hydra | svt

CHAPTER EIGHT.

wonwoo

the atmosphere is solemn as we arrive at the mage's house once again. it may be the last time we'd ever make this journey and i can hear a few sniffles from chan, followed by a weak excuse about the frosty weather this morning. the usually clear sky is overcast and dreary today, raindrops threatening to fall any minute as we enter the familiar iron gates. the mage's daughter is not there to greet us this time but i spot a curtain shifting from one of the uppermost windows. deciding to take no notice of it, i quickly catch up to jihoon, who's lagging a little bit behind from the rest.

"this is real," he mumbles as i draw up next to him, my longer legs falling into step with his shorter ones. i let out a hum of agreement.

"but it doesn't make any sense. how can they even know this is all true? and why us?" he asks suspiciously. unfortunately, jihoon only trusts the mage to an extent, which is the same with everyone he meets. it's just that his trust with the mage became increasingly low after the announcement of the mission; i can tell he hardly trusts anyone at all nowadays.

"i wouldn't question it. let's just do it and see what happens along the way," i say. this comes as a surprise even for me: panicky over-thinker wonwoo has just said something cool and collected for once in his life. immediately, i avoid jihoon's glare and focus on climbing up the steps to the mage's front door. still, hardly a sentence's worth of words have been exchanged among us, our faces becoming more sombre with every minute that passes. seungkwan's eyes are glossy again as he fiddles with the sleeve of his jacket, arm linked with chan who's equally as upset. it's no secret that the two are very close so hardly anyone takes notice of this but i do and i feel instant guilt. as far as the rest of my friends are aware, they will know who each other are in this new, strange universe; the harsh reality is that they could probably pass each other on the way to school everyday and it wouldn't even register in their non-magic minds.

the mage is already waiting for us in the drawing room, his right leg crossed cleanly over his left as he welcomes us in. we all hover awkwardly around the second  unoccupied couch, half of us choosing to sit while the more anxious half choose to stand, shifting their weight from foot to foot uncomfortably. it's unsurprising that no one's in the mood to make light conversation so the mage get's straight to the point.

"please don't look so upset. this may not be your last day together as i'm sure you'll complete the mission in no time. i suspect that you have some questions you'd like me to answer, but please wait until after i have finished." he declares this as he looks straight at jihoon, who refuses to maintain eye contact, and a shiver runs up my spine.

"my daughter will be coming round with a hat. in the hat are around 20 different coloured tokens that represent 20 different places in korea; this will determine where i will be sending you. pick one out of the hat and keep a hold of it. in the room next door is my time machine, which also allows you to travel between parallel universes. at first glance it looks like an elevator but once you step inside there are no buttons, just a simple slot for your token. you can't miss it really. then you'll black out and wake up in your new life. understood?"

the mage always ends his instructions with 'understood?' which i think is complete ludicrous because he always asks of something incredibly complicated and difficult. before the mage could continue, jihoon's hand is in the air.

"why us?"

"why not?" the mage responds, after a long pause. jihoon, unsatisfied with the given answer, makes a move to protest but suddenly decides against it after a moment of thought.

"oh, and another note. one member between you all will keep their memories of this universe when they wake up. i have not chosen who it is yet and they will be chosen as soon as they step into the elevator."

hushed whispers are exchanged between my members as i pretend to look just as clueless and afraid as the next person. dread fills me immediately and i wish to get this over and done with as soon as possible.

"who would like to step in first?"

without hesitation, seungcheol steps forward stiffly, his face set in a slight frown. we recognise that he has a duty as our leader, however the rest of us are too stunned to say anything; i observe as chan reaches out gingerly and graze his fingers against the soft material of seungcheol's sweater.

"i'll miss you, hyung, we all will." 

choking back sobs the eldest, and by far the bravest, follows the mage into the room next door. two maids swiftly shut the doors behind them as we all crane our necks to get a closer look at this machine: the same machine that would seal our fates, i realised.

after exactly five minutes had passed, the mage reappears. this time, seungcheol is not by his side and jeonghan lets out a soft gasp, despite already knowing what would happen. the silence becomes painful once again.

"i'll go next," i say bluntly, my deep voice masking my true emotions. no one seems to stop me as i quickly stumble up to the mage, allowing myself one last glance at my friends. now their isn't a single dry eye there and i even see junhui wiping away the tears with the sleeve of his shirt.

"i trust that you know your duty wonwoo," the mage whispers to me and i nod in response. he motions me through the large oak doors, which i quickly march through, and immediately my eyes are drawn to the machine.

it is in the form of an elevator, as the mage explained, yet it looks so odd and out of place here. i stop myself from circling it to check that this is real, though i'm sure jihoon wouldn't have any second thoughts. with a wave of the mage's hand, the elevator's door open with a comical ping and i force myself to go inside. as promised, there's a single slot in the wall and i wait patiently for the doors to close before slotting in my baby pink token. i hear it roll away somewhere inside like an arcade machine and the universe-travelling device erupts into life.