【o26 : the two-faced janus】
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"I hope you do things according to my plan."
A familiar voice whispered beside him as golden-eyed Janus felt searing pain on his left arm, and he winced as the took a look on his wound. It was bleeding.
He managed to get a quick glimpse of a small blade being quickly hidden into a black chained coat before his eyesight blurred. And before he could speak, the lieutenant stepped in.
"Wait, nobody move." he heard him say.
"What did you do?"
"I'm sorry! It was an accident-"
The conversations later turned inaudible and incoherent to Janus. Voices seemed to mix with each other, and he could barely distinguish which belonged to whom. His head spinned, as if the world had suddenly turned into a wildly spinning globe. He tried to compose himself as he held his bleeding arm but he seemed to have a splitting headache.
The other guard named Minwoo soon arrived with a first aid kit after a few minutes and quickly treated his wound. He made Janus sit on a stool as he tried to bandage his bleeding arm.
But the pain on his wound wound had gotten worse, and it was at this moment that Janus blanked out.
Not pass out or faint-because Janus was still clearly awake-but he felt the world in front of him fade.
It somehow changed into a different scene. Suddenly he found himself facing a toddler Domi. He was still inside his cell on his father's dungeon underground, but domi was outside the metal bars and was talking to him intently.
He couldn't make out the words she spoke, but a sentence stuck in his mind.
"I'll definitely get you out of this hell hole someday."
Then the scene shifted. He was still in his cell, and a teen Domi was talking to him from outside his cell. As usual, he could barely make out the words she spouted. He stared at her as she ran her mouth in silence, as if she was telling an interesting story.
Soon Domi's serious expression faded as she gave a soft smile to Janus. Then as if someone had turned up the volume, he heard the words she said next:
"You will soon get your freedom, brother."
Then the scene shifted once again, but he was still in his cell again. The place was dark and desolated. He could hear thunder rumbling from the surface above. Droplets of water trickled down from the moldy roof to his floor. A storm must be happening from above.
He heard distant steps approaching, followed by the clinking of keys.
An adult Domi appeared from the hallway, clothed in her usual combat uniform and cloak. She was in a hurry, beads of sweat trickling down her face. She was gasping as she hurriedly opened his cell.
"You're my brother, right?" She asked.
"Uh... yes, why-"
Soon after it was unlocked, Domi reached for him and pulled him out. She made him wear a brown cloack over his tattered clothes and pulled him along as she dashed out.
"He doesn't know about this." Domi spoke.
"Who? Father?"
"Yes... and the other Janus."
Domi stopped to face Janus, and stared at his mismatched eyes.
"Janus, try to fight him with all your might. Don't let him take over you."
Janus nodded, "But where are we going?"
"I'm getting you out of here."
"Will you be fine?"
Domi grinned, "Of course I will. I'm the great general Domi after all."
Domi lead him through unfamiliar hallways and passages, and after what seemed to be an eternity of dark tunnels, they came to an open door. Janus was met with a huge downpour, and he could feel the cold winds against his face.
"This is where we part ways." Domi said. "Don't let yourself get caught because if you do, I wouldn't be able to promise your safety."
"Thank you, Domi." Janus hugged his older sibling.
"This is your one and only chance to get a new life brother. Goodbye."
"Goodbye."
"Oh, and Janus?" Domi called out.
He turned back, "Hm?"
"Fight your other self and try to be the dominant one. Don't let him get to you."
"I will."
"And whatever happens, do not split up."
×
The scene shifted to a forest wrapped under the veil of the night. Janus found himself laying on the muddy ground, screaming and wrenching in pain. His eyes stung as tears filled them and his limbs felt numb. Both his hands shot up to hold his head as excruciating pain filled him. His head seemed like it would break and split any moment from the antagonizing pain.
"No!" Janus screamed. "Don't!"
The pain worsened every at every second, and it came to a point where Janus couldn't take it anymore. With the last bit of his strength, he let out an earsplitting scream and passed out.
When Janus opened his eyes, it was day. The bright rays of the sun illuminated the dark forest and the chirping of the birds echoed throughout the trees. Janus didn't know how many hours-or days-had passed since he lost his consciousness, but it was long enough to dry his clothes.
But Janus immediately noticed something was wrong. He scanned his hands and it looked like nothing had changed about his appearance. But something was very, very wrong.
His body felt so light.
As if a huge burden was lifted off of him. As if a big part of him has disappeared.
He widened his eyes in realization and turned to look around him. No one else was there, just him alone deep in the woods.
He ran. He ran to find something.
Finally he found a small pond. The water was not very transparent so he was able to see his reflection from it. And then he saw it.
Instead of a pair of mismatched eyes, he had two golden irises.
No way.
No freaking way. Janus thought.
He tried to deny it, but the worst case scenario had happened. The very thing that he and Domi was scared of happening had come true.
Janus had split up.
×
The scene shifted back to the palace, in the throne room. But it seemed that everyone had disappeared. He still sat on the stool the guard named Minwoo had provided him but he couldn't find any sign of Sujin and the other pirates. The guards were also nowhere to be seen.
No.
There was one guard.
He entered through a hallway opposite to him. He was dressed in the usual black combat uniform paired with a black mask and fedora hat. Despite his masked appearance, golden-eyed Janus could feel the man smiling.
Then he noticed his glinting blue eyes, and a bloody dagger that he held on his hand.
It was the blue-eyed Janus.
"W-What did you do? Where's father!?" He asked.
The man in the fedora hat removed his mask, and golden-eyed Janus was faced with a face exactly like his.
"You're too late, brother." He let out a maniacal laugh that sent shivers down Janus's spine.
The blue-eyed Janus walked over to the empty throne and sat on it as tears started streaming down on golden-eyed Janus's cheeks. Both fury and anguish consumed him at the same time. Rage filled his eyes as he followed the actions of his other self.
"Kneel before me, Janus."
As if being controlled, golden-eyed Janus found himself walking over to kneel before his other self. His head was still spinning as he knelt before him. His hands were trembling in fury as he locked eyes with the blue-eyed Janus.
He gave a lopsided grin as he twirled the bloodstained dagger on his hand.
Then golden-eyed Janus suddenly saw Domi standing before him, as if she just appeared out of nowhere. But his eyes immediately focused on the sword that hung on her waist.
Then out of impulse, golden eyed Janus stood up, quickly ran to Domi to steal her sword, and stabbed the blue-eyed Janus right in his heart.
As soon as his sword pierced through the blue-eyed Janus's chest, his figure dispersed like a smoke and disappeared.
And right in front of him with a sword in his chest, instead of the blue-eyed Janus that he saw,
The person that sat on the throne,
was his own father.
"N-No, it can't be..." His lips trembled as he immediately quickly removed his grip on the sword.
"My son-" The honorable lord managed to say as he coughed up blood. "How could you..."
"N-No! Father!" The golden-eyed Janus was in grief. He could not believe what he had done, but he was certain seconds ago that the person in front of him was the blue-eyed Janus.
"J-Janus?? Why-"
Janus looked over to Domi who stood there dumbfounded.
"No, Domi! I don't know what happened but I was sure it was the other Janus!"
"What?"
"I was sure of it! The person who sat there at the throne seconds ago was not father but the blue-eyed Janus!" he exclaimed. "That's why I stabbed him!"
"What!?" Domi was confused. "Janus, the person who was sitting on the throne since earlier has been father!"
"What?" Janus felt as if a huge ton of bricks was dropped on him. Dread filled him as he looked around. There he saw Sujin and the pirates, and then some guards the were on alert with their swords drawn.
"But you guys weren't here a moment ago..." Janus head had started to hurt again. His hands shot up to hold his head.
"Janus, are you okay?" Sujin said, "We have been with you ever since before we even entered the castle."
Domi was a little hesitant to approach her own brother. She shot a grieving glance at her now dead father that sat lifeless on his own throne before turning back to Janus.
"Janus, what happened?" Domi asked.
"It's if he doesn't know what's happening around him..." Sujin mumbled, then she realized something. "It's as if he's hallucinating."
"He was poisoned."
Everybody turned to an unfamiliar voice that spoke, but to Sujin and the pirates, it was an awfully familiar one.
The voice belonged to a masked guard behind them.
"Poisoned?" Domi asked.
The guard pointed to golden-eyed Janus's wounded arm.
"Angel's trumpet." He simply said as he took off his mask.
Sujin, Hongjoong, Seonghwa, San, ams Wooyoung all gasped widened their eyes as they saw the face behind the mask.
"Yeosang!???"
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hello sorry for the vv late update but here it is!! This arc is finally ending and i cant wait to show you guys what awaits on the final arc aka the tarshall arc!!
any thoughts on this chapter? i hope i cleared some confusion on this chapter :")
thank you so much for 20k reads everyone!! this is such a great gift since it has been a year ever since i published this fic!!
i never would have expected for this ff to get this many reads bcs of my slow updates, so a huge thank you to everyone who supported this story!! esp to those who are always commenting and voting!!
anyways, silent reader or not, I LOVE YOU ALL!!
+ also, ateez's comeback omg its just pure perfection!! what's your favorite track from the latest album? mine's fever, thanxx, and one day at a time!!
stay tuned for the next update!! (i promise it wont take long this time akshjd)