CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

A Hunter's Pain

A PAIR OF HANDS gently shook Haeyoon’s shoulders and she woke up at the sight of her brother’s worried face. The sunlight entering through the glass window was casting a shadow over Yoongi’s face and Haeyoon wasn’t sure if she’s dreaming or not.

“Yoongi?” she breathed, quite flustered at his healthy appearance but glad nonetheless. “H-how…are you really fine now?” she sit up on the bed as her eyes scanned Yoongi’s body for any sign of his injuries but there was none.

“Yes, Lay healed me,” he said, a small grateful smile curving on his lips. “Not even a scar was left.”

“That’s great,” Haeyoon whispered tearfully before hugging her brother tightly. “I was so scared…I didn’t know what to do,” she sobbed silently. “I thought I was gonna lose you, too.”

Yoongi her hair comfortingly. “I’m not going to leave you, I promise.” He pulled back and gently took her tear-stained face into his hands as he looked right into her large glassy eyes. “Haeyoon, look, I know you’re scared but I need you to gather yourself up.” His thumb wiped some of her relentless tears away. “The Guardians need you, our friends need you, Jungkook needs you. We need you.” He paused. “Lucere needs you, Princess.”

Her beautiful face turned into one of pure anguish and fear. “But I…I can’t do it, Yoongi.” She shook her head in regret. “I’m not strong enough.”

“Yes, you can,” Yoongi told her in an earnest and determined voice. “I believe in you; we believe in you.” He caressed her cheeks. “You have to believe in yourself, too.”

Right.

Yoongi was right. She has to do this; no one else but her should do this. After all, she was born to end Magos for good along with his dark force.

Crying would do her no good, she realized. Being scared won’t save her brother and her friends. Hiding and running away won’t protect her and her loved ones from the evil force that wanted them dead.

She needs to fight and she will fight.  

She gave Yoongi a firm nod and she wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand when he released her face. The Gieldan saw the new-found determination in her eyes and his heart swell with pride and love.

“That’s my girl.”

EVERY PAIR OF EYES in Myungsoo’s living room were trained on the black sleek box that rested on Haeyoon’s hands. The Guardians, along with the Hunters are there, preparing and planning for the upcoming battle.

“This is the last thing dad gave me before he appeared and disappeared before that day,” Haeyoon said. There were no other emotions on her face except for pure determination, as if she’s ready to take on anyone and anything. “He told me to show it to you, Myungsoo. I believe that whatever is in this box will help us a lot.”

The twelve Guardians could feel the energy of her spirit coming off of her in waves along with her fiery resolve to save her brother and their friends.

“I think I know what’s inside that box,” Myungsoo said. “Open it,” he urged.

Taking a glance at Yoongi, who smiled encouragingly at her in return, the Princess took a deep breath before lifting the lid.

She was awed when the box revealed a magnificent dagger with five inches titanium blade and a hilt adorned with magical gems.

“Ha! I know that!” Tao exclaimed, wide eyed.

“Go on, Your Highness, take it,” Myungsoo told Haeyoon with a smile.

Haeyoon took the dagger from its velvet cushion and a few seconds after her hand made contact with the handle, the blade glow with blinding white light and extended into a full-length majestic sword. It was a magical sword that can impale anything and can only be used by the King’s descendants.

“Whoa!” Haeyoon’s eyes widened at the dagger that suddenly turned into a sword. A sudden flow of energy spread through her like never before, summoning goose-bumps on its wake. It’s like the sword is calling at her spirit, making it buzz and jump under her skin, filling every corner of her body. Her lips were parted as she took on the overwhelming feeling of her powers.

On the other hand, her twelve Guardians felt their full strength and powers returning. Like a void in their being was filled and the special bond they had with their Princess became stronger than ever before. They all know it has something to do with her turning the ripe age of eighteen and being reunited with the sword of her father, King Zardus.

Also, now that the seal is completely removed from her, she could finally use her spirit to its full potential.

“Is that what I think it is?” Jackson asked know one in particular, as he, too, stared in astonishment at the weapon in Haeyoon’s hands.

“The Sword of Light,” Mark uttered beside Jackson. He can’t believe that the legendary weapon was right before his eyes. 

The weapon that is said to be the ultimate weapon of Lucerians against the dark force.

“The sword of what?” Yoongi asked, bewildered yet amazed at the weapon being held by his sister. Even from where he sat, he could feel the oozing power from the sword, from Haeyoon.

“The Sword of Light,” it was Suho who answered him. “It is the sword that can only be used by a Royal Blood, by the Ancient King’s descendant, by a true-blooded Saperian,” he explained. “It is crafted with the finest materials that can be found in our world. It is said to be a gift from the twelve most powerful spirits from Lucere.”

“If it’s the most powerful weapon there is…why did the King still…die?” Bambam voiced out a question and though it is asked out of complete curiosity, he still earned himself dark stares from some of the Guardians. 

“Have you ever heard of the Thirteenth Spirit?” Kris turned to the young Hunter.

“What are you talking about, Kris?” Haeyoon asked, returning the sword on its cradle as it became a dagger again. She sat on the empty spot beside Mark on the couch and she didn’t notice the sudden possessive looks the Guardians sent their way.

Sure, the Guardians had accepted the helped that the Hunters offered to protect Haeyoon but they are still not forgetting the fact that the Hunters fled Lucere in the midst of the war. The label ‘betrayer’ is still marked on the small group and that’s something the Guardians are still very upset about. And the fact that their Princess is close friends to the Hunters stirred protectiveness and a bit of jealousy from the Guardians.

Kris looked her in the eye and he instantly softened. “It was darkest and most evil spirit of all spirits, a spirit that absorbs every negative emotion in Lucere. But since a spirit can’t be killed or else it will destroy the balance of our world, the other twelve most powerful spirits can only seal it away. It happened a long, long time ago, even before the grandparents of your parents are born, even before we were born. And that fact has been hidden from Lucerians for generations.”

“Your family was chosen by the spirits to be the ruler of Lucere and it had been that way until a certain palace scholar became too greedy for his own good,” Myungsoo continued. “Because of his intelligence, he discovered the truth about the thirteenth Spirit and he used it to become stronger to defeat the king and take over Lucere.”

“And that ‘he’ is…Magos, right?” JB spoke.

“Yes,” Myungsoo answered. “The Thirteenth Spirit is almost as strong as the Twelve Spirits together and the chance of winning the war against Magos is fifty-fifty chance…and we lost it…the same time we lost our king.”

“These Twelve Spirits you’re talking about,” Yoongi said. “Are the Guardians, am I right?”

“Not quite,” Luhan answered. “We’re not exactly the Twelve Spirits but they are dwelling in us, blessed with their powers, for us to be able to fulfill our roles as the Royal Family’s Guardians.”

“Magos is a really strong opponent, isn’t he?” Haeyoon looked at each of the Guardians as she felt that inevitable fear again. But she remained firm and strong. 

She won’t back out, not now, not ever.

“Yes, but he was sealed by King Zardus right before he died along with his powers,” Kyungsoo said. “And with the Sword of Light, you can end him for good.”

“And once he’s gone, the Lucerians who became blinded with Magos’ black magic will be free,” Lay added.

“Will be free?” Jinyoung was confused. “What do you mean?”

“We believe that most of the Lucerians who turned their backs against the kingdom to join Magos’ army are mostly brainwashed by him,” Lay explained. “We believe that he used black magic over them, so that they’ll follow him.”

Haeyoon took a deep breath before saying, “So, what’s the plan now? We need to save Jungkook and our friends.”

“We’re going back to Lucere,” Myungsoo stated. “But we have to prepare ourselves first for the fight.”

THROUGHOUT THAT MORNING, everyone was busy. Some of the Guardians were busy teaching Haeyoon what she still needed to learn while some of them are busy sparring among themselves or with Yoongi. The Hunters are also the same. It’s a good thing Myungsoo has a really large backyard that extends to the woods and away from the prying eyes of humans. 

They’ve got only one day to prepare themselves because they needed to save the Prince and the boys as soon as possible. They had decided to cross the portal first thing tomorrow morning.

However, one Guardian seemed occupied with too much thoughts and Myungsoo noticed it.

“Hey, Sehun, what’s wrong with you?” he asked as he approached the Guardian sitting on the porch and staring blankly at the others. He had to repeat himself about three times just to snap the male out of his reverie.

“Huh?” Sehun blinked at him. “What?”

“You’re totally spacing out,” Myungsoo shook his head at Sehun.

“I’m thinking,” Sehun replied.

Myungsoo chuckled, “You are thinking? Since when did you learn how to think?” he teased.

“Shut up, I’m trying to be serious here.” Sehun his lips as he turned his head back at the field, his face looking very troubled. “That sorcerer said something about the Prince and it’s freaking bothering me.”

“The ones you met at the Princess’ school?”

Sehun nodded. “Don’t you find it weird?” he started. “They could’ve killed the Prince and Princess right then and there but they didn’t.”

There was a pregnant silence between them and the gears in Myungsoo’s brain started churning. Sehun’s right. It’s weird that they didn’t grab the chance to kill the siblings on the spot. Isn’t that their mission all along?

“If that was what they really wanted like we thought, they could’ve done it easily during those times that they’re vulnerable,” he continued. “But why did they have to bring the Prince and those humans with them to Lucere?”

The sudden realization dawned upon Myungsoo and he said, “Because they really wanted us to follow them to Lucere.”

“You’re right but I have a strong feeling that there’s more to it than that,” Sehun said, his expression hardening. “That sorcerer said that Jungkook is not our prince to save.”

“Why would he say that?” Myungsoo shot him a bewildered look.

“I don’t know,” Sehun shook his head. “But…I saw it…they don’t have the intention to kill the Prince and it could only mean one thing…”

“They need something from him,” Myungsoo finished Sehun’s thought.

“Something is telling me that the seal on the Prince is the only thing stopping them for whatever it is that they wanted to do,” Sehun said, his eyes now trained towards Haeyoon who was talking with JB and the other Hunters a few feet away from them. “There’s a way to remove it without harming any of them, right?”

“Yes,” Myungsoo answered, his face as grim as Sehun. “In a normal Marked Seal, it can be removed by killing the host. However, in the Prince and Princess’ case, since they’re blood-related, the Marked Seal connected them in a way that killing one of them will kill the other, too. So, the only way to break the seal is if the both of them agree do it.”

“How?”

“Through a blood union. Like a blood-pact,” Myungsoo said before silence ensued between them. 

Out of all the questions Sehun had in his mind, there’s this one question that kept on popping in his mind.

“I really wanted know the reason why King Zardus made you seal his own son.”

BY THE TIME LAY finished teaching Haeyoon the things she needed to learn about her healing powers, it was already late in the afternoon.

“I’m hungry,” Tao started complaining with a pout; after all he did so many physical training for the day.

Aside from him, everyone started to feel the exhaustion of the day catching up on them. The need for rest made its presence known. They had a big day tomorrow.

Haeyoon swept her eyes around Myungsoo’s backyard and saw how tired everyone was. Her heart reached out for the Guardians and Hunters because they were all doing this for her, for the Prince and their friends.

With a nod to herself, she walked back inside the house and scouted the kitchen for something to cook. She frowned when the nearly empty fridge and cupboards greeted her.

“Those blackholes cleared everything edible in my house, Princess,” Myungsoo spoke from behind her with a small smile. “Are you planning to cook dinner for everyone?”

“Yeah, but I think I should do a quick shopping first,” she said thoughtfully.

“You shouldn’t bother,” Myungsoo said, not wanting to burden the girl. “We can always order take out everyone.”

Haeyoon shook her head. “This is the least I can do for everyone,” she said with a tilt of sadness and guilt in her voice that she tried to mask with a bright smile.

But Myungsoo’s keen observation caught it and he reached out a hand to pat her on the head. “Don’t,” he said. “Don’t think as if you caused these things to happen.”

Surprise was evident in the girl’s eyes as she wondered how Myungsoo managed to see through her.

“We will save the Prince and your friends,” he continued as his hand went to cup her cheek, his lips curving into a warm and encouraging smile. “We will make everything right and take Lucere back, okay?”

“Okay,” she nodded and returned his smile.

“What are you doing hitting on the Princess, Myungsoo?” Sehun questioned with a deep frown on his handsome face as he stood by the backdoor.

The older male rolled his eyes, pulling his hand away, while Haeyoon giggled.

“Get your head together, kid,” Myungsoo said as he walked towards Sehun. “If anyone’s going to get hit in here, it’s you.” And with that, Myungsoo bonked the Guardian in the head with his fist.

“Hey!” Sehun complained as he nursed the top of his head. “What was that for?”

Myungsoo ignored him but before he completely went out the backdoor, he said to Haeyoon, “At least get someone to accompany you, Princess.”

“Accompany you?” Sehun turned to Haeyoon as Myungsoo was gone. “Are you going somewhere?”

“I’m actually going to by some ingredients for dinner,” she said.

The Guardian’s eyes twinkled at the thought of her homemade food and he quickly offered himself to go with her. Getting the chance to spend time with her is a bonus because he really liked being near the Princess.  

“Oh, thanks,” Haeyoon beamed at him. She grabbed her purse on the countertop. “Let’s go?”

“Mind if we tag along, too?” Jinyoung said, making the pair turn towards the backdoor. Behind him stood Mark with his usual poker face that could rival Sehun’s.

Displeasure was obvious in the way the Guardian’s face crumpled but he didn’t dare speak ahead of the Princess.

Haeyoon brightened at Jinyoung’s smiling face and adorable crinkling eyes. “Sure, I guess the more the merrier.”

Sehun groaned inaudibly but didn’t voice out his protest. “Great, let’s go now?” he feigned enthusiasm before he whispered to himself, “Before anyone else decide to come, too.”

THE WALK TO THE NEAREST grocery store was tensed for the three males but Haeyoon didn’t seem to notice it.

“What do you think everyone would want for dinner?” she mused as she took on the beautiful setting sky.

“Those guys eat almost anything,” Sehun said with a shrug. “It’s all up to you.”

“Well, as long as you cooked it, it’s fine,” Jinyoung smiled at her. “It’s been a while since we last ate something cooked by you and I really missed it.”

Sehun narrowed his eyes at Jinyoung who seemed unfazed by his icy stares. In fact, he’s quite enjoying riling the Guardian up.

Mark, on the side, scoffed quietly. He knew what Jinyoung was doing and he didn’t want to get involve.

“You cooked for them?” Sehun can’t help but ask.

“Yeah,” Haeyoon bobbed her head. “Whenever we’re having a picnic.”

Jinyoung sniggered to himself when Sehun’s left eye twitched. He can tell that the Guardian was jealous of them.

“Okay, we’re here,” Haeyoon pointed out and they entered the store.

The three males picked their own baskets as Haeyoon was busy scrolling through her phone. She was surfing the internet for something good to cook. Once she saw the perfect dish, she looked up and saw them staring at her expectantly.

“Okay, you all look ready to shop,” she said with an awkward smile. “I think we should split up into pairs so we can finish faster.”

“I’m with the Princess!” Sehun blurt.

“No, I’m with her,” Jinyoung protested.

“Dream on,” Sehun snorted. “I’m with her.”

“Yeah?” Jinyoung smirked. “Why don’t we let her choose?”

Haeyoon sighed and wondered why the Guadians aren’t on good terms with Jinyoung and the others. She noticed it before, back at Myungsoo’s house, but didn’t dare pry. However, she’s getting curious and not to mention tired of their subtle jabs at each other.

“How about this?” Haeyoon got their attention. “Let’s do rock, papers and scissors to be fair.”

A minute later, a scowling Sehun and pouting Jinyoung reluctantly went together on the meat section of the shop while Mark and Haeyoon went on the vegetable section.

“I just hope they won’t kill each other with pork,” Haeyoon said as they scan the rows of vegetables.

“That would be a sight to see,” Mark said, speaking for the first time since they went out.

“Oh, you can actually speak!” Haeyoon said with mock surprise, a playful glint on her eyes.

“Ha-ha,” Mark laughed sarcastically, “Very funny, Haeyoon.”

Haeyoon smiled. She’s used to Mark being quite. He’s not the talkative type after all. But whenever they were alone, Mark would talk and that’s how she discovered that he had this twisted humor in him.

“But real-talk,” Haeyoon suddenly said as she stopped in front of a carrot rack. “Why…I mean, what happened between you and the Guardians back in Lucere?”

There was silence and when she looked up at Mark, he had this shadow on his handsome face that made Haeyoon hesitate.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want,” she quickly said with a reassuring smile.

Mark looked her straight in the eyes and he instantly softened. “You know, we are called Hunters for a reason,” he started as he picked up a carrot and examined it.

Haeyoon stayed silent, listening, as she watched him pick another carrot.

“Our kinds are special because we are the only ones who know how and have the powers and skills to kill a Gaderen.”

“What’s a…Gaderen?” she asked with knitted eyebrows.

“The most feared creature in Lucere,” he said, his voice dropping an octave lower. The mere thought of it made him remember flashes of their horrifying past when they lost almost everything and everyone they loved. “A hideous terrifying monster that could only be awaken with a very powerful spirit like the Thirteenth Spirit.” He carefully placed a carrot inside the basket to get another one. “It is an enormous and vicious beast that only feeds on pure souls.” Then he let out a humorless laugh. “I can’t even begin to describe it to you.”

“The Thirteenth Spirit…” Haeyoon tailed off as she thought back to what Kris told them that morning. “Isn’t it what Magos summoned to help him reign over Lucere?”

“Yes,” he said. “And summoning it means that he could also wake the Gaderen and command it at his every whim.” Mark’s jaw tightened as his expression turned bleaker, his fist clenched tightly on the orange vegetable.

“Mark…” she said softly as she touched his hand and carefully unclenched his fingers around the poor vegetable. She picked another one and placed it on the basket instead. 

“Long, long before the Thirteenth Spirit was sealed away, Gaderens suddenly appeared and started threatening the whole Lucere,” he continues as they proceeded to another rack of vegetables. “Many sorcerers died as it reaps every soul in sight. Our elders said that it was the darkest age of our world.”

The pain and anger was so palpable and Haeyoon can feel it coming off from Mark.

“That’s when the first generation of Hunters was born,” he told her. “It was like some twisted way of nature to balance everything.”

“Where there’s bad, there’s always good,” Haeyoon said as she put two potatoes on their basket.

Mark nodded at what she said. “For generations, the Hunters trained themselves and created special weapons, the only weapons that could kill those monsters. For generations, they destroyed every Gaderens until the Thirteenth Spirit was finally sealed away by other spirits.” Mark heaved a deep sigh. “But even after all of that, Hunters were still treated lowly, like were some kind of outcast rogues living in the mountains. We were only called whenever there’s a mission that requires our skills then those sorcerers will pay us like some kind of filthy hired killers.”

Haeyoon’s heart twitched painfully in her chest and it reached out to Mark. She had no idea what kind of lives her friends had back in Lucere. She had no idea that they were treated in such an unjust way.

“Being Hunters doesn’t always mean success,” Mark said and that’s when his eyes turned sad and sorrowful. “We had lost so many people until it went down to our generation, the last of Hunters.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, as she tried to search his eyes but he wouldn’t look at her, his eyes were casted down on the white tiles of the shop.

“When Magos started the war, we are the ones leading our pack,” he explained. “We are called down by the palace officials, by those ing Oraculum, to destroy those killing-machines that Magos summoned with his black magic. Aside from his army of black sorcerers that we called Tainted Ones, he used the Gaderens as an ultimate weapon to make the kingdom surrender to him but with the Hunters there, it’s not going according to his plans.” Mark suddenly looked up and Haeyoon saw the raw pain reflected in those orbs of his. “We fought hard and killed enough Gaderens but many of us got hurt…many of us died. We asked for help, for back-up, medicine, supplies or anything but nothing came,” his eyes became glassy and she can feel his heart breaking all over again at the memories. “We fight for our lives as we watched our families die one by one…and that’s when we decided that we had enough.”

“Mark…” she walked towards him and held one of his hands, trying to offer some comfort to him and he squeezed back.

“Tell me, was our decision wrong?” he asked her with a tone of desperation. “Was our decision to leave Lucere in the middle of the chaos still considered wrong? There were just seven of us left that time and we’re all feeling suddenly lost and scared. We were surrounded by death, death of our loved ones, what did they expect us to do? We’re not some kind of emotionless beings…we’re not invincible, we have our limitations too...” his voice cracked and Haeyoon didn’t hesitate to pull him into a hug.

It’s the first time Haeyoon saw Mark showed too many emotions. He bared his emotions to her, his thoughts, his past and his pains that he shared with the six other Hunters who were more than a brother to him.

“I’m so sorry,” was all she could say because she can’t even imagine how much hardship they had been through.

Mark didn’t say anything more but the way he clung tightly to her told her everything she needed to know.

Author’s Note:

Boring chap? I’m sorry, but we needed to get through this to move on to the more action-filled parts of the story.

Did I actually spend, like, half of the chapter with Mark and Haeyoon talking in a grocery shop over carrots and potatoes? LOL. But at least now we know who these Hunters are and what are they’re issue with the Guardians. Could you blame them of what they did?

Anyway, it’s been a long time since I last updated because, honestly, I’m losing the spark with this story. I don’t know why!? Gah! This chapter took me more than a week to finish.

Maybe you could give me some boost? I don’t know, it’s up to you my dear readers. ^_^ I won’t ask for a comment and upvote if it’s too much of a bother but if you would be an angel and drop your thoughts about this story along with an upvote, I would really, really, really appreciate it. It would let me know that you’re still interested. Thanks in advance!

GOT7’S IF YOU DO IS ASDFGHJKL! <3 *le feels*