Ocean's Descent ||| Woosan (Ateez)

45

San ground his teeth together in an attempt to distract himself and stay calm. He was oh so close to snapping...

The car ride back into the mountains was miserable. Absolutely miserable.

Mingi and Yunho had questions upon questions upon questions. About everything.

Why was that car different? What are those lights for? Why were people walking this late at night? Where did they all go? How was there room for everyone? Why, where, what, why, why, why.

"Sannie." Yeosang's gentle voice broke through his thoughts and they made eye contact in the rear view mirror. It was just barely a whisper, meant only for him. Yeosang could see he was struggling.

He gave a short, sharp sigh and nodded in thanks.

"We are almost there." His friend said a little louder. "We are entering the forest we stayed in now."

Mingi's eyes grew wide and he sat up a little straighter. "I can feel it. The magic is much stronger here."

"That's what Woo said." Jongho looked over his shoulder at the merman. "He didn't feel it right away, but there was something about the lake we stayed by and we," he paused and his eyes flicked to Yeosang, "met a unicorn."

Yunho gasped and held a hand over his mouth. "You did? We thought they were all gone."

"Well," San snorted, "We thought you didn't exist either, so there's probably a lot that's managed to stay hidden."

"Yes. You're right. Because we know how to protect what is most precious to us." Mingi's deep voice sent an instant chill down San's spin. He didn't miss the insult woven into the merman's words. It made him clench his hands, nails digging into his own skin.

Before either of them could say anything else, Yeosang slammed his foot on the brakes, making them all jolt forward at the sudden stop. "We're here. This is where they took him."

San shot his friend a glare in the mirror, which only earned him a cocky raise of the older's eyebrow. No words needed to be spoken for San to understand that Yeosang had done it to prevent an argument.

Yunho was the first one to get out of the car. He clasped both hands in front of his chest while he looked around the clearing.

There were no obvious signs from what had happened here a few days ago. Either new visitors or the elements had covered the giant truck tracks and footsteps left behind.

But San could see the change in Mingi the second he stood up. Even the air around them changed.

The wind picked up, bringing with it fallen leaves and blades of grass. They swirled around the clearing, picking up more as they went along.

Mingi held out an arm when the collection of foliage passed by. They brushed over his fingers and arm, gracefully touching his skin, before moving down to swirl around his legs, then drifting lazily deeper into the trees.

Slowly, he closed his eyes and clenched his fist while keeping his arm raised. Yunho stepped up behind him and placed both hands on his shoulders. "Anything?"

San jumped slightly when he felt fingers intertwine with his own. He glanced at Yeosang from the corner of his eye and saw the older leaning forward slightly.

They were all desperate for some kind of news...

Several agonizing, long minutes passed while they waited for Mingi to open his eyes. The air around him seemed to almost vibrate, as if his magic was radiating off him and scanning everything.