?” SooHyun asked, all joking gone as he leaned forward.

“Very,” HyunJoong nodded.

“That’s…that’s insane,” JungMin murmured. “We can’t take on a whole nest on our own.”

“What are you all talking about?” KiBum frowned. Kevin picked at his sleeve nervously.

“You’ve all heard the story about Pandora’s Box, and how a second box was opened to release the demons into this world, right?” YoungSaeng asked mildly, looking at them each in turn. “The demons flocked to centers of power in the world, and set up nests there. Places to have their young, where the energy in those areas would help them grow strong, even stronger than their parents. It takes many years for a nest to be completed, but once it is, the amount of demon offspring in the area doubles…triples.”

“And you believe the nest here has been completed,” Daniel murmured.

“No,” HyunJoong shook his head. “If it had been complete, you would all be dead.”

HyungJoon paled and attached himself to his brother’s arm. KiBum scowled and tried to detach him, but gave up quickly, shaken by the news.

“How much time do we have?” Daniel asked seriously, eyes narrowed.

“Maybe about a month,” HyunJoong replied. “In that time, we have to destroy the nest itself, or Seoul will become the demons’ playground.”

“But we don’t have enough people for that,” KyuJong protested. “And the other Seeker groups have no energy to spare, they’re being overrun by demons too.” Demons that had come from Seoul.

“We don’t even know the first thing about taking on a nest,” Daniel shook his head.

“But we do,” YoungSaeng smiled at them. “We’ll be sticking around for the month, and helping you with the problem.”

“How do you know how to deal with a nest?” JungMin frowned.

“Because we’re the ones who destroyed the nest in Japan,” HyunJoong answered simply, before standing. “It’s been a while since we were in Seoul. We’ll need maps of the city, and each of you to mark exactly where you’ve been spotting demons in the last five weeks.”

The others looked at each other in surprise, before KiBum got up and ran to get a map. JungMin and HyungJoon cleared off the coffee table to give them enough room, and went to get markers.

“This is going to be interesting,” JungMin sighed to HyungJoon, twirling markers around his fingers as he looked back out into the living room.

“Interesting is definitely one thing to call it,” HyungJoon winced, eyes worried. “I don’t want KiBum anywhere near this nest.”

“You can’t coddle him forever, and he’s taken out a number of demons on his own,” JungMin shook his head. “Besides, he has SooHyun and Kevin, and those two are practically glued to his side every second of the day. They’ll keep him safe.”

“Yeah,” HyungJoon smiled nervously, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them again. “Okay, let’s get this started.”

They headed out into the living room and sat down around the table. The group spent the next hour circling spots on the map where they’d seen demons, hoping to find a pattern. There had been a lot of demons around, and Daniel had to get out their notes on the past few meetings to make sure they had their facts straight. It was a good thing they usually took notes on where all the encounters were.

Finally HyunJoong leaned back, looking at the map. “Is that all?” It was unsettling. There were so many marks on the map they could hardly read the street names.

“Think so,” KyuJong nodded, going over the list in his head. 

“Hope so,” HyungJoon shivered.

YoungSaeng leaned over, mismatched eyes scanning the map before tracing out a shape with his fingers. “The majority of the sightings are in or around this area.” It was right in the middle of downtown.

“They couldn’t hide a demon nest there, they’re high-class buildings, too much security,” KiBum frowned.

“You’re thinking about this area, KiBum,” SooHyun leaned over with one arm around KiBum’s waist, tracing out half of the area YoungSaeng had indicated. “Here though…” He indicated the rest of the area.

“That’s the industrial park, isn’t it?” JungMin asked. “Empty containers and rusty buildings.”

“Perfect for a demon nest,” HyunJoong nodded.

“That’s still a big area to cover,” Daniel murmured, gaze thoughtful.

“Considerably smaller than the rest of Seoul,” HyunJoong shrugged.

“What now then?” KyuJong asked, looking at them. “How are we going to deal with the nest? You said you’ve done this before…do you really think it can be done with just us?”

“Not just you, precisely…we’re going to need to reach some of our own contacts,” HyunJoong shook his head. “That will take the majority of the time. For now though, we need to do some reconnaissance work.”

“We have to find out exactly where the demon nest is, how many demons are in it, and how many are at an age where they can attack once we move in,” YoungSaeng picked up, eyes narrowed at the map. “The bigger the nest, the more power we’ll need.”

“How long do you think it’ll take to get rid of them?” Daniel asked.

“I’d say two weeks at the earliest,” HyunJoong replied, looking up at their leader who was frowning.

“That’s cutting it close.”

“We know,” YoungSaeng sighed. “If we’d picked up on the fact there was a nest here earlier, we would have dealt with this long before now. But there’s no choice, we’re going to have to proceed carefully. There’s been too many deaths as there is, we can’t afford more.”

“We’ll be okay, right?” HyungJoon asked, looking around the room and sticking close to his brother.

“As long as you do what we say, you’ll be fine,” HyunJoong smiled before standing. “YoungSaeng and I have some work to do, when are you all available to search for the nest?”

They looked through their schedules and determined it would have to be in two days. The threat of a demon nest in Seoul was more than enough excuse to skip out on work suddenly, if only they could explain so to their bosses. KiBum and Kevin had a day off from school, so they at least were in the clear.

Getting up to see the two to the door, KyuJong and Daniel thanked them for coming, promising to meet them at the arranged date and time. Only once YoungSaeng and HyunJoong had left and the door was closed did they relax a little.

“A demon nest, seriously?” KiBum murmured, a little overwhelmed as the two went to sit down again.

“This is beyond anything we’ve ever dealt with, we’ll need to be careful,” Daniel shook his head, and then looked at them all. “Stay vigilant while out on the streets, we can’t lose any of you, understood?”

They all nodded. “Who are they, though?” JungMin asked. “I’ve never heard of traveling Seekers before.”

“Neither have I,” Daniel sighed. “I’m going to do a little background research on those two, in the meantime they seem to know what they’re talking about so follow after them.”

KiBum nodded, not entirely happy about following two strangers, and it showed in his face.

“HyunJoong sshi…his silver eye was weird,” SooHyun frowned. “It wasn’t completely silver.”

“Pink around the edges,” HyungJoon nodded.

“It might just be an alternation in the gene that gives you the Sight,” Daniel sighed, shaking his head. “But I’ve never heard of it before.”

“Didn’t you say the Sight was ‘divine intervention’, or something?” KyuJong asked.

“Considering the only ones with the Sight were a few dozen children born within five years of the second Pandora’s Box, with absolutely nothing in common with each other, that’s what we suppose it is,” Daniel nodded.

“What ‘divine intervention’,” JungMin grumbled, blowing his hair out of his face. “If Heaven wanted to help us, they would do something more than give a handful of people something else to be bullied about and enough demon sightings for nightmares the rest of their lives.”

KyuJong sank a little lower in his seat with a sigh. “I don’t understand it either.”

“Maybe we’re supposed to deal with this on our own,” Kevin murmured quietly, looking down at the floor. “If it was a human who opened Pandora’s Box.”

“We’ll never know, and asking questions like that will only frustrate you all,” Daniel shook his head, standing. “We will do what we can with the help we were given. Now, go out there and see if you can find anymore demons.”

“Yes sir,” SooHyun jumped to his feet, pulling KiBum up with him. Kevin stood reluctantly as well.

“I have work,” HyungJoon sighed, pouting a little.

“So do I,” KyuJong shook his head. “We’ll go demon-hunting tomorrow night.”

Daniel nodded with a small smile. “Don’t look so down, KyuJong,” he said, ruffling KyuJong’s hair a little. “We’ll figure this out.”

The younger man tried a smile as he pulled his hair down in front of his silver eye again. “Yeah…”

“Oh, Daniel hyung, we’re going to need more Holy Water and ammo,” JungMin said, remembering.

“I’ll get you some for when you go nest-hunting,” Daniel nodded with a smile.

Their leader left with a wave, the youngest three getting ready to do the same. “Stay safe,” HyungJoon frowned, passing KiBum his pack with Holy Water sprays and extra gun cartridges.

“We will hyung,” KiBum smiled at his older brother to reassure him. He squawked when HyungJoon pulled him into a hug before returning it, patting the older man’s back until he was let go.

“We’ll make sure he comes back in one piece,” SooHyun grinned, Kevin nodding along beside him. The youngest member of their group looked slightly troubled though.

The three of them filed out, KiBum closing the door behind them. HyungJoon dropped down onto the couch with a sigh, rubbing his temples.

“They’ll be fine Joon,” KyuJong smiled sympathetically as he rubbed his friend’s back. The older brother was like this whenever KiBum was out hunting demons, only relaxing when the younger brother texted him to let him know he was back home safe and sound.

“I know, it’s just this whole news about a demon nest…” HyungJoon sighed, shaking his head.

“We’ll get rid of it,” JungMin said firmly. “Right now though, we’ve got work, and if I remember correctly, your shift starts in twenty minutes.”

HyungJoon looked at the clock and squawked before bolting from the couch, running to get ready.

KyuJong blinked at his fast departure before chuckling, shaking his head as he smiled at JungMin. “We should get ready too.”

“Yeah,” JungMin chuckled, standing and stretching out. “And get lots of rest, so we’re ready for nest-hunting.”

“Right,” KyuJong smiled, standing as well. “And Min?”

“Yeah?”

“I haven’t had nightmares in a while.”

“Am I taking credit for that?” JungMin grinned over his shoulder at the older man.

“Conceited,” KyuJong rolled his eyes and pushed the redhead’s shoulder as he walked by to the door, smiling as JungMin laughed at him.

 

“Okay, how are we doing this?” KyuJong sighed, hands on his hips as he looked down the long, dusty street. It was out of business hours so the industrial park was deserted, the sun low on the horizon.

Daniel passed out more Holy Water bottles and gun cartridges to the others, JungMin undoing the safety on his gun with a click. KiBum watched the surrounding areas warily, long bangs tucked behind one ear so both eyes were visible.

“We need to be done and gone before the sun sets completely,” HyunJoong told them, leaning against a wall with his arms folded across his chest. His silver-rose eye was eerie in the near-darkness. “Once it goes down, all the demons will wake up.”

“Won’t that make it easier to find them?” HyungJoon looked over at him.

“Yes, but the goal is to be alive to tell about it,” YoungSaeng sighed.

“Okay, so sunset is in two hours,” Daniel frowned. “Is that enough time?”

“It will have to be, we had to wait until the area was clear,” HyunJoong nodded. “So we’re going to split up. YoungSaeng and I will take this part of the park.” He held out the map so that they could see where he was indicating.

“My team will take the middle,” KyuJong said, pointing.

“That means we’re taking the rest,” KiBum nodded, glancing to his boyfriend and best friend for confirmation.

“I will go with you both, to even out the numbers,” Daniel said, looking to YoungSaeng and HyunJoong. They both nodded, YoungSaeng frowning slightly.

“If you find anything suspicious, call right away,” YoungSaeng told them sternly. “If you need to run, then run, don’t try and fight.” KyuJong nodded unhappily.

The group split up, heading into different areas of the park. HyungJoon shivered at how spooky the place was at this time of the evening, sticking close to JungMin and KyuJong. The wind howled as it blew through the rows of buildings of their section of the park, rusting metal structures that hadn’t been used in years.

“Do you think we’ll actually be able to take down a whole nest?” HyungJoon murmured, looking at the other two nervously.

“They say we can, so we have at least a chance,” KyuJong replied quietly, eyes scanning the growing darkness for any sign of an aura.

“They said we could with some contacts of theirs. Who are these contacts? Other Seekers?” JungMin asked, frowning.

“No idea, but they must be, who else would be able to deal with demons?” HyungJoon sighed. “I don’t like this. They both seem a little…strange to me.”

“Did Daniel hyung find anything on them?” JungMin asked.

“No, as far as I know he didn’t. Well, we can’t expect him to find anything in only two days, right?” 

“Still—”

“Both of you, quiet,” KyuJong hissed suddenly, both younger men shutting up instantly. The older man’s gaze was trained on a spot where he’d seen, for a split second, a red wisp.

JungMin took out his gun, eyes narrowed as he looked where KyuJong was looking. The older man advanced slowly, heart pounding in his throat.

By the time they’d reached the corner though, there was no sign of an aura. KyuJong looked around them, and groaned in frustration.

“Lost it?” JungMin murmured.

“Yeah, I thought it was—” KyuJong turned around and his eyes widened. “JOON!”

HyungJoon shrieked as he was suddenly slammed onto his stomach, sharp claws digging into his back. JungMin fired his gun and the demon released an ear-piercing screech, webbed wings unfurling from its back as it leapt into the air, darting around the corner.

“You okay?!” JungMin hauled HyungJoon to his feet, seeing the small rips the claws had made in the back of his shirt. HyungJoon nodded, shaking.

“After it!” KyuJong bolted down the alley after the demon, the other two right on his heels. HyungJoon scrambled to pull out his phone, calling Daniel’s number.

“Since when could these things fly?” JungMin asked, panting as he lengthened his strides to catch up with KyuJong’s.

“No idea!” KyuJong yelled in return. “But it was smaller than the others.”

“A younger demon then?”

“Must be!”

And where would a child demon run if faced with death? Right back to the nest.

“Daniel hyung?” HyungJoon panted as he hurried after the other two, phone to his ear. “We found a demon and are chasing it!”

“Where are you, we’ll be right there!” the older man replied, quickly relaying what HyungJoon had said to the other two with him.

HyungJoon gave him the street names they were passing by. “We think it’s heading back to the nest! It’s flying, but it’s not going high off the ground so we can follow it!”

Daniel repeated what he’d said. Suddenly there was a fumbling sound across the phone, before YoungSaeng’s voice came sharp and clear through the line.

“Fall back, don’t follow it any further!”

“Wait, what? Why? You said to find the nest!”

”Only the baby demons have wings and fly that low to the ground! You FOUND the nest, go back!”

“WHAT?!” HyungJoon skidded to a stop, eyes wide. “KyuJong, JungMin! Stop!”

The other two skidded to a stop, looking back at him. “What is it?” JungMin yelled. “We’re going to lose it!”

“We’re at the nest, we need to go now!”

KyuJong stared at him, then flinched when he saw movement in his side vision. Whirling around, he backed up slowly as, through his silver eye, the shadows between the buildings started to glow with swirling red wisps.

“…Oh God…” he whispered, before grabbing JungMin’s hand and bolting back in the direction they’d come.

Suddenly pain shot up his leg and he fell onto his stomach with a yell. Sharp claws dug into his jeans, dragging him backwards as he lost his grip on JungMin’s hand.

“KYU!” JungMin aimed and fired at the demon dragging him, the creature disappearing with a screech. He and HyungJoon helped KyuJong back to his feet, the Seeker limping as blood slowly soaked through his jeans.

“Let’s get out of here!” They ran as fast as they could, KyuJong struggling to keep up and panting with the pain. There was a horrible screeching behind them, and they knew the demons were following.

Gunshots rang out, HyungJoon lifting his head to see YoungSaeng and HyunJoong standing at the end of the street and firing at the demons chasing the three. Daniel appeared beside them and threw something over their heads; there was an explosion that rocked the ground under their feet, KyuJong crumpling with a choked gasp as his leg refused to support him through it.

“Come on,” JungMin panted, helping him up again and getting the older man onto his back, before standing and hurrying towards the others, HyungJoon right beside him.

“Get away from here,” HyunJoong ordered as they came closer, HyungJoon looking over his shoulder to see a dozen small demons following as well as some adults.

Daniel pulled HyungJoon on, pointing further down the street. “Your brother’s waiting, get to them,” he had to yell to be heard over the demons. HyungJoon nodded quickly and pulling JungMin along with him, the redhead slowing under KyuJong’s weight.

Suddenly, a loud keen rang through the air. When they looked back, the demons were retreating from HyunJoong and YoungSaeng, the two standing their ground with guns out but not firing. The demons were gone in a matter of seconds, KyuJong blinking over JungMin’s shoulder as the overwhelming aura vanished.

“What just happened?” HyungJoon blinked, staring at where the demons had been.

“I have no idea…whatever happened, they’re completely gone,” KyuJong murmured, looking around, and wincing from the pain in his calf.

“We should get you somewhere, that doesn’t look good,” JungMin frowned, watching the blood drip and soak his own jeans.

“I’m fine,” KyuJong murmured, resting his head on the younger man’s shoulder.

“Guys!” KiBum, SooHyun and Kevin were running towards them. “You all okay?” SooHyun yelled. KiBum ran right to his brother, checking him over for injuries.

YoungSaeng held up one hand for quiet, catching their attention. HyunJoong was looking around with a frown, not paying them any notice. After a moment he started to walk towards the wall, pausing in front of it with one hand against the brick and looking up and down its length.

“What’s up with him?” KiBum murmured, frowning. KyuJong shook his head slowly, watching.

HyunJoong walked down the wall away from them, the group curiously following when YoungSaeng did the same. After a moment the Seeker reached a cardboard-covered door, graffiti littering the wood. He pressed his hands against the wood, and then started to pry it away from the door.

HyungJoon blinked owlishly as YoungSaeng started to help. “What’s going on?”

The wood came away from the door, and they all stopped, staring in surprise. There was a small niche between the wood and the door, and inside that niche…were two teenage girls. Alive.

“Hey,” HyunJoong murmured with a small smile, holding out his hands. The smaller girl was being held protectively in the older one’s grasp, both of them dirty with scraped knees and torn edges on their clothes. The smaller one sniffled, eyes watery as she stared at the offered hand before taking it.

“…Where in the world did they come from?” HyungJoon stared with his mouth wide open. HyunJoong helped the younger girl out of the niche, YoungSaeng doing the same with the older one. They couldn’t hear what was whispered to the older girl, but she smiled gratefully and nodded before wrapping her arms around her friend and hugging her tightly.

“They were hiding from the demons,” YoungSaeng told the others softly. “We’re going to bring them both home, here’s our information if you need to reach us.” He held out a slip of paper with a telephone number and an address. “Clean out KyuJong sshi’s wound with holy water, it’ll sting but you don’t want any poison from these creatures infecting it.”

The others nodded, and watched as YoungSaeng and HyunJoong led the two away. “How did he know they were in there?” KiBum asked with wide eyes.

“No idea…” Daniel shook his head. “Looks like I’m going to have to work harder to find something on them. In the meantime, you all head back home, and look after KyuJong.”

“Do you need the hospital?” JungMin asked KyuJong, frowning as they started to walk.

“No, it’s not that deep,” KyuJong shook his head. “Besides, how would we explain this to the doctors?”

“No idea,” JungMin sighed. “So home treatment it is.”

Kevin played with the edge of his shirt nervously as he looked down the street where the demons had come from, glancing at where the girls had been hiding. “Come on Kevin,” KiBum called, his best friend turning and hurrying to catch up.

A week had passed, and they were having another meeting. KyuJong was still limping but at least he could walk around again on his own, the others treating the injury carefully since YoungSaeng had warned them of poison.

“You sure you’re okay?” JungMin eyed KyuJong when the older man had to stop for the second time as they were climbing the stairs to get to HyungJoon and KiBum’s apartment.

“Yeah, just dandy,” KyuJong panted, holding on to his calf. It burned.

“I can carry you the rest of the way.”

“That was a one-time thing because we were running from a pack of demons, and is never happening again.”

“Stubborn.”

KyuJong chuckled, then slowly straightened. “Okay, think I’m okay.”

“It’s just one more floor,” JungMin smiled, staying beside him as they made their way up carefully.

They were just about to turn towards the landing between the two floors when a shaky voice floated down, making them stop.

“Please, you can’t tell him.”

JungMin blinked, and helped KyuJong ease himself back down around the corner. They could just see three pairs of feet on the landing, unaware they were there. That had been Kevin’s voice.

“We’re not going to say anything.” That was HyunJoong, KyuJong recognized the voice. “It’s your duty, we’re not going to interfere in that.”

“Thank you,” Kevin replied with a sigh.

“You’re getting too attached,” YoungSaeng said softly. “You need to be careful.”

“You’re one to talk…”

“Our situation is different,” HyunJoong replied. “And we’re not talking about this now. You know what we’re going to need from you.”

“I know,” Kevin murmured. “When?”

“Once we’ve contacted the others…and once we’re ready to take on the nest. We both know your duty comes before all else…but can we count on you for that?”

“You can count on me,” Kevin said firmly.

“Good.” There was a smile in HyunJoong’s voice. “Come, they’re waiting.”

The three sets of feet turned to go up the stairs. JungMin and KyuJong remained silent until they were gone, then turned to each other with equal looks of confusion.

“What was that about?” JungMin asked.

KyuJong frowned. “No idea…what could they want from Kevin?” And what had they been talking about, his ‘duty’?

“Haven’t a clue, he wouldn’t even know anything about the demons if he hadn’t seen KiBum’s silver eye,” JungMin shook his head, then sighed. “Come on, we should go see the others. Should we ask KiBum? Do you think he’d know?”

“I’m not sure…maybe we should leave it alone until we know more. Kevin’s a nice kid, things could get strained between him and KiBum and they don’t need that.” Kevin had been KiBum’s best friend since childhood, and was behind only to SooHyun and HyungJoon in the younger brother’s heart.

They headed the rest of the way up the stairs, going slowly both for KyuJong’s leg and so that the other three would have time to get to the apartment without realizing they had been eavesdropping. Things were getting very confusing.

Reaching the apartment a few minutes later, they were let in by HyungJoon, the younger man beaming at them. “How’s the leg?” he asked, following them into the living room once they’d closed the door and taken off their shoes.

“Getting better,” KyuJong smiled.

“Would have been a lot better if you let me carry you up the stairs,” JungMin rolled his eyes, and yelped as KyuJong balanced on his bad leg to kick him with his good one.

“See? Perfectly fine.”

Laughter came from the living room, YoungSaeng and HyunJoong sitting on the couch. KiBum and SooHyun were attached at the hip, Kevin sitting on the floor in front of them with his forehead creased in a slight frown.

“So, what do we know?” Daniel asked, leaning forward and looking at YoungSaeng and HyunJoong intently as KyuJong, JungMin and HyungJoon sat down.

“We know the nest’s location,” YoungSaeng started, highlighting a spot on the map in front of them. “We also know that the nest contains about 175 adult demons, 300 youth, 400 babies and roughly 2,500 unhatched eggs.”

HyungJoon’s jaw dropped at the number. “Th-that’s a lot.”

“That’s roughly small for a demon nest,” HyunJoong shook his head. “Remember what we told you…once the nest is completed, the number will triple.”

“We’ll have more demons masquerading as humans than actual humans,” KyuJong murmured.

“Wrong. They won’t need to masquerade.” HyunJoong tapped his fingers against his knees. “Nowhere in the world has a nest been completed yet, but if one were to be completed, demons would spawn at such a high rate that disguising as humans would be pointless. They’ll take the entire city by storm, and kill everyone they see.”

HyungJoon paled. “We have to stop that from happening!”

“We will. But our numbers are still too few,” HyunJoong frowned.

“What about those contacts you mentioned?” Daniel asked mildly. They’d gotten no information about whom those contacts were.

“Some of them aren’t replying…we’re worried the demons may have found them,” YoungSaeng sighed.

“Who are they?” SooHyun frowned, arms firmly around KiBum’s waist.

“People who wish to remain unnamed,” YoungSaeng said firmly. “But their positions are…delicate to say the least. If they have been found out, we might have to help them before they help us.”

“That will be what YoungSaeng and I do next,” HyunJoong said, looking at each person in turn. “Finding our missing contacts. We may or may not require help. Other than that, the best that can be done is keep hunting any demons in the area.”

“I don’t like relying on people I don’t know and who you’re refusing to name,” JungMin scowled at them.

“We trust them with our lives, you have nothing to fear from them,” YoungSaeng said quietly. 

“How are we supposed to believe you on that when you won’t tell us anything?”

“I think we should trust them,” Kevin piped up suddenly, looking up at KiBum sitting behind him. “They saved your brother, and KyuJong hyung and JungMin hyung.”

KiBum looked down at his best friend, before nodding with a small smile. “…All right. Then I’ll trust them too,” he sighed, looking up at YoungSaeng and HyunJoong.

JungMin looked at Kevin before glancing at KyuJong, who was frowning at the youngest too. He knew KyuJong was thinking about the conversation they’d overheard.

“Guess we have no choice,” Daniel sighed, rubbing his temples. “This is completely out of our league. Can you explain more about the demon nest?”

YoungSaeng and HyunJoong leaned forward, and KyuJong sighed as he put his suspicions to the side for the moment, focusing on what they were being told.
 

They were halfway through the following week when KyuJong’s phone went off, YoungSaeng’s number flashing across the screen. Lounging in his apartment with JungMin, KyuJong shot the redhead a confused look before answering.

”We need your help,” YoungSaeng said quietly from the other end of the line.

KyuJong glanced at JungMin again before pressing speakerphone, so they could both hear. “What is it?”

“We found one of our contacts…a very influential person. The demons have him cornered. They can’t reach him just now, he’s set up barriers, but it’s only a matter of time. Gather your teams and meet us at this address.”

JungMin scrambled for pen and paper as YoungSaeng recited an address to them. He had to repeat it twice before JungMin got it down completely.

“Be here quickly,” YoungSaeng told them before hanging up. KyuJong listened to the dial tone for a moment before sighing and standing, wincing. “I’ll call HyungJoon, you call Kevin. SooHyun’s probably with KiBum and HyungJoon anyways.”

Within five minutes they were out the door, the others promising to meet them at the given address in ten minutes. KyuJong was worried about this contact…if demons were after him, how long would the barriers he’d set up hold? Nothing could keep demons out for long…

“So we’re finally going to meet one of these contacts?” JungMin asked as they hurried to the meeting spot as fast as a limping KyuJong could go. Thankfully they were closer to it than others.

“Guess so,” KyuJong frowned. “Maybe they’ll give us a few answers.”

They were the last ones to arrive despite being the first ones to head out, YoungSaeng impatient. “Come on, we have to move quickly,” he told them, setting out through the alleys. The only one missing was Daniel; no one had been able to reach the older man.

“What are we up against exactly?” KiBum asked, undoing the safety on his gun the second they were off the main streets, the noise of the traffic muted.

“Four adult demons,” HyunJoong looked back at them as he explained, following along beside YoungSaeng. “The sun isn’t set yet, but once it is, there will be more. We have to get him out before then, or we’re never going to leave the area. Once we’re out, YoungSaeng and I will take him to a safe location.”

“Four?” HyungJoon paled.

“We’ll be fine,” KiBum said determinedly. “We’re enough people to take on four of them.”

“That doesn’t change the fact we’ve never gone against four at once before!”

“Stop complaining and walk faster,” JungMin hit HyungJoon off the back of the head to get him moving.

They’d made it two blocks down before KyuJong started to see wisps of demon aura, slowing as he looked ahead warily. “They’re close…”

“He’s locked himself in his shop up ahead,” HyunJoong said. “We need to hurry.”

As they got closer, KiBum could see them too, eyes following strands of red. “They’ve got the place surrounded…” The shop was small, with a demon to each corner.

HyunJoong nodded. “YoungSaeng and I will move in first…the other demons will come quickly when they realize they’re being attacked, keep an eye out for them.”

The others nodded, HyungJoon wide-eyed as he tried to see what the others could see. SooHyun shuffled next to KiBum and released the safety on his gun, eyes narrowed.

HyunJoong held up one hand as they slowed to approach more carefully, trying to get as close as they could before they were spotted. The second KyuJong saw a flash of red up ahead, HyunJoong brought his hand down sharply and brought his gun up.

Gunshots rang through the air as HyunJoong and YoungSaeng darted to either side of the demon, taking it down quickly. Its dying screech echoed through the evening air and KyuJong’s head turned sharply to the side as he spotted red moving in from around the corner of the building.

“There!” KiBum was also pointing, SooHyun firing at the demon that had appeared as Kevin pressed his back against KiBum’s, sharp eyes scanning the darkness with his gun out and ready for anything trying to sneak up on them.

Suddenly HyunJoong was down, a demon dropping on him from the roof. YoungSaeng pulled out a bottle from his sleeve and sprayed it directly in the demon’s face, the creature shrieking and falling back long enough for the dark-haired man to fire a few bullets into it’s chest, exorcising it.

Looking around for the last demon, KyuJong’s heart leapt into his throat when JungMin was suddenly gone. “Min?!” he yelled, looking around frantically. The redhead had just disappeared…

A shriek of pain came from his right and he whirled around, seeing JungMin on the ground underneath a much larger demon. Saliva dripped from its jaws and disintegrating the ground next to the man’s head, JungMin flinching away.

The demon raised a clawed hand to kill the human in its grasp when two sets of gunfire rang out. Its body jerked with the force of the bullets before it melted away with a keen, JungMin covering his head to shield himself from the bits of demon that fell around him.

HyunJoong and YoungSaeng lowered their guns, looking at each other as KyuJong limped to see if JungMin was okay, HyungJoon right behind him.

“We’re going to make sure the building’s clear, stay here,” YoungSaeng ordered, nudging HyunJoong’s shoulder before turning to head around the side of the shop. The two were quickly swallowed by the shadows.

“You okay?” KyuJong asked JungMin, using his sleeve to brush demon blood and saliva off the man’s clothing before it could burn right through. JungMin nodded as he slowly sat up; apart from a burn across the back of his hand, he was fine.

“That was intense,” SooHyun panted, holding KiBum close. Kevin leaned against the alley wall, brushing sweat-matted hair out of his face.

HyungJoon watched KyuJong help JungMin stand before looking around. His eyes caught on a bottle lying on the ground. “Hey, this is YoungSaeng’s holy water, he dropped it.” He walked over and picked it up, then blinked. “Uh…”

“What?” KiBum looked over SooHyun’s shoulder at his brother.

Looking over the label, and then spraying a bit of the bottle onto his wrist to be sure, HyungJoon blinked owlishly at his brother. “This…isn’t holy water. It’s normal water.”

“Huh?” SooHyun turned around at that, confused as he held out his hand for the bottle. When HyungJoon passed it over, he looked the bottle up and down, KiBum doing the same.

“It…is just normal water,” he murmured, frowning as he passed the bottle back.

“But then…”

The back door to the shop unlocked and opened with a loud creaking noise, the Seekers jumping.

HyunJoong and YoungSaeng walked out, two young men right behind them. “The demons are clear of the area,” HyunJoong murmured quietly, the two men they’d brought out looking around warily.

“We’re going to bring them to a safer place,” YoungSaeng said softly, glancing between the others. “Thank you for helping.”

“Who are they?” JungMin frowned, nursing his burned hand as he eyed the two.

“This is Alexander,” HyunJoong introduced the man closest to him, who was standing half in front of the other man as though to shield him. “His friend is Eli.”

“Thank you for the help,” Alexander sighed in relief. “I couldn’t hold them all back much longer.”

HyunJoong nodded. “Come on, I need to talk to you both for a moment,” he smiled, drawing Alexander and Eli aside. KyuJong frowned, watching them talk further on and unable to hear what they were saying.

“YoungSaeng hyung,” SooHyun started after a minute of silence, his tone serious. The dark-haired man glanced in their direction. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Go right ahead,” the other man replied quietly. KiBum frowned, looking from SooHyun to YoungSaeng.

“Why is HyunJoong’s silver eye different from the others?” SooHyun asked, eyes narrowed. “It’s got a rose lining to it.”

YoungSaeng tilted his head to one side, considering that. “What he sees is different from what the others see,” he answered simply.

“What does he see?” KiBum asked quietly.

The older man’s lips curled into a smile. “Everything else.”

“Huh?” HyungJoon blinked in confusion.

KiBum scowled a little at the cryptic answer, about to ask again when HyunJoong’s voice floated to them. “YoungSaeng, we need to go.”

YoungSaeng pushed away from the wall, nodding to the others. “We will see you all at the next meeting, be ready.” He turned and walked to where HyunJoong, Alexander and Eli were waiting.

Watching them go, JungMin groaned, messing up his hair with his good hand. “Well, that gave us no answers.”

“Maybe there’s a reason why they’re not saying anything,” Kevin said softly.

“You seem very keen on defending them,” JungMin’s eyes narrowed at the youngest of their group, who blinked back at him with wide eyes.

“Stop, Kevin’s got a point,” KiBum sighed, shaking his head. “It’s just frustrating.”

“Come on, let’s go back home,” KyuJong said quietly. “The month’s just about up, we’re going to have to be rested and prepared for whatever happens. And the sun’s just about down.”

“I don’t like this,” JungMin grumbled beside him as they started to make their way back. “Not at all.”

“Neither do I, but we don’t have a choice but to go along with it for now.”
 

“What do they want to meet with us about now?” JungMin sighed as they stepped into the hotel elevator. It was the first time they were meeting HyunJoong and YoungSaeng at the hotel room they were occupying while in Seoul; HyungJoon commented that they must be filthy rich to be able to afford a hotel for a whole month. This place wasn’t exactly cheap.

“No idea, maybe they found out more,” KyuJong murmured as he leaned against the elevator wall, pressing the button for the fifth floor and watching the doors close. He was getting nervous; the end of the month was approaching, and he’d been seeing far more demons around than even before. “I don’t like this…SooHyun’s been getting more headaches than usual, he says there’s too much spiritual energy in the air.”

“I still think he’s a defective medium,” JungMin rolled his eyes. “He says he hasn’t stopped sensing something nearby since he joined us, but we’re not always around demons.”

“Either way, there are too many demons around,” KyuJong sighed. They were early to meet the two traveling Seekers, the others only going to be arriving in fifteen minutes or so, but he couldn’t help it. He’d been on edge all week, jumping at shadows, and the nightmares had come back despite JungMin’s efforts in keeping them away. Reaching up, he made sure his silver eye was covered, feeling like a target if it was showing.

“Relax, will you?” JungMin sighed, rubbing the older man’s shoulder lightly. KyuJong leaned against him a little before the elevator dinged and the doors opened.

They stepped out into the hallway, looking around as KyuJong glanced from the door numbers to the piece of paper in his hand. “This way,” he started down the hallway, JungMin following.

The room they were looking for was at the end of the hallway…and the door was open. Blinking in confusion, KyuJong exchanged a wary glance with JungMin before edging towards the door. Had demons found the two? He didn’t see an aura…

One finger against his lips to be quiet, KyuJong peeked around the doorframe, and stopped, eyes wide.

He could only just barely see the two at the other end of the hotel room, but he could clearly see HyunJoong pinning YoungSaeng against the wall, kissing him. YoungSaeng’s hands were pressed against HyunJoong’s broad back, one running up and down slowly as he tilted his head to one side, eyes closed. It was a slow, deep kiss, taking their time as HyunJoong cupped YoungSaeng’s face lightly, his cheek with one thumb.

KyuJong blinked owlishly. Well, that was a lot easier to understand than the cryptic answers the duo had given so far.

Poking his head around the corner too to see what was going on, JungMin stared before pulling back, blinking at KyuJong. “…Okay.”

HyunJoong’s lips transferred to YoungSaeng’s neck, the smaller man’s head falling back against the wall as he moaned softly.

“Think we should…go and come back?” KyuJong mumbled, face burning red as he shuffled back from the door. 

“But this is interesting,” JungMin pouted at him, and KyuJong rolled his eyes before grabbing the younger man’s arm and towing him back down the hallway.

It was a good twenty minutes of waiting at the other end of the corridor, and getting some weird looks from the maids, before the elevator dinged and the others filed out. “Hey,” HyungJoon grinned nervously at the two. “Are they in?”

“Yeah, they’re in,” JungMin smirked, and KyuJong kicked his shin.

Heading back to the room at the other end of the hallway, KyuJong wondered if the door being closed now was a good sign or not. But when Daniel knocked lightly, HyunJoong answered within a few seconds, looking perfectly normal.

“Come in,” he smiled at them, stepping aside and heading back into the room to give the group enough space to file into the hotel room.

“So, you found out more information?” Daniel asked, taking off his shoes. YoungSaeng motioned for the leader to sit down in the chair, the others taking up spots on the floor and the bed.

HyunJoong locked the hotel room door behind them and headed back into the room to sit next to YoungSaeng. “Yes, and we’ve reached the rest of our contacts,” he nodded, resting his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward. “And we think it’s time to launch our attack to destroy the nest.”

“When?” Daniel asked, the others exchanging worried glances. Apart from Alexander, they hadn’t meet any of these contacts, and that had only been for a few minutes.

“Tomorrow evening,” HyunJoong said, getting out a more detailed map of the industrial park area. “It‘s the longest day of the year, and with the sun setting as late as possible, our window for success is the largest it will ever be.”

“Okay…so how are we going to do this?” KyuJong sighed, rubbing his temples as he watched HyunJoong spread out the map so they all could see.

“We’re going to surround the nest, and burn it,” HyunJoong replied firmly, circling the spot on the map where the nest was located. “My contacts are able to purify the fire to be deadly to the demons on touch, none of those in the nest will escape.”

“A big fire?” HyungJoon’s eyes were wide. “Won’t someone in the city notice? We’re right in the middle of Seoul!”

HyunJoong and YoungSaeng exchanged a look. “You don’t need to worry about that,” YoungSaeng said softly. “They won’t notice.”

“Now, this is where we’re going to need your help,” HyunJoong continued before someone else could protest. “My contacts and I can take care of the burning, and the demons inside the nest. But there will be demons out in the city, and they will flock back to the nest once they realize it’s being destroyed, which will be shortly after the first eggs are touched by fire. You will have to stop them from getting too close, and exorcise them.”

“Our contacts have accepted the fact they may die in this,” YoungSaeng said softly. “And it is their duty to protect you all above everything else. But if too many of them die, the fire will not be able to purify the nest, and Seoul will fall under the demons’ anger.”

“You still aren’t telling us who these contacts are,” Daniel said, frowning at them. “To talk about purifying a fire…are they priests? They would have to be.”

KyuJong and JungMin exchanged a glance, trying to imagine the one contact they had met, Alexander, as a priest.

“They are fully capable of this task,” YoungSaeng said firmly, eyes sharp. “You’re going to need to trust us.”

“This is our city you’re talking about,” JungMin’s eyes flashed.

“And this is our country,” YoungSaeng retorted. “We know the risk, but this is the best way.”

“Okay,” Daniel sighed, before there could be any more arguments. “We’ll do our part. When are we meeting?”

“The fire will start at 7pm sharp,” HyunJoong replied, marking off spots on the map. “Be at these locations by then.”

HyungJoon looked at the others uncertainly. “We’re really doing this, aren’t we?”

KyuJong nodded, drawing in a shaky breath. Despite their misgivings about HyunJoong and YoungSaeng, they hadn’t let them down yet.

He only hoped the price of taking down the nest wouldn’t be too high.

“Hyung, we need to get into position now,” KiBum sighed as HyungJoon checked and rechecked to make sure the guards on his arms and legs were secure. “I’m not going to be able to move properly with these on.”

“If it stops you from being sliced in two, it works for me,” HyungJoon retorted, tightening the straps. KiBum looked at SooHyun for help, but his boyfriend just shook his head.

“It’s just about 7, we need to go,” Kevin said softly, reloading his gun and glancing at his watch.

HyungJoon sighed before standing straight, hugging KiBum. “Be careful, okay?” he whispered, the younger brother hugging him back.

“I will be, hyung.”

“Don’t worry HyungJoon hyung,” Kevin smiled, glancing at SooHyun then at KiBum. “We’ll keep him safe.”

“That we will,” SooHyun grinned as he took a pill to fight back the headache that was starting; he couldn’t afford to be distracted during the long fight that was going to ensue.

“Let’s go guys, show time,” Daniel said as his watch beeped, heading off on his own. KiBum had to wiggle out of HyungJoon’s grasp before walking off toward where his team needed to be, Kevin and SooHyun flanking him.

“He’ll be fine Joon,” KyuJong smiled, rubbing the older brother’s back.

“I hope so,” HyungJoon murmured, getting ready himself. “You took your painkillers?”

KyuJong nodded. His leg was probably going to be aggravated during the fight, he couldn’t be distracted by the pain. He brushed his bangs back behind one ear, glancing towards JungMin who was adjusting his gloves.

“Maybe after this, we’ll have less work to do,” JungMin joked as he glanced at them.

“Probably not at first, we’re going to have to go after every single demon that escapes,” KyuJong replied, before smiling. “But yeah, I think once that’s over we’ll be able to focus on other things.”

“Such as?” JungMin grinned at him.

“Don’t start getting any ideas.”

“But you like my ideas~”

“Why am I stuck with you two again?” HyungJoon sighed, and shrieked when JungMin cuffed the side of his head.

KyuJong’s watch beeped, and they all stopped. “Ready?” The Seeker took in a shaky breath, stepping around to press his back against JungMin’s, HyungJoon standing at their sides to watch an alley way as he pulled out his gun.

“Not really, but it’s going to start anyways,” HyungJoon whimpered.

“That’s the spirit,” JungMin grinned, holding his gun out. “We’re going out for drinks after this. Person with the least hits buys.”

“You’re on.”

KyuJong smiled as he listened to them, counting silently in his head. Three…two…one…

BOOM!

The ground rocked beneath them as, in the direction of the nest, flames rose up from the ground in waves, starting at one end of the nest and progressing to the other.

A horrible keen went up, KyuJong clenching his jaw and resisting the overwhelming urge to press his hands over his ears. That was the babies dying.

A few seconds later he saw the first wisps of red, drawing in a shaky breath. “They’re coming…get ready.”

KiBum and the other two were just getting to their assigned location when the fire erupted, the heat of it making them stagger back. “Woah,” SooHyun stared for a moment before snapping out of it, looking around. “Where are they?”

“The demons will be here soon,” Kevin winced, getting into position. 

“Not them…those contacts. Where are they?”

Blinking, KiBum glanced around. “Right. Where are they?”

“Probably closer to the fire?” Kevin suggested, glancing at them nervously.

“How are we supposed to protect them this far out?” SooHyun asked.

“I don’t—They’re coming!” KiBum yelled as through his silver eye he saw billows of red heading towards them, and towards the fire.

The second the first demon appeared, they started firing, getting into a triangle formation to watch all angles. SooHyun’s eyes searched the growing darkness, firing at any demon he saw. Dying keens rang in the air around them, from the babies and from the demons they shot.

Suddenly one popped up far too close, SooHyun yelling as he fired and blasted a hole in its head. KiBum fumbled with his gun at the shout from his boyfriend, and he saw several auras blast past them and towards the fire.

“…they got through!” He glanced at his boyfriend and best friend as they finished off their targets. “We have to go after them!”

“We were told to stay here,” Kevin protested.

“Those contacts can’t die, remember?” KiBum checked around them, and when he saw the next wave of demons was far off still, he bolted in the direction of the fire.

“KiBum!” SooHyun ran after him. Kevin stared after them before hurrying after as well.

They didn’t get far. KiBum didn’t see the red wisps in the shadows until the demon leapt out at him, the Seeker slammed into the wall hard before being knocked to the ground.

Rearing up to finish the young man off, the demon jerked as bullets slammed into its body before falling and disappearing. SooHyun ran straight to KiBum. “KiBum, are you okay?!”

Kevin dropped down beside them, eyes wide as he took in the blood slowly dripping through his best friend’s hair, KiBum unconscious. SooHyun tried to revive him without effect.

“…We need to get him somewhere safe,” Kevin said after a moment, swallowing and looking up to meet SooHyun’s gaze. “KiBum comes first, always.”

The older man nodded, gathering KiBum up in his arms and standing. “Where do we go?”

“Follow me,” Kevin replied and hurried off. SooHyun followed after him, not asking where they were going and instead keeping an eye out for any demons.

Kevin took care of the demons they encountered, firing with a cold precision. Within minutes, they were at a place SooHyun recognized. Seeing the wood-covered doorway, he watched as Kevin pried the wood out of place and moved out of the way.

“Get in here,” he said.

“Are you sure?” SooHyun asked.

Kevin nodded, looking at SooHyun. “Please, he’ll be safe in here.”

Seeing how serious the younger man was, SooHyun did as told, climbing into the niche between door and wood and crouching down, KiBum carefully in his arms. Kevin leaned in, eyes pained as he brushed KiBum’s hair out of his eyes, fingertips resting against his bloodied temple for a moment before pulling away.

“What about you?” SooHyun asked; the space wasn’t enough for three people.

“I’ll stand outside and make sure no demons get to you,” Kevin said. “Don’t come out unless I tell you to, okay?”

“Kevin ah, you’ll be killed.”

“I’ll be fine,” Kevin smiled at him. “Look after KiBum hyung, okay?” He straightened and slid the wood back into place, hiding them from the outside world.

SooHyun gave a shaky sigh, looking down at the younger man in his lap. After a moment he got out his cell phone and flipped it open; it wasn’t the best source of light, but it would work for now. He brushed KiBum’s hair to one side to check his injury, and paused.

In the small amount of light he had, he could see no blood on KiBum’s skin, nor in his hair. Blinking, he checked where the blood had been coming from, and saw no wound. Only a thin, barely visible scar.

“JungMin, duck!” KyuJong fired over the redhead to catch a demon about to sneak up on him, killing it instantly.

“How much longer is this going to take?” HyungJoon panted, glancing behind them to where the fire was raging. He was shocked there was no sign of police or fire fighters; did no one see the flames reaching up into the sky?

“I have no idea,” KyuJong shook his head Then his eyes widened as he saw a storm of red and black. “…Oh God.”

“What is it?” JungMin panted, straightening after killing another demon and looking over to them.

“Demons coming.” KyuJong swallowed. “A lot of them.”

“How much is ‘a lot’?”

“As in you better get over here because we’re going to die if we don’t take them on properly,” KyuJong snapped, grabbing HyungJoon’s sleeve and turning the younger man around to face where the demons were coming from.

HyungJoon spun around dizzily, and then stared as they saw glowing red eyes. “…We’re dead.”

JungMin started firing first, the other two following him. But no matter how many they killed, the demons just kept on coming. There were too many…they couldn’t hold that many back.

KyuJong’s gun make clicking noises as he pulled the trigger, and his heart dropped. He was out of bullets.

“Look out!” A voice yelled behind them as the demons came into full view and surged towards them.

Only to slam into an invisible barrier right in front the three Seekers, a ripple moving through the air in front of them before the demons who collided the hardest blew apart with screeches of pain.

Feeling someone behind them, KyuJong straightened and whirled around, eyes wide.

Alexander stood behind them, one hand on his hips as he stared at the demon. Beside him was the older teenage girl from the pair YoungSaeng and HyunJoong had rescued just a week or so ago. Both of them had one hand out in a ‘stop’ motion.

Shrieks went up and by the time KyuJong turned back around, the demons had all disappeared, the auras evaporating into thin air.

“…What just happened?” HyungJoon asked shakily, trembling.

“You all okay?” Alexander asked, looking them over for injuries. He nudged KyuJong’s bad leg slightly with his own, the Seeker stumbling to one side. “Oops sorry,” the other man apologized quickly.

“Here,” The teenage girl said with a small smile, holding out more cartridges for KyuJong. “Keep up the good work, we’re just about through.”

“What did you both do?” JungMin asked, eyes wide.

“Trade secret,” Alexander winked. “Come on GyuRi!” He turned and ran back towards the fire, the girl running after him, both at a speed far too fast to be normal.

HyungJoon stared after them. “…Just what happened?”

“I have…no idea,” JungMin murmured. “These contacts…what are they?”

KyuJong shook his head, before blinking and looking down at his leg. “My…leg doesn’t hurt anymore.” He rolled up his pant leg, and his eyes widened. The marks from the claws were only scars.

After a moment, he swallowed. “Hey…remember when we asked YoungSaeng what HyunJoong could see with that eye?”

“Yeah?” JungMin quirked an eyebrow at him.

“We can see demons with ours…he said HyunJoong could see ‘everything else’.”

“But what else is there to see?” HyungJoon asked. KyuJong turned towards them slowly, a strange expression on his face.

“What if…divine intervention was more than just the Sight?”

“What do you—“ JungMin cut himself off, looking up as the keening noise from the burning nest grew louder. “That’s not good.”

KyuJong turned back to face away from the nest, seeing more demons coming. “The next wave is here. You guys ready?”

“No, but let’s do this anyways,” HyungJoon said, aiming again.

It was going to be a long night.

Nest-burning went on until the sun set. Finally the fire died out, nothing left of the nest but the faint taint of demons, slowly dissipating as they checked for demon survivors.

“Some of them would have escaped into the city,” Daniel told them later, nursing a bloody arm. “You’re going to have busy next little while.”

“Figured as much,” KyuJong sighed tiredly, leaning against the wall beside him.

“Where did all the others go?” JungMin asked. They hadn’t seen any of the contacts, nor HyunJoong or YoungSaeng.

“No idea,” Daniel shook his head.

HyungJoon suddenly looked around in a panic. “Where’s KiBum?!”

“Over here,” a voice called, and they turned to see SooHyun and Kevin walking towards them. KiBum was limp on SooHyun’s back.

HyungJoon ran over to his little brother. “What happened?” He asked with wide eyes, checking him for injuries and finding none.

“He was knocked out pretty good, but he’ll be fine,” SooHyun smiled. Kevin nodded along, one hand covering a bloody cheek.

“Go home, all of you,” Daniel sighed. “Your work here is done, you deserve a long rest.”

“Sleep,” KyuJong smiled happily at the idea, mismatched eyes showing his exhaustion.

“Come on, let’s go,” JungMin chuckled, wrapping one arm around KyuJong’s shoulders as they started to walk. HyungJoon fell back to walk on SooHyun’s other side, staying close to his brother.

KyuJong felt a prickling at the back of his neck, like someone was watching, but when he turned around there was no one there.

They all ended up crashing at HyungJoon and KiBum’s apartment, since it was the closest and they were too tired to go back to their own. None of them woke up before noon the following day, too exhausted to do anything other than sleep.

Finally KyuJong stirred, opening his eyes and blinking at JungMin still unconscious beside him. For a moment he just lay there, wondering what had woken him up.

“Morning hyung.” He looked over to see Kevin sipping a cup of coffee. “Want some coffee?”

KyuJong blinked at him uncomprehendingly before his brain caught up. “Sure.”

Smiling, Kevin hopped off the counter and went to make another cup. “How’s your leg?”

“My leg…” Remembering, KyuJong looked down at his leg, rolling up the bottom of the pajamas he’d borrowed. His fingers traced over the faint scars. “Healed,” he murmured. “Completely healed.”

The others slowly started to wake up around them, stirring at the noise. Finally JungMin rolled over and nearly squished HyungJoon, startling a shriek out of the older brother that had all of them snapping awake.

“Be quiet you,” KyuJong groaned, kicking HyungJoon lightly.

KiBum stirred, eyes cracking open. “Was that HyungJoon hyung again?” he grumbled.

SooHyun brightened, leaning over him and looking down. “Hey! How are you feeling?”

KiBum blinked at him, before his eyes widened. “I feel fine.” He touched the side of his head lightly, before shaking his head and sitting up slowly. “What happened?”

“KiBum hyung!” Kevin waved happily from the kitchen where he was making coffee, KiBum smiling after a moment and returning the wave.

“We got rid of them,” SooHyun grinned, hugging KiBum tightly and kissing him full on the mouth.

“Great!” KiBum brightened, hugging him back and ignoring HyungJoon pretending to gag. “So does that mean your headache’s gone?”

“Yeah,” SooHyun grinned. “I mean, I still sense something nearby, but that’s managa—“

They all jumped at a crash from the kitchen. “I’m sorry!” Kevin whined. “I dropped a glass!”

KiBum chuckled, shaking his head and giving SooHyun a light peck before standing up and going into the kitchen to help his best friend. “Careful, don’t step on it.”

There was a knock on the door, the laughter at the youngest dying at the noise. “We supposed to be meeting anyone now?” HyungJoon blinked owlishly. KiBum poked his head back out of the kitchen and shook his head.

After a moment, KyuJong stood up out of the mess of blankets in the living room where they’d all crashed and fixed his hair over his silver eye, heading to the door. When he opened it, he blinked up at Daniel. “Hyung?”

“Hey hyung!” JungMin called. “Isn’t it early for a visit?”

“Just because you all just woke up…” Daniel shook his head, before stepping in. “You need to listen to this.” There was an urgency in his voice that they hadn’t heard in a while.

“What’s up?”

He stepped over to sit in the middle of the group, KiBum and Kevin coming out of the kitchen to join them. Their leader was holding papers tightly.

“I found HyunJoong and YoungSaeng.”

“Information on them?” JungMin perked up. “It’s about time!”

“Be quiet and listen,” Daniel chided, brows furrowed as he held out the first paper. “Kim HyunJoong, born in Seoul, has a degree in music. 25 years old…born the same day as the second Pandora’s Box was opened.”

KyuJong’s eyes went wide. “Really?”

Daniel nodded.

“And YoungSaeng?” The younger man asked.

“That’s…” Daniel swallowed, looking at the second paper. “There’s nothing to explain it.”

“Explain what?” KiBum asked softly as he sat down next to SooHyun, Kevin shuffling closer to him.

“YoungSaeng’s dead.”

KyuJong’s eyes widened in utter shock. “What?”

Daniel held out the paper for them to see. It had a picture of the YoungSaeng they’d met, looking the exact same.

“Heo YoungSaeng died 25 years ago…when the second Pandora’s Box was opened, and the day Kim HyunJoong was born.”

********************************

”Noon train to Busan, now departing”

HyunJoong watched the station pull away, and buildings start shooting by at an increasing pace. Humming softly to himself, he ran his fingers through the hair of the man resting against him, nose buried in his collar.

“Where to next?” He murmured, resting his head against the soft strands.

“We’ll rest for a bit,” YoungSaeng replied softly, kissing the exposed skin above the other man’s collar. “Then we need to go to Taiwan…they say there’s another nest starting, we need to get rid of it before it gets to the point this one was at.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do,” HyunJoong smiled, closing his eyes. There was silence for a few minutes, before he asked softly, “How much longer do you have?”

YoungSaeng smiled against his neck. “As long as you want. I’m not leaving without you, I told you that. I’ll always protect you.”

“And you won’t get into trouble?”

“Considering we’re doing the grunt work, the least they can do is give us that much.”

The Seeker chuckled at the reply, kissing the side of YoungSaeng’s head. The dark-haired man sat up after a moment for a proper kiss. Once they’d pulled back, YoungSaeng smiled at him, two black eyes crinkling in happiness as they met HyunJoong’s own mismatched eyes.

HyunJoong smiled back at him, taking in the other man’s beauty, both visible beauty and the beauty only he could see…wisps of light blue and white curling around from YoungSaeng’s back and enveloping him like soft wings.