POV: Baekho

We have to go look for him. We can't leave him out there on his own for even a second longer. What if they catch him? What if they've caught him?

            POV: Aron

They've probably already found him. If we go looking for him, they'll trap us all and all of this will have been for nothing.

            POV: Baekho

Ren is out there all alone with guards after him. How can we be stalling his rescue?

            POV:  Aron

Exactly. If the guards have located him then they'll be distracted with him and it'll be easier for us to get out.

            POV:  Baekho

Ren specializes in getting himself into trouble. If they find him, he'll fight. He won't give up easily. They'll cage him up, torture him... What are we waiting around for?

            POV:  Aron

We have to keep in mind that Ren is a rebel that knows how to be careful. I'm sure he'll keep them occupied enough. We'll take advantage of the situation to escape while he distracts them.

            POV:  Baekho

It's so cold in here...

            POV:  Aron

I'm freezing...

            POV: JR

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP.

AH!!! SHUT UP! SOMEONE STOP THAT SOUND! I'M SUFFOCATING! I'M DYING! SOMEONE STOP!

And it stops. It goes. Silence. Emptiness. Darkness.

            POV: Minhyun

The alarm finally stops and the feeling of drills in my skull halts with it. What a relief! I light up a small flame in order to illuminate the room we're in.

"FIRE! NOOOO! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT DAMN IT!"

Ah, that scared me! What the hell is wrong with Aron? Right now he looks crazier than the crazy one.

My flame went out due to the startle he gave me and I still haven't been able to see anything of the place we're in.

I mean, I understand. The poor guy has been traumatized by fire. But we need light and so I create another flame. As soon as he sees it, he starts to scream. I try to comfort him.

"Aron, calm down please. It's just for a moment, just until we find the light switch."

"NO! PUT IT OUT AT ONCE!"

"Shut up, man. It's not that big of a deal."

"How pretty... so bright... and warm... and bright... and it moves... and bright..."

            POV: JR

It looks... alive. It's hot. It's really hot. Ouch! It burned me!

"Don't touch it, idiot! It's fire! Why would you try to touch it?"

Fire? Ah, that's what it is. I remember now... It looks dangerous. But it can't overcome me. I'm sure I can make it disappear.

Ouch. It burns. Bastard!

            POV: Minhyun

What do I do? He's decided to fight against my fire and keeps burning himself, but continues to attack anyway. And then he burns himself and gets angry, insults it, takes a steps back, and attempts it again... I had started to think he was getting better, but now I see that he hasn't. This guy is hopeless.

And then we have Aron who won't stop yelling at me to put out the fire. I'm starting to despair. I don't know what to do. I suppose I should get rid of the flame and look for the light switch in the dark...

Abruptly, the room floods with light. What happened? I look around and find Baekho beside the switch. Luckily there's still someone with at least some common sense.

At last I put out the flame and Aron stops his screaming. JR jumps up in joy, screeching to let us all know that he's victorious once again. I'm not going to be the one to contradict him.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go already!"

"Baekho's right. Up on your feet!"

Baekho and Aron clearly know what to do, but I don't.

"Okay... but... where are we going?"

They both give me looks of 'it's obvious' but their replies are very different.

"To look for Ren of course!"

"To escape, isn't it obvious?"

Oh boy...

"What do you mean 'escape'? What about Ren?"

"What do you mean 'look for Ren'? Are you suicidal?"

The both of them glare at each other challengingly. I hope they don't start throwing punches on the spot...

"What are you saying? How can we just leave? What, you want to leave Ren here?"

"You want to look for him?"

"Of course."

"You're insane. They'll capture us all and kill us."

"We can't just leave him here."

"Of course we can. All we have to do is leave. If they catch Ren, he'll serve as a distraction."

Baekho gives him a fist to the face. Aron stumbles back in shock, touching his cheek. He managed to move aside in time to lessen the impact but even so it was a pretty good hit. His nose is bleeding. He makes a little pained sound.

Crap. This is getting out of hand. I should do something to stop them.

"Stop! Please! Don't fight! Aron, are you okay? Listen, I think—"

"What the hell was that for, you bastard? THAT HURT!"

"Don't say that ever again. I won't abandon my Ren."

"Then you go look for him on your own. Don't include all of us in your suicide."

Great, no one's listening to me. I'm being totally ignored.

"Ren is one of us! We can't abandon him!"

Baekho seems desperate. It even looks like he's about to cry. I can't let this go on this way.

I hurry over to Aron and timidly grab his arm. "Calm down, both of you, please! Aron, listen to me—"

"Going to search for him is suicide!"

"We can't a—"

"They'll kill us all if we go!"

Nothing. This is like talking to a wall...

"IF WE DON'T GO, THEY'LL KILL HIM!"

"And why should I give a ?!"

Second punch. This time Aron ducks under his arm and tackles him to the ground. Before Baekho can recuperate, Aron is over him and returning his punch, yelling, "I'M NOT RISKING MY BOY'S LIFE TO SAVE YOURS!"

Wait, what did he say? 'My boy'? So... his boy? So... is that... me? Ah, that sounds nice... I think I might blush... Eh? What am I thinking? This is not the time! They're fighting; I have to do something!

Aron moves in to deliver another punch and this time Baekho manages to dodge and throw him to the side. Now the blond is the one beating him up, yelling just as loudly.

"Shut up, imbecile! You unthankful idiot!"

"Yah! Stop, both of you! You're like roosters! I have enough noise with the voices in my head."

Huh? JR? He said something... that makes sense? So he's not crazy?

            POV: JR

The light turns on and the darkness recedes. The flame goes out. I've won!

The room is huge and white with a lot of lights in the ceiling. They're like the ones from my cage but from above. Why are they above? How did they get up there?

It's cold. Really cold.

The far wall is red. No, it's not a wall.

I approach until I get to the water. By my feet is a pond. It doesn't let me pass. AH SO YOU WANT SOME TOO, HUH? YOU'LL SEE WHAT YOU'VE GOTTEN INTO!

I kick at it to make it back away and only succeed in splashing myself. Obviously. It's water.

Beside me is a bridge. I cross it and continue on my way to the red wall.

In the middle of it are pieces of metal. Like shackles.

Two for hands and two for feet. One for the waist, one for a head.

And the red on the wall is... blood.

Is it just me? Am I imagining it?

It looks real. So real.

It covers the entirety of the wall and stops around the shackles. In the center is the silhouette of a person. A person that used to be trapped and tied here.

It's a lot of blood. Too much. Each second it grows. It surrounds me, suffocates me and swallows me.

The lights go off. I can't hear their voices anymore. Everything is dark. Empty.

But the blood is still there. Blood on the floor. There's a rug dotted with dark marks. A woman reaches her arms towards me. She's dying.

Now, a room of mirrors and a blonde girl. She's smiling— no, she's screaming. She's screaming because her hand is falling apart. More blood.

The woman cries and calls to me with blood flowing from .

The girl calls me too, she screams my name. She's hurting. I can feel it. It hurts a lot. I'm crying too.

The woman keeps screaming and sobbing but doesn't tell me to come closer anymore. She doesn't try to reach me. She yells and tells me to get away. I finally decipher her words.

"Run, Jonghyun! Go!"

Jonghyun.  That's my name – my real name – and the woman is my mother. She died protecting me when they came to take me away.

Now I remember. I remember it all.

The darkness rewinds and the blood disappears. It no longer attempts to suffocate me or swallow me whole. Now all that's left it the horrible stain on the wall.

I remember all these months of being caged in. Now I see everything clearly and I can think without the fog. Now I understand everything that had confused me before.

The blonde girl is Alice. She was the one in charge of caring for me. At first it was guards in charge of me, but I killed one of them. They decided that I'd feel less threatened if it were a smiling girl to help me get over my trauma than a few guards. And I injured her. I repaid all her months of dedication with destroying her arm.

I hate myself for it just as much as I hate myself for not being able to recognize the woman in my hallucinations as my mother. She died to protect me in an attempt to save me from all of this and I couldn't even remember her.

I almost break into laughter because of the sudden clarity I've gained when, five minutes ago, I couldn't even understand that fire burns. What an idiot, what a lunatic.

And now we're trying to escape. Baekho, Minhyun, Aron, and Ren. But Ren isn't here. He disappeared and now the others are fighting over whether or not we look for him.

Fighting won't get us anywhere.

"Yah! Stop, both of you! You're like roosters! I have enough noise with the voices in my head."

Well, I might need some time to heal completely...

They all stare at me, startled, unable to believe that I've said something coherent. I guess I deserve it...

            POV: Baekho

My god, it's hard to believe. JR's the one scolding us... Half an hour ago, he was fighting with a chair!

Although I can't say we don't deserve it. We're fighting at such an important moment...

Even so... How can he even think of abandoning Ren? I just don't understand!

If I go alone, would I be able to rescue him? Would I be strong enough to free him on my own? No, I need the others. I need them all! Why don't they understand that?

            POV: Aron

I must be imagining things. What's happened to JR? Judging by the others' faces, I don't think I'm the only surprised one.

Baekho looks like he's calmed down. I should do the same. Fighting like this won't get us anywhere.

But I still say we can't risk ourselves to save Ren. What if something were to happen to Min?! I'd never forgive myself, nor would I forgive anyone else.

What if I just grab Min and we make a run for it on our own? No, that'd be cruel. Besides, we have to stick together if we want to make this work.

            POV: Baekho

The lunatic—No, we should call him strictly JR from now on. He doesn't look so crazy anymore.

JR turns over the right to speak to Min who looks anxious to say something that we hadn't been listening to before.

"I..." He starts timidly. He's too nervous to say anything and it doesn't surprise me. Not after the exhibit we made of strength and testosterone. I'd be scared to say anything too. "Aron, thank you for wanting to protect me. It means a lot to me and, believe me, I don't like the idea of putting you in danger either. But I know Ren. He's slightly shy and it's hard for him to open up, but he's a good person. I like him and I don't find it right to leave him here. Besides, if it weren't for him, we wouldn't be here now. And I was sick of those four walls..."

Yes, thank you, Minhyun! I'll be forever grateful!

"But," he adds, turning a warning glare on me, "Punch Aron again and you'll know what it's like to burn alive."

My blood runs cold and I gulp. He doesn't need to say anything more. His glare says it all.

He turns away from me with an exaggerated hmph and, with all the dignity his drugged body allows him, he marches over to stand beside a surprised Aron who can't wipe a proud smile off his lips.

            POV: JR

Good, this is what I wanted. Aron was wrong in not wanting to go after Ren. If all of us aren't together, we won't make it. Especially now that they've closed the doors. Baekho was in the wrong, too, though. He was too blinded by anger and the urge to protect Ren. If we had just followed him, he would've done something stupid.

Minhyun's words have very effectively put everyone in their place. Just as it should be.

This whole not having your mind full of blood and mirrors is great. Everything makes so much sense...

            POV: Minhyun

Ah, finally! They've finally stopped fighting! And JR didn't only manage that. He also created order and let me talk. The image I had of him has gotten considerably better. Then again, I had him by the floor before, so improving doesn't say much...

I was worried that Aron would get angry at me for siding with Baekho but, luckily, he understood.

He's so adorable... When he grabs my hand and touches my cheek, I feel like I'm about to melt... It's so nice being by his side...

            POV: Aron

I still don't think it's a good idea to put Min in danger just to save Ren, but if it's what he wants then I won't object. I'll definitely make sure he's safe at all times, though. I'll do whatever it takes to protect him and if at any moment I have to choose between him and anything or anyone else, he'll always come first.

I love the fact that he defended me to Baekho and that he put him in his place. I'm so proud of him... He doesn't say a lot, but he tells me everything in his every gesture. The way he squeezes my hand tightly says 'don't let me go, protect me'. The way he looks me in the eyes is 'you're the only one for me'. The way he kisses my cheek says 'I love you'... How have I lived for so long without him?

            POV: Baekho

The lovebirds have returned to their own little fantasy world. I'm jealous... I mean, no. I didn't just think that thought. I'm not jealous. Why would I be jealous?

Alright, I won't deny it. I'm dying of envy. They look so good together... I've gotten used to thinking of Ren like he's mine, but it's clear that he doesn't think of me that way. What I'd give for one of his smiles... What do I need to do to get him to look at me the same way that these two look at one another?

It doesn't matter. Right now how he looks at me or who he smiles at doesn't matter. What matters is that he's in danger somewhere and that no one seems to be in any hurry to look for him.

            POV: JR

The situation is in danger of getting out of control again. Baekho is way too impatient and the other two are way too calm. How have they made it this far without me? Fine... I guess I don't really have the right to say that...

"Guys, lets organize ourselves." I grab their attention. "Do we know where Ren is?"

Baekho shakes his head.

"We don't even know if he's been captured." Minhyun says.

"The alarms have gone off." Aron argues, positive that they've captured him.

"He might've hid like us." He insists.

"No," Baekho says, surprising us, "They've caught him. We're talking about Ren here. He has the ability to get himself into trouble the second you look away."

"Alright then, any idea where they might have him?" The important thing is not to lose our calm. Someone has to be in charge of that and Baekho doesn't seem up to the job.

"I'll look for him." Baekho announces.

            POV: Baekho

They all jump up with 'no', 'we need a plan first', 'don't get ahead of yourself'. They misunderstood me.

"I mean with my mind. To figure out where he is."

"Ah..." The three of them mumble, sighing in relief.

"You can do that?"

"How do you think I sent you the notes?"

I say no more. I close my eyes and concentrate on expanding my mind.

Prior to escaping my prison, I'd kept my mind open at all times. But now I have too many things to keep track of. I need my mind in a single place.

I push open the reach of my senses and immediately begin to 'feel' the area around us. I mentally go through each room surrounding us. To my relief, the majority are empty. There's a group of guards in the hall above us and another group further off. We can get around them.

I reach out even further, nearly to my limits. And then I feel him.

He's in a small room. A cage, but not like one of ours. This is one of their punishment rooms. They have him hung upside down from the ceiling and he's unconscious.

I want to tell him that everything will be alright, that we'll find him, that he shouldn't worry because he's not alone and I'll save him.

But none of that is included in my ability and anyway... would my words mean anything to him? I want to believe that they would.

"The end of the hall to the left. Room 16."

            POV: Aron

Baekho explains the situation outside of this room. He tells us where the groups of guards are, which rooms are empty and... Am I the only one that doesn't understand anything? I glance around to the others and find that their faces are identical to mine. Ah, good. I was getting worried.

"Hey, is it really so hard to speak in a language we can understand? We're not getting anything that you're saying!"

Baekho stares at Minhyun, with a shocked look that says 'what's there not to understand? It's obvious!'. I guess I'll have to explain it to him. Min is too blunt.

"We've never been out of our cages. We don't know this place."

"Oh, right... then..."

And it's JR who puts everything in order again. Now that he's sane, it looks like he wants to be leader and he doesn't seem like a bad choice.

"Alright, you guide and we'll follow you."

Follow Baekho? I don't like that idea much. I don't like him. He seems set on putting everyone in harm's way. Min seems to be okay with it... Okay, fine, we'll follow him. But I'll have to be on high alert. I don't trust him.

            POV: Minhyun

Baekho nods and motions for us to follow him on the way out of the room. I climb onto Aron's back and JR walks behind us to close the door.

Outside, I notice the plaque beside the door. "Room 5". A black line is painted across it. Strange.

After a while of walking, I realize how tired Aron looks. Poor guy, he's been carrying me for so long.

"Should I get down, Aron? You look tired. I can walk now—"

"No, you can't. You're still weak."

"But..."

"Do you want me to carry him?" Baekho offers to help. Such a nice man.

"Don't even think of it. You lose people."

"Aron! Baby, that's too much..." I don't want to scold him but I feel bad for Baekho. He looks like he's about to cry.

"You think so? Nah... he deserves it."

"Need I remind you that it wasn't my fault. I was looking after the lunatic. You were closer to him."

            POV: JR

The lunatic? That's me, isn't it...? Yeah...

            POV: Minhyun

"He's your boyfriend, isn't he? Look after him yourself."

"Aron, enough. Apologize."

He looks at me in disbelief that I'd ask of him such a thing. But he's gone too far again. It's not Baekho's fault and it's a delicate subject for him.

I meet his gaze, determined, and eventually he sighs. Without looking at him, he mumbles an apology.

"Fine... I'm sorry... But I'm the only one who'll carry Min!"

I can't help but smile at how possessive he is. He's so cute! Without thinking, I lean in to place a kiss on his cheek. He blushes and automatically smiles.

Baekho just shakes his head and rolls his eyes while JR passes by our side. Once he's sure I can see him, he pretends to gag as if to say 'you disgust me, lovebirds'. I respond by sticking my tongue out. Aron sees my action but hasn't seen JR's. Confused, he looks around.

"Nothing, Aron. Go on..."

My smile convinces him and he continues walking without asking.

            POV: Ren

My head hurts. Where am I? What happened? I open my eyes but my vision is blurry. I manage to focus and still I don't recognize this place. It's not my cage. I've never been here before. There's something else that I can't quite put my finger on... . I'm upside down. Something is strapping my hands against my back and that something keeps me hanging from the ceiling. What the hell happened?

Now I remember. I went back to the cage to look for Baekho's notes. I thought I'd be able to go and return without anyone noticing. But the alarm sounded and... I was caught.

I hope the others escaped. . It's probably my fault that the alarm went off and that they've closed the doors. Maybe they managed to get out before... Would they leave without me? No, Baekho wouldn't leave me behind. Right? Although it'd probably be better that way. I'd rather never see Baekho again if seeing him meant he risked his freedom.

I hear approaching footsteps. , I'm screwed. I can't defend myself at all. I'm too tired. I don't think I have the strength to even attempt to get down let alone to use my powers.

The door opens. One, two, three guards.

One of them stays by the door while the others approach. One of them has a teasing expression on his face.

"Well, well... the princess has finally awakened." He kneels down a bit in order to put his face right up against mine. "Have you slept well?"

I don't get the chance to respond. A fist to the stomach cuts off my breathing. I sway. It hurts and the rope keeps me swinging. Another punch, a knee to my back before I can recover. My head hurts. And yet another hit, this time one to my face. The taste of blood fills my mouth.

"L-let... me... do-down..." I manage to ask.

"As the princess wishes." Responds the voice behind me.

And I fall. Whatever it was that held me let's go at once and I fall to the floor headfirst. Everything goes blurry for a long moment. My head pounds like it's about to explode.

I'm scared.

This time they won't stop once the wounds become too obvious or when I'm in danger of serious injury. No. This time nothing stands in their way.

Someone grabs me by my clothes, lifting me up. They drag me to one side of the room and leave me on my knees on the floor. Right in front of me is a large tank of water. Water?

I thought they were going to beat me or torture me... What do they have water for? Both guards on my either side smirk mockingly. This doesn't look good. I'm starting to feel scared of this tank of water.

"Now, baby doll, you're going to tell us where your little friends are, right?" One says while he pulls back my head harshly, fingers roughly entangled in my hair.

These poor idiots. Do they really think I'll betray them? That I'll let these people cage them up again just to save my own skin? That I'll beg for my life? Well tough luck.

I might die, but I'll never betray them. Not them. Not Baekho.

I spit the blood in my mouth out to the side. Ha, good, it landed on a shoe.

"You can wait as long as you want, you stupid buffoons. I'll say nothing." Ha! Stupid buffoons! I've got it finally. I've never been able to define them any better.

"Stupid little boy... You've asked for it."

I don't get a chance to respond. I don't get the chance to think. My head goes underneath the water. A hand forces me down, keep me from going up for air. I can't breathe. I'll drown.

I try to escape their hold but it's impossible. I'm drowning. Air. AIR!

And, finally, I breathe. At the last second, they lift my head from the tank. I gasp in gulps of air, attempting to regulate my breathing. I've barely managed it, have just started to breathe normally and then... water.

Again. My lungs are still crying out from the first dunk. I have even less air than before. I'm drowning again. Will I die this way? Drowned in a ing tank? But no.

Again, they pull me up before I drown.

And another time and another time. The plunges continue with mere seconds in between to get a quick breath in. My only rest is the extra second they take to ask the same thing. My lungs are burning. My head feels like it's about to explode and everything's spinning. Until finally they stop. They drag me along the floor to a dirty corner of the cage. I guess this will be my bed tonight.

"You're tough to break, huh? You win for now but we'll be back soon, doll. This has only just begun. You know, there's no point in sacrificing yourself for them. We'll catch you all either way." And they leave.

The door closes and I'm left alone. I'm cold. I'm hungry. My whole body aches. I want nothing more than to close my eyes and sleep but I can't. I'm scared of not waking up again or, worse, awakening to being tied up again. Waking up in a place even worse than this one.

What if they torture me for the rest of my life? No... he wouldn't let them... Baekho will get me out of here... yeah... I know he will. He can't abandon me... right?

            POV: Baekho

We continue down the hall with a stubborn Aron insisting that he carry Minhyun. This idiot...

Every few meters, I halt and expand my mind. Not as far as before; just enough to make sure there are no guards around.

Is it really my fault that Ren disappeared? Even if it's not, I should've been more alert... But I didn't expect him to go. Where did he go? Why did he go? I'm worried, extremely so. I'm becoming too obsessed with him. I'll have to distance myself to clear my mind. But not now. Right now all that matters is that we find him as soon as possible.

I realize that I've distracted myself and open up my sense again before we cross the next corner. Too late. They're right on the other side. How have they moved so fast? Have I really been thinking of Ren for that long?

"Guys! Behind you!"