The boys stared at the sights before them, their chests filled with a mix of emotions ranging from absolute awe to uttermost horror.

“What the hell…?” Jongin murmured under his breath as his eyes scanned the scarred ground in front of him.

They had been journeying through the forest in hopes of finding a safe place to rest the night when they had stumbled upon scorched land that must have stretched to at least a mile in length. There was no sign of greenery on the charred ground, and it seemed like the patch of forest grounds had been burned off the face of the earth.

“So this is how strong an Ultimate is?” Chanyeol nodded his head as he folded his arms, thoroughly impressed with the sights of utter destruction.

“I doubt that this is even half of her power,” Kyungsoo scoffed as he scratched the back of his head. He knelt down and scooped a handful of the dead earth in his hand; the blackend dirt easily fell through the gaps of his fingers, “Imagine what this must have looked like when it happened.”

Sehun shuddered at the thought and stepped closer to Jongin, “Scary.”

"Well, do you guys think we should choose this place to settle for the night?" Chanyeol asked with a cocked head.

"Hell no, this place is probably cursed or something," Jongin felt shivers run down his spine at the thought. He wasn't about to become possessed with the haunted spirits of all the things the Ultimate must have murdered. 

"I have to agree with Jongin on this one," Kyungsoo nodded his head as he brushed the dirt on his hands off against his jeans. "There isn't a sign of life in sight."

As if on cue, a loud growl sounded from behind, forcing them all to freeze in their spots. The boys froze in their spots, exchanging glances with each other from the corners of their eyes. Slowly and cautiously, they all turned around to face the new threat, praying to the gods that whatever stood behind them wasn't as bad as they assumed it to be.

Apparently the gods weren't in the mood for granting favors.

“What the bloody hell…” Jongin gaped with an open jaw as he stared up at the creatures that towered well over his own head.

Standing before them were five oversized crows stretching to at least ten feet in height.  Their hook like beaks appeared threateningly sharp, snapping provocatively at the boys before them. Their beady eyes followed their every movement, careful to not let their prey escape.

“Those are some really big birds,” Chanyeol gulped as he automatically curled his hands around the knives that were tucked into their sheaths.

“Run or fight?” Kyungsoo asked under his breath, his eyes darting to its corners to gauge the response of the other members.

Baekhyun’s fingers twitched as they tapped against the grip of his sword. He eyed the beasts carefully, making sure to keep them all within his range of sight. The split second he caught one of them moving forward, he whipped out his sword in lightening speed, “How about a little bit of both?”

***

“How could we have gotten separated that easily?” Sehun grumbled under his breath as he wandered through the thick forest hoping to spot a familiar face – or at least, not a dangerous one. “Hyungs? Hyungs do any of you guys hear me?”

Sehun paused and tapped his chin as an afterthought. Maybe it would be best not to make too much noise, or else he would attract the attention of those he definitely didn’t want appearing before him.

He let out a loud huff of air and sat down on a tree trunk to think of what he should do. He wasn’t one of the strongest members of the group, and certainly not one of the smartest. To be quite honest, he really was probably the weakest member of the whole bunch – he’d reserve the position of being the dumbest for Chanyeol. Frowning at the thought, Sehun tried to place himself in the shoes of Baekhyun or Suho, and thought hard about what they would do if they were in his current situation.

 Before he could progress his thoughts any farther, a loud screech tore through the air. Sehun jumped to his feet with alarm, his dual knives clenched tightly in his fists as a ring of crow like beasts began to circle around him. He took a deep breath and eyed their razor sharp claws as he stepped back cautiously.

His heart pounded loudly in his ears and his eyes darted back and forth to see which of the beasts would make the first move. Without a moment's notice, the creature on his right leapt forward, and Sehun managed to avoid the hit just by a hair. He one of his knives forward, and although he managed to break through its skin, the beast seemed relatively unfazed by Sehun’s attack.

A painful shock jolted through his body, and he crumpled down to one knee, clenching the fresh injury that was now pressed against his torso.

"Hyungs..." Sehun murmured as he trained his eyes on his blood that was dripping off one of the monster's claws. "I could really use your help now."

He stared down at his knives that seemed to pose completely useless to these beasts. They were all he had, however, so he tightened his grip and lunged forward to attack before they could make the first move. 

“Don’t be stupid,” Mira scoffed as she suddenly appeared next to Sehun, causing him to come stumbling to a halt. “You could never defeat these monsters with those weak little knives.”

“M-Mira!” Sehun exclaimed in surprise. He flinched when his bottom hit the ground roughly, and he stared up at Mira in awe as she stood protectively before him.

“You should know when you are defeated,” Mira stated in a voice both loud and clear. Sehun initially thought she was speaking to him, but his jaw dropped in disbelief when the monsters in front of them got down to their knees and bowed. “Leave, and spread word not to harm any of the other humans on this island,” Mira commanded in a stern voice.

The creatures nodded their heads and quickly turned around, happy to have gotten away from Mira without injuries. Mira had lived on the island for 8 years, and even the monsters weren’t stupid enough to get on her bad side. They knew all too well what would happen if she were to lose control of her magic, for it had happened on various occasions before.

Mira turned to Sehun with a dark gaze, and he took a deep gulp of air at the hateful glare. 

She opened to yell at him, but closed it once she noticed the bloody wound that stretcued across Sehun’s to