Tao moved toward the large shutters but stopped when Joonmyeon placed his hand on his shoulder. “Do we open them?”

                “If someone got up here then I want to know how,” Joonmyeon replied. “Move back to the other side of the room with ZiZi. I’ll open one side and see if there actually is someone there.”

                Tao nodded before scooping up his kitten and retreating to the other side of the room. The tower was so small that his going to the opposite side didn’t put a lot of distance between him and the great doors, but it made him feel better. “Ready.”

                Joonmyeon shook out his arms and shoulders before he pulled the board that kept the doors from being blown open. Then he grasped the handle of one and started to tug it open. He didn’t get it very far before a man slipped through the gap. He was soaking wet and frowning. “Who are you? What are you doing up here?”

                “I’ll ask the questions here,” the man replied. “I don’t care who you are. I’m here for the King’s Treasure.”

                Joonmyeon stared at the man for a moment before looking back over his shoulder at Tao. “We’re prisoners in this tower,” he said slowly. “There is no treasure here.”

                Scoffing, the man turned to where Tao was standing with ZiZi still cuddled in his arms. The kitten seemed undisturbed by their sudden guest. “I know it’s here. I demand you give it to me!”

                Frowning, Joonmyeon took a step closer to the stranger while still keeping out of his reach. “Look at where we’re forced to live. There’s no treasure here.”

                The man shook his head as he sneered. “I know you have it here. I heard from a reliable informant that the King keeps his treasure locked in the tower. Do you have it?”

                Tao squeaked as he shuffled around the circular room as the man rounded on him. “No! I don’t have anything!”

                “By whatever means you got up here, leave.”

                The man scowled as he took in the sight of the two men and their cat. “You said you’re prisoners here, right?”

                Slowly, Joonmyeon nodded his head. “Yes, we cannot leave the tower unless the King summons us.”

                “If you tell me what I want to know, I can free you.”

                “How?” Tao asks softly.

                Sighing, the man ran a hand through his wet hair before he shook his fingers and flung water drops everywhere. Joonmyeon would be annoyed by that if having water in the room wasn’t so advantageous for him. “Please go.”

                “It’s dangerous for me to tell you the truth. But if you really are locked in here then the worst you could do is tell the King about my visit. And if that’s the case, I’ll be long gone before he can do anything about it. So, despite it being a bad idea, I’ll tell you.”

                Joonmyeon almost stopped him. He almost told the stranger to shut up and just get out. Only Tao’s hand clutching at his shirt stopped him from saying anything.

                “My name is Wu Yifan. I’m the Captain of The Dragon. I am from Exodus, which means that I was born with a gift of great power. My power is flight. The King attacked my people many years ago and stole something from us. I’m here to take it back.”

                Joonmyeon reached back and grabbed onto Tao’s arm in time to keep him from saying anything to the man in front of them. “And if you get this treasure, what will you do with it?”

                “If it is what I believe it to be then I will use it to right the wrongs of the past,” Yifan told them.

                Forcing himself to not react, Joonmyeon stared blankly ahead. “There really is no treasure here. We’re just prisoners of a foreign land that the King shows off as he pleases.”

                Yifan frowned at that. “I came here to reclaim what was stolen from me. I won’t leave empty-handed.”

                With one hand still on Tao, Joonmyeon gestured around the tower. “Feel free to look around. We have only what little you can see.”

                Frustrated, Yifan stomped around the room before coming to a stop once more in front of the other two men. “Who are you?”

                “I told you. We’re political prisoners.”

                Yifan narrowed his gaze as he studied the man before him. He was far too calm about his situation. “If you were a prisoner then you’d bargain with me to free you. It would be easy for me considering my powers.”

                “I don’t have anything to bargain with,” Joonmyeon argued. “Look around. We have nothing of value to you.”

                Yifan studied them for a moment longer. His gaze lingered on their hands. “You’re protecting him. Why?”

                Joonmyeon kept his stance relaxed. “I’m older than him. It’s my job to protect him.”

                “The King finds value in you?”

                “Enough to keep us around and bring us out at parties to show us off.”

                Yifan scowled before crossing his arms over his chest. “Then I’ll be taking you with me. I can ransom you back to the King in exchange for what I want.”

                “We’re not going with you,” Joonmyeon said firmly. “There’s a nasty storm out there and you said your power was flight. I don’t want to fly through something like that.”

                “I’m not really giving you a choice.”

                Tao backed up as Joonmyeon backed up as the man advanced on them. “Suho.”

                Joonmyeon tightened his grip at Tao’s whimpering but didn’t stop slowly moving them. “Forcing us to go with you in this would only endanger our lives.”

                “Let me rephrase that,” Yifan said with a cruel smile. “You don’t have a choice.”

                Moving quickly, Joonmyeon pushed Tao further away from them before calling on his powers and summoning all the extra water in the room. He moved fluidly as he directed it at Yifan, who had moved just enough to be standing in front of the large door.

                With a push of his hands, Joonmyeon directed the beam of water and used it to shove Yifan back out into the storm. Then he began to push the door shut once more.

                “Joonmyeon!” Tao gasped. “That was crazy! You just chucked him right out the door.”

                Grunting, Joonmyeon got the door closed and the board back in place to keep it that way. “I don’t like him.”

                “I didn’t either,” Tao said as he joined Joonmyeon by the large wooden shutters. “Do you think he’ll be okay?”

                Sighing, Joonmyeon ran a hand through his hair. “He has the power of flight. I’m sure he’s already flying back to wherever he came from.”

                “Do you think he’ll try to come back?”

                “I’m not sure, Tao. He knows now that I am also from Exodus. He might return for that reason alone. He can’t get back in tonight. So we’re safe for now.”

                No sooner were those words out of his mouth than something large crashed through the ceiling of the tower. A huge gaping hole let in the rain and wind of the storm.

                Yifan lowered himself slowly through the opening in the roof. “I said, you’re coming with me.”

                “And I told you no.”

                Scowling, Yifan stepped away from the destruction he’d caused. “You’re one of us. I can’t leave you here to be his prisoner. Not after what he did. Come with me and be free of him.”

                Joonmyeon narrowed his gaze at the intruder. “You threatened to ransom us back to him. How can I trust anything you say now?”

                “Because that was before I knew who you were.”

                “You still don’t know who we are.”

                “I know enough,” Yifan said. “You’re prisoners. You said he brings you out to show you off. Does he make you use your powers to impress the people he brings to the castle? Does he make you do things in exchange for something you want? I may not know your names but I know who you are. You are from Exodus. You do not belong locked in a tower. Come with me and be free of him.”

                The speech was pretty. It was pretty and dangerous. “There is still a storm raging outside, and now thanks to you, inside.”

                “You have the power of water. I’m not worried about a storm that I can quickly fly over. Not with you there to aid me. Gather whatever you want to bring and let’s go.”

                “Stay over there and give us a moment to speak.”

                Yifan nodded as he turned slightly away from the two men. He would not leave them behind.

                Tao waited for the stranger to turn partially away before he tugged Joonmyeon’s shirt and leaned to whisper in his ear. “What are we going to do?”

                Joonmyeon pulled back to study Tao’s face. “We should go with him.”

                “What!”

                Joonmyeon smiled as he watched Tao flush. “This is our chance to get out of here, Tao. We can leave with him and escape when we have the chance. Getting away from him and whoever is with him will be far easier than escaping here without him. If we’re going to go then we have to try now.”

                Tao bit his lip as he studied Joonmyeon’s face. “What do we tell him?”

                “Nothing.”

                “What if he asks?”

                “Your powers are your own. Everyone from Exodus respects that. If he asks then you need merely shrug and he will let it go. Same with any others.”

                Tao wasn’t so sure it would be that easy, but he found himself nodding anyway. “What do we take?”

                “Our clothes and the food the maid brought us.”

                “And ZiZi?” Tao asked softly as he looked down at his kitten.

                Joonmyeon glanced at the cat before turning back to Yifan. “We’ll go with you on the condition that we’re not your prisoners. We’ll be free to leave if we want.”

                “Deal.”

                “And we’re bringing the cat.”

                Tao grinned.

                Yifan sighed. “Whatever. Pack what you’re bringing. We need to go before the storm shifts.”

                Joonmyeon didn’t bother to waste any more time as he gathered their small amount of food and clothing and shoved it in an old sack. “How are you planning to carry both of us?”

                “You’ll have to climb onto my back and hold on. I’ll hold him in my arms.”

                Joonmyeon looked from Yifan to Tao and back again. “Can you bear both of us?”

                “I can handle the weight if you can hold on. I’ve had to carry more than one person before.”

                Nodding, Joonmyeon stepped back to Tao’s side. “Since he’ll be holding you, you need to keep a good hold on ZiZi. We can’t risk dropping him.”

                Tao looked down at his cat before tightening his arms. “I’ll bundle him into my coat. He won’t be able to wiggle much.”

                Joonmyeon helped Tao slip on the jacket and arranged the cat to be inside the clasps. “Is he ready?”

                Tao looked up and Joonmyeon bit at his lip as he nodded. “Yeah, he’s ready.”

                Reaching out, Joonmyeon squeezed Tao’s shoulders. “We’re going to be fine. Are you ready to get out of this tower?”

                Tao smiled at that as he warily approached Yifan. “I’m ready.”

                Yifan nodded once before he turned to Joonmyeon. “You have to get on first. I need to get balanced before I pick him up and we go up through the roof.”

                Joonmyeon wrapped his arms around Yifan’s shoulders before locking his legs around his waist. “Good?”

                Yifan twisted a bit to test his mobility before nodding. “It’ll work. Come on, let’s go.”

                Tao moved a bit closer and squeaked again when Yifan’s large hands wrapped around his waist. “I’m Tao, by the way.”

                Grunting, Yifan didn’t bother to reply as he lifted the three of them through the air. He got his bearings before rocketing them up through the dark, stormy sky until they were passing through the clouds.

                Adjusting his grip on Tao, Yifan leaned forward to shoot off above the storm. He may not have gotten what he’d gone for, but he’d still managed to steal from the King.

                The fact that he’d be furious when he found out his prisoners were gone gave Yifan the strength to keep going even long after his arms grew tired.

A/N: Enjoy the rewrite!!!

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