The Clan Part 1: Lost (Monsta X / Reader)

Chapter 19

You kept your eyes to the ground, not wishing to witness the devastation surrounding you. Occasionally, you spared a glance at your friends whenever your heart rate increased as if to confirm they wouldn't disappear. To make sure they wouldn't leave you to suffer alone in this never ending nightmare. To make sure your only source of hope still walked alongside you no matter how horrible the circumstances were.

Ahead of you, Jooheon stumbled along the path on weak legs, having lost much of his energy from the attack. A man twice his size held him upright by keeping a strong grip on the boy's bicep, but he remained apathetic as he carelessly dragged Jooheon along the path set by his superiors. Wonho trekked behind you, his head hanging low and his feet dragging in the ash covering the ground in a thick layer. With a gun shoved against his back, Changkyun staggered his way at the front of the group, his eyes shifting everywhere as if calculating the perfect plan of escape. His constant awareness kept the soldiers on edge as the barrel never once left its position at the small of the boy's back.

"Hey," the man holding one of your arms in a secure grip leaned down to growl into your ear, his other hand clenching the back of your neck to keep you from struggling as your group stumbled through the maze of debris and dust. "Keep moving forward, and stop slowing down."

Your throat grew dry, tightening as it fought down the apology that desperately wanted to leave your mouth upon instinct. After all, it would probably fall on deaf ears, and you knew the soldier would take any excuse he could get to criticize you further.

At least he had removed the gun. When it had been against your head earlier, your mind had been too dazed for the fear to properly take hold of you. But memories flooded back quickly, and the weapon soon began to burn a hole through your skull. Your heart lurched every time your captor adjusted his grip, cautious of his every move. Your blood pulsed. Your eyes were wide. Sweat trickled down your forehead. Then the world around you blurred out of focus—as if your brain forced your body to act on autopilot, no longer aware of the events occurring around you. It wasn't until the pressure left your temple that everything shifted back and the adrenaline coursing through your veins eased into a subtle buzz.

"Don't get comfortable," he had sneered into your neck. "It's only because we're getting closer."

As if on cue, a distant shout stirred the air. Several heads whipped up at the sound. Everyone's attention shifted to the growing commotion, and you could sense a change in the atmosphere as you caught the soldiers exchanging looks of apprehension. You stiffened. Straining your ears, you could faintly hear the commotion from afar; the single shout had morphed into multiple strangled voices as they let slip noises like animals brawling in the night.

Upon silent agreement the group pushed you to move faster until you could barely stay balanced, forcing your captor to hold you upright as he hauled you along the makeshift path carved from years of prior use. The fighting grew louder, your heart pounded faster, and your friends grew restless the closer you were dragged to the source of the noise.

Soon, you could distinguish the specific sounds protruding from around a bend up ahead. Minhyuk's voice rang in your ears. Shownu's growls echoed in your brain. And Kihyun's whimpers tugged at your heart. The rest blurred together, unrecognizable. But you were confused, your eyebrows knit together as you tried to concentrate while being dragged harshly through the gravel. A horrible sensation washed over you as your group reached the final corner. Then a switch flipped in your head, and your gut started turning.

I can't hear Hyungwon.

Instantly, you were greeted with almost exactly the nightmare your brain had been cruel enough to conjure. Your eyes first landed on the form of Kihyun nursing his leg—the one that had been damaged before your group had even left—and then drifted to Shownu crouched in front of him, taking blow after blow from the men attempting to subdue him despite his efforts to protect his injured friend. Several yards away from them crouched Minhyuk, face red and caked with a mixture of dirt and blood, his hands held behind his head in submission as two guns aimed to keep him at bay. Hyungwon lay sprawled beside him on the ground, unconscious. Fear coursed through your body like lightning. They have Hyungwon... does this mean that they don't need us anymore?