The girl scurried along, and the rest followed at an equally hastened pace. Minho peered over his shoulder at Jisung who ran behind the rest of them, carrying Changbin securely over his shoulder. Memories flashed behind the human's eyes as he remembered that this had happened to him, once, too, but he still did not understand it.
From the panicked look in Jisung's eyes, even when he tried to keep his face schooled, was enough indication that this was not supposed to happen. Most of the other Riverock wolves were too busy staring at their frantic Alpha to notice him, which he was almost guiltily grateful for.
She opened a door and they all followed her down stone steps that seemed much too old for such a modern packhouse. They continued to descend further and further in the damp, dark staircase, and the hairs on the back of his neck picked up; something about this place didn't feel right. He shuddered.
As they finally emerged from the stairs and into a new room, a bigger room, he heard Jeongin gasp softly. He turned to face him, eyes wide, slightly confused as they stared at the carriage the werewolf council had told them about. It was a carriage, there was no doubt about it, but there were no horses.
No, wolves were strapped to the strange contraption. White wolves.
Jeongin's face had grown incredibly pale as they stared at the carriage, and even Jisung had stilled. One of the wolves – the one who'd left to get it ready for them stood, his sad eyes lingering on the forms of the white wolves.
"What is... what is this?" Jisung questioned, his voice as airy and shocked as they all felt. Leather straps of all kinds were wrapped around them to form a harness, holding their muzzles in place, straps going up along their heads... It was atrocious.
The wolf – Minho had never learnt his name, which was a shame – knelt to the ground, staring up at his new Alpha pleadingly. "Please, Alpha. Please, don't kill them." There was a blinding fear in his eyes, and Minho turned to look at Jisung questioningly.
He didn't know what was wrong with the white wolves; though, wasn't Jeongin a white wolf? Jisung seemed startled by the man's request. Minho's eyebrows drew together in concern as he gnawed on his bottom lip, heart erratic. He kept looking between the white wolves and Jisung; he wouldn't kill them. He knew he wouldn't... would he?
~#~#~#~#~#~
Jisung passed Changbin over to Jeongin before he took a handful of steps forward, kneeling down in front of the man so they could be at eye-level and resting his hands on his shoulders.
"I will not kill them; that is not what I meant. I have a hybrid in my party, too. I meant... what is this?" He gestured to the carriage attached to the wolves, eyes narrowed slightly in disgust.
Relief washed over the man's face as tears welled in his eyes; he bowed his head. "This is... it is the carriage, Alpha. They use their magic to transport those within it to places in mere moments." Hatred flared in his eyes. "Alpha Yejun used them for the smallest, most insignificant things. He was cruel to them." Venom dripped from his words before he bowed his head in apology for his outburst.
Jisung's lips pressed in a thin line. "I would not use them if the circumstances were not quite so dire. I will repay them all for their troubles. After this mission, they will be... free from whatever binds them." The man's eyes snapped up to meet his; he could only assume that they'd been kept against their will, to be tied up like that.
"You... do you swear it, Alpha?" There was hope in the man's eyes.
"I swear it. This..." He could not withhold his grimace. "This is wrong; wolves, regardless of colour or strength should not be forced to be chained up like slaves." He could only imagine how awful it had been; wolves were born to be wild and free, not constrained in an old stone basement.
A grin burst out of the boy's face as he turned towards the wolves. Jisung smiled softly. "Why is it that they listen only to you?" he questioned – out of pure curiosity, really –, recalling the Elders' earlier words.
"Well," the boy smiled sheepishly, though his joy was not compromised. "My father is the Alpha of this small pack of hybrids, and... I was not born with any magical capabilities, but he still knows I would do nothing out of his best interest." He nodded, smiling sadly. Would he have done the same to his father if it had meant saving him? Probably.
He would have done just about anything.
He sucked in a deep breath and nodded, shaking away the thoughts, the pain. It could not creep up on him if he did not let it.
Minho eyed him worriedly, but he only shot him a reassuring glance. "Alright. We can't waste anymore time. Do you think you'll be able to wait and keep the carriage hidden while we rescue our friend, so we can make a quick escape?" The boy nodded, eyes resolute.
Jisung nodded at him, and the five of them climbed into the carriage, ready to takeoff. This would be... interesting, to say the least. Jeongin still looked as though he would be ill, but not quite so much as he previously had. Hang in there; we're coming, Felix.
~#~#~#~#~#~
Hyunsik's knees were curled up to his chest, his face buried in them. His body had long since stopped shaking, but there was no ignoring the whimpers and pained sounds that came out of the wolf. As his eyes landed on the dying wolf, a lump formed in his throat; that had been him, once.
Him, and many others, captured and bitten. Turned. More than half of them had not survived the transition; the vast majority of those who had went crazy, or lost all sense of who they were. Most then died. He was the one in a million, one of the only wolves who'd survived the transition, and the after effects.
His family had kept him strong, he knew.
His brother, however... He sucked in a tight breath, squeezing his eyes shut. His brother had been lucky enough to survive the transition. It was the after-effect that killed him. He rocked back and forth, shaking his head. Would he really be able to see another wolf be tortured in such a way?
The transition would be slow, and painful as his body's regeneration system tried to keep the contamination from turning his blood black, desperately trying to heal the wounds that were much too severe to actually heal properly without him dying first. A human would have been dead already – but not a wolf.
Felix would lay there in a pile of his own suffering for at least another day, and then he would perish. If he was lucky – or, rather, unlucky – he'd come back, but this time with red eyes. His fists clenched at his sides; he could not be selfish.
He could not subject an innocent human to become this for the rest of their eternity; this was not a blessing. Being a vampire was a curse. Watching your loved ones grow old and die, every single time you befriend any mortal – it was why vampires mostly stuck together, really – was the worst kind of pain Hyunsik had ever felt.
If he did not have his descendants to care for and protect from all who wished to harm them because of his own stupidity, he would have found a way to end it all. As he stared at Felix, his eyes watered again. He had a Mate; they were both so young, still.
Just as he and his beautiful Mate had been. He had watched her go first – and then his daughter. His sweet, precious Misun. He was forced to watch from the shadows as her life flashed by; her birthdays, her Mating ceremony, her Burial... He had not been able to partake in any of it; for all she knew, he was dead.
It was better for her that way, but it had never eased the pain.
When she, too, had died, he'd wept as he had never wept before; gone was the last piece of his beating heart, leaving nothing but the cold in its wake. Would Felix feel like that, too, he wondered? If he woke up again, yes. It was almost certain.
There was no escaping death, even when it could hardly take you.
He could not be selfish; Jisung could not die. If he were to go after him... one of them would die – but it would most likely be the wolf. Hyunsik had centuries of battle experience tucked under his belt, and he had fought Jinsun before – though, of course, it had not been a death match.
I will not kill him. Even if it means reliving this nightmare.
He closed his eyes before they snapped open again. "Moon Goddess, for all that you have forsaken me, please... please let me help him hold on, just a little longer." He turned out the small, cubic window atop his cell, staring straight at the moon that shone through. "Please..."
He wiped his eyes, sniffing back the tears that threatened to fall; he did not have the time to cry. He stood on shaky legs, his head spinning – he truly had not eaten much since he'd arrived, and slowly it took its toll, but he was not weakened, yet.
He approached the bars that separated them, and easily bent the silver metal. He cast a quick look up the stairs, but he heard no movement. He stepped through the hole he'd made, and pulled up his sleeve. He closed his eyes. "Please... let whatever wolf blood I have left fight for him."
His fangs sank into his wrist, drawing a cut along it. He quickly pressed it to Felix's mouth; he was too weak to resist. Please... let him last until they arrive.
A/N: Last chapter before school starts, oof. I still can't believe I only started this fic in July; it's been like less than two months, and compared to how long Alone took me (we've reached Alone's length, btw, guys *insert shocked emoji because I'm too lazy to google it*), damn-
Q: If Mars was livable would you accept a one-way ticket there?
A: That honestly depends. Like... are my loved ones going? Because you can bet your ass that I ain't leaving Earth without my friends and family, or my laptop, tbh.
Lots of love,
~Junnie