Chapter V

Makeshift Assignment

Imagine Dragons - Lost Cause 

Misae

Her eyes widened and began to wander around the disastrous place to finally land on her house, still enduring the venomous fire. Without thinking, she rushed to it and flung the door open. A thick, dark cloud of smoke pounced on her and for a moment, Misae was completely blind. She put her forearm under her nostrils so she wouldn’t inhale the carbon dioxide's toxic vapours.

Thankfully, she spotted her mother in between the coffee table and the couch, lying on the floor, seemingly unconscious. Rushing towards her spot, ignoring the numerous burns and scratches she gained while doing so, Misae took a hold of her mother’s arm and wrapped it around her neck. She wanted to check if she was alive so badly but the most important right now was to take her out of this poisonous environment as soon as possible. The roof threatened to succumb to the flames at any time and she had no desire to be here when it would happen.

With much effort, she managed to drag the both of them out of the burning house until Zak came to her help, easily leading them to her earlier, secure spot. In front of her were now the six boys she had met a few hours ago, their faces coated with worry. It was darker than earlier but it wasn’t night time, yet. Not to mention that the fierce fire illuminated the village, its dancing lights hypnotizing but lethal.

“Mom, wake up” Misae crouched down next to her, tapping her mother’s cheek several times while trying to stop the blood loss from the wound decorating her chest. Her voice was calm despite the panic rising within her chest. Though, she quickly dropped the act when the black-haired woman gave absolutely no reaction. “Mom” she called out to her even louder. “Wake up, now” she urged her with an almost pleading tone. All of a sudden, she felt someone weakly reaching out for her wrist.

“My sweet girl” Inyô finally whispered, visibly struggling with her heavy and trembling breathing. She reached out with her free hand to her beloved daughter’s cheek.

“Zak, I'm glad you're safe.” she softly stated, closing her eyes in relief as the young male tightly held her other hand. If he was here, it meant that maybe, some others had been able to survive the invasion. It meant there was still hope. “Boys” she greeted the others with a weak smile and they all bowed in a respectful manner. She then proceeded to look at her daughter, a faint glimpse of playfulness shining in her eyes. “Which one is your boyfriend?” she inquired, obviously not loosing her sense of humour, despite the tragic circumstances.

“Mom, where are the others?” Misae plainly ignored the question which wasn’t even one. She knew her too well to fall into her trap. Her mother once again wanted to gain time. She wanted her daughter to forget about her current, miserable state.

Misae probably inherited her weakness from her mother. Despite the situation, Inyô always hated to appear weak. Or maybe this was part of the Alpha Syndrom.

“Where are Rin, Maïa, Hanae, Ruka…? Who did this?” Misae couldn’t stop the questions flowing from . While doing so, she noticed that her mother’s wound wasn’t pretty. Reaching out, she took off the brown pieces of cloth of her shoulders and tore it apart, putting pressure onto the injury which bled too much for her liking.

“I sent the younger off. I couldn’t risk their lives for a fight doomed to failure. That’s what they wanted. Our fall. They are seeking for you, Misae.” She muttered through several hisses of pain, fighting her shaky respiration.

“I know. But who are you talking about? Who wanted Tenohra’s fall?

“It’s the same one. The same pack… They…” Inyô paused for a few seconds, trying to catch her exhausted breath. She rummaged through her hazy mind to find the word which could make Misae understand instantly. Until one word came out of . “Mikan.”

One word. Just one was sufficient to gain such a reaction from Misae. She didn’t gasp, she didn’t scream. She literally stopped breathing, until her heart deafeningly banged in her chest to show its protest. The girl could almost hear it weep in agony at the mere mention of these two syllables. It wasn’t just any word. It was the one herself and her mother had promised not to say out loud ever again. Her eyes unconsciously hardened. Because it hurt too much. She wanted to answer, to say something at least, but her jaws remained tightly clasped, refusing to open, probably in fear of what might come out. She had never been able to handle her anger really well.

Noticing her daughter’s silence vow, Inyô smiled understandingly.

“Misae, pack or not, I want you to live. No matter what happens from now on, you must be careful and stay safe. I've been selfless for years and devoted my whole life to the protection of our brothers and sisters, so I don't think they would be angry with me for requesting such a thing. You're my daughter after all, I deserve to be selfish when it comes to you. I know you're stubborn, thick-headed and mature enough to chose the best for yourself. But please, just this once...” she offered Misae a sad smile. “Come here.” She beckoned her to bend forward with a swift movement of her fingers.

“We don’t have time for this. I have to bring you to the hospital.” Misae firmly answered, perfectly aware of what her mother was trying to do.

“Misae” she then ordered, her voice