Whistling away Jonghyun twisted the key in the lock and stepped back. Without even touching the metal bars he held a hand and pushed the cage away from him, dangling over the descent of the waterfall next to two others, one really small and one a little bigger. The cliff stood at least the height of a small steeple. He had taken them by surprise only a little while after destroying what remained of Naeun’s faith in her prince and had captured them.

“Don’t be sad Naeun,” he said jeeringly at the black swan in her personal enclosure. “Your prince will come… Oh wait he won’t.” His callous laughter made Chorong squawk in fury and Key tried to lash out with his tongue but he was out of reach.

When he was gone Myungsoo rattled his horns against his cage until he was interrupted. “Myungsoo stop it’s no use.” Chorong called out to him sounding deflated. “No one can hear us. Even if they could they wouldn’t be able to free us without one of us dropping into the water.”

“Yah who cares about us per say!” The other two glanced at Key. “What about Naeun here. Now she can never be set free from the spell. The one she loves won’t ever tell it to her face.”

“Key!”

“What it’s the truth isn’t it?!” He scurried over to the edge of the cage making it lean. Chorong had to flap over to the other side so it would balance. “Hey Naeun I love you alright? Go on say it back to me so that the spell can be broken. The sun isn’t going to set for a while.”

“Key stop it,” Chorong was getting to the edge of her patience. “Please consider Naeun’s feelings.”

“I am, I know she wants to be free of the spell and so do I. Let’s make it happen. After all the reason Jonghyun transformed me into this creature is because he thought we had feelings for each other!”

Myungsoo heaved a large sigh. Sitting in his cage his glanced towards the one with the black swan. She was sitting as though she was roosting, her head down. “Sister,” he said softly while Chorong and Key had their own argument in their cage. “We’ll find a way to be free. Just don’t give up hope…” He paused and wet the edge of his mouth with his dark tongue.

“Taemin… He likes you, I know that he does. Believe in him.”

Naeun gave no indication that she heard him but her heart was starting to close up. This time it may never be opened again.

Yunho had to take a seat when Minho bombarded him with the truth about Taemin and the girl he liked. “You mean to say…” He started, staring at the guilty party who appeared a bit sheepish. “That Taemin here, likes a girl who was betrothed to Kim Jonghyun who is a wizard and transformed her and three of her companions into animals?”

“Umm more or less,” Minho answered seeming apologetic to his friend. “I haven’t really gained full understanding of it myself.”
Yunho played with his hands as he thought. “You do realise that if I believe in the slightest then we’ll need more than just the four of us to take him down.”

Minho nodded. “So then let me bring at least fifty of the palace guards and we’ll go out together. Taemin and Kai you two should get some ammunition, we don’t know what we’re dealing with.”

The boys nodded and hurried off. The king was startled by his youngest son entering his office and taking his gun without asking. Kai quickly bowed and began to apologise before Taemin pulled him away by the collar.

“I’ll go home and get my gun,” Kai told Taemin. “Maybe you should take your bow and some arrows too.”

“I’m not that good though—“

“—I am,” Minho surprised them both. “I’ll bring my bow and arrow with me while Yunho sends for his own personal weapon. It should arrive at the palace in a few hours.”

This news made Taemin’s face pale slightly. “In a few hours; brother that’s not soon enough!”

Minho placed his hands on Taemin’s shoulders bending down slightly to speak to him softly. “I know, but he’s going to help in whatever way he can. We have to be patient. I’m sure Naeun, Chorong and the others are not going to be in any real danger.”

“But still…”

Taemin was cut off by Minho shaking his head. “You never were one who wanted to wait. Naeun, she must mean a lot to you huh?”

At this Taemin found something dawning on him like the start of a brand new day. His heart grew more heavy but with a happy load. “I think… I think I love her.”

Smiling at his brother Minho ruffled his hair. “Then let’s go and set her free.” He walked away leaving Taemin in seventh heaven. Kai came over to him having not left yet.

“D-did you just say; that you’re in love with her?”

There was a happy sigh. “More or less,” Kai chuckled at his friend who at that moment sounded just like his brother. And then Taemin remembered something. “Aren’t you supposed to be getting your gun?”

“Ah right, bye then.” Kai waved to Taemin before running off and singing, “Taemin’s in love Taemin’s in love!”
 

Several hours later Taemin, Kai, Yunho and Minho were trekking through the lush green forest with about fifty of the royal guardsmen following behind, armed with pistols and small knives. The sun was beginning to descend.

“How much further is this place?” Minho asked Taemin using a hand to bend away a small branch. “We’ve been going at this for a while.”

Taemin winced as he wacked himself in the side with some shrubbery. “Soon,” he commented. They were all dressed in dark khaki uniforms similar to that of the guards. The only difference was that four gentlemen had no hats.

“It’s here,” Taemin pointed and they all had to stop suddenly. He’d forgotten to mention there was a drop. They peered at the lake and the tower. “We have to come around this way.” He quickly came down the side he usually went and everyone else cautiously followed.

They reached the bottom and stopped at the lake. Taemin glanced around. “Naeun, Naeun where are you?”

“Look what we have here.” A voice rang out from the other side of the lake. The guards clicked their guns to load and Jonghyun held up his hands in surrender. His suit looked metallic grey from a distance however in the sunlight it rippled colours of purple, blue and green. Minho made the men stop.

“Hold your position.”

“Why it’s the future king of Korea and his loyal brotherhood.” They turned to the spot where Jonghyun had been but it was vacant. Peering around aimlessly no one knew where he was until Kai called out. “He’s up there on the cliff!”

“And so are your little friends!” Jonghyun retorted. With one pull he dragged on the rope making the caged inhabitants call out. Taemin spotted the black swan and he clenched a fist. Yunho had to hold him back.

“Let her go. Let them all go!”

The wizard’s laughter caused confusion among them, for what was so funny? It was then the glint of metal caught their attention. He held a knife in his hand, close to touching the rope.

“Give up your quest for Naeun. She doesn’t belong to you and never will. If you don’t…” He pressed the blade closer to the fibres. “They’ll all plummet to their deaths.”

Minho, Kai and Yunho all froze. Taemin was about to burst. His hands held his weapon with such fierce malice against his former friend that they were trembling.

“Never,” he yelled at Jonghyun. Minho gave the order to charge and they all ran towards the cliff, going around the lake. The wizard sliced the rope leaving only half of the wounded area intact with the strands starting to snap.

They jumped at the sound of an explosion. Worried Taemin gazed at where Naeun and the others hung but a fierce roar caught them off guard. There was no wizard. Instead up in the air was a large grey winged monster. Spikes ran down its back with a pair of horns on its crown. As it flapped its leaf shaped wings they were shimmering green, blue and pale purple.

Taemin searched for his friend. “Jongin, go with Yunho to help them!”

“But you need us!”

“Just go,” Taemin pushed him in the other direction. Still baffled by Taemin’s behaviour Kai breathed out and ran to the bottom of the waterfall. Slinging his gun on his back he started to carefully climb. Yunho on the other hand searched for possible paths up to the top before he darted to a hill.

The guards fired their guns at the reptile like monster but the bullets bounced off as though it was tougher than steel. Minho fired his arrows and the same result came about.
“This isn’t working!” Taemin called to them, “we need stronger weapons.”

“Where would we find—look out!” Minho’s warning came a second too late as seven men were crushed by its foot. The crown prince swore as this shook up the confidence of the other guards who in return became hesistant to fire.

“What are you doing?!” Minho yelled. The dragon opened its mouth and fire spurted out of its mouth like a high pressure faucet. The men yelled and screamed from the burning flames. Minho and Taemin found themselves pinned to each other, back to back.

The other men kept on firing. Minho and Taemin glanced at the creature hoping to see some sort of weak or vulnerable spot. Taemin noticed one and tugged Minho’s sleeve.
“It’s there!” Upon closer look they noticed it. A patch slightly discoloured, looking thinner on the top near the nostrils.

Minho nodded, “aim for the top of its nose.”

The guards all started firing at the place but Jonghyun the dragon had caught on and lifted its long neck to prevent bullets or arrows to reach it. Taemin checked that Minho wasn’t watching him and he ran over to the dragon which started to land on the lake.

Taemin ducked down, going around towards the back where the tail swung around like a whip. The end of it was round and spiked like a mace. Minho paused, turned behind him only to find that his little brother was not there. Panic raced through his veins along with the adrenalin as he tried to search him out.

He saw him by the dragon’s tail, a knife drawn. “NO TAEMIN!” But Taemin was too far to hear. With one quick downwards he sliced through the tail just at the end. Green blood gushed out from the wound and there was a shriek mixed with a roar of pain.

“I did it,” Taemin called to Minho. “I did—“

It was cut off as the rest of the tail lashed back at him. He winced as one of the spikes struck his side in the push. Minho’s cry was drowned out as he dropped into the water, sinking fast like a pebble.

I know you guys want more but there’s so much yet to come that you have to wait til next week!