ELITE | 스트레이 키즈

beneath the surface

"i have an idea" seungmin let out after a moment of silence between them while the echoes of groans of agony, growls and violence echoed through the mall that got damaged in the process. however, before his friends could ask what he was going to, he was already walking back out in the war-zone with the capsule in hand. he walked up behind the elf shamelessly and confidently, though he knew perfectly well it was risky.

"Naris, does this key mean anything to you? if it does, stop fighting, and we can talk about it alright?" the puppy like boy raised in question, albeit faintly, it was enough for the pale figure to hear and turn around at the mention of his belonging. everyone's attention was turned to them now as they stopped attacking one another finally, and the elf's illuminated lights had been blinked away. he tilted his head as it turned around to face him, trying to read him, but it was proving to be impossible.

"yes, it's mine — give it back" the elf stated firmly through gritted teeth, but the latter just tilted his head at it, keeping it in his hand before lowering the capsule to his side, attracting the creature's gaze onto it.

"mind telling me what it is for?" the ravenette questioned curiously, narrowing his eyes at it a little in attempt to read it's mind, but it wouldn't allow him access to it with a strong mentality. the human just raised his eyebrows at it, waiting for a verbal answer with anticipation in his eyes, though it gave a reluctant look.

"my heart" the crowned giant grumbled out his answer with a small glare as he didn't really want to tell them just to get the key back, but he could tell that the one standing in front of him wasn't going to betray him.

"...and, where is it?" the shorter male questioned curiously once nodding his head, slowly being able to key everything together. everything felt like a jigsaw piece, and everyday, they connected a new piece so that the picture would become clearer.

"somewhere here, i was looking for it before you attacked me. i had buried it here centuries ago in the ground to protect myself from the foxes" the platinum haired pixie responded with spite evident in his words, side glancing towards the demon that stood off to the side, raising his hands up as though he had been caught before the fox like boy tensed a little.

"that makes sense how you can possess people now then, huh? if the foxes had no access to your heart to kill you, you couldn't die, you were just a spirit, almost like a ghost. so, while you never actually died, you just hid in bodies while you were waiting to get your revenge, but you need it now...what does that mean for felix then?" the intelligent boy pieced together, making sense of it all now, earning a nod from the latter before it pressed it's lips into a thin line.

"he'll die if i take my heart back and replace his with mine" the sprite stated, alerting a few of them, but the boy in front of him just quirked an eyebrow at his choice of words.

"if? so you're not going to?" the mind reader questioned.

"look at this world — there's nothing here for me, or people like us, and for once, we're the outcasts. there'd be no point in doing that, if one of your kind were going to try and kill me anyway. besides, i'm tired, so unless you give me a reason to, i won't" the elf explained assertively, warning the others standing behind it while the younger in front of it nodded his head at his reasonable words.

"why do you need your heart then? you can't be free without it, yet you don't want to be free, so you're just going to reside in felix' body forever?" the puppy like boy questioned with interest again, clearly wanting to find out more about the creature that just sighed before speaking again.

"...yes, and i need it because if i have it closer to me, i'll be more powerful. not having my heart weakens my abilities enough, but not being around it, or having possession of it, is worse for me if i want to defeat Bane once in for all" Naris concurred thoroughly, seeming to dread the idea of it itself, but it didn't have much of a choice, which the latter could recognise, leading him to think for a moment.