Unveil | Choi Yeonjun

06 - IT STRIKES

A/N: Brace yourselves for a long chapter ahead!

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Hysteria permeates the spring air, filled with the screams and cries of fleeing faeries.

My heart slams against my ribs as I hurtle after Yeonjun and Kai, the latter pushing off the ground with a frantic slash of his wings.

Wooden bridges hang limply from where they had been severed, huts and treehouses splintered into broken piles of wood. It seems like the damage was caused in a sporadic manner as not all houses are destroyed.

Panicked faces and desperate limbs brand my vision. Most faeries are scampering away from the village square—the direction that we are currently heading in.

Both Yeonjun and I try to push through the wild crowd of faeries, struggling to fight against the torrent of flailing bodies. Shrieks pierce the air like a knife, making me wince.

When I finally behold the scene before me, terror surges through my chest.

Numerous market stalls have been torn apart by vicious-looking claw marks, blood splattering tents and cobblestones alike. Three massive forms of shadow wreak havoc upon the square, their amorphous four-legged bodies ripping through everything at their claw tips. Hungry scarlet eyes sweep the area, tendrils of darkness surrounding the beasts like smoke.

"Soobin!"

I snap my head in the direction of Yeonjun's voice, towards the edge of the square where Beomgyu pulls an unconscious body from the scene. The pink-haired male positions himself between them and the mindless beasts, one hand aimed at the creatures of darkness.

For a moment, nothing happens.

But then, the shadows begin to thrash—violently, erratically—as if trying to fight off something they cannot see. Instead of destroying the stalls, they are now scratching and clawing at themselves, roars of pain erupting from their saliva-dripping maws.

Dread prickles my skin as I watch the beasts slowly disintegrate, their shadowy forms curling in on themselves. With final bellows of rage, the creatures' bodies rupture into clouds of ash, soon carried away by the wind.

Just like that, they're gone.

Stunned, my eyes flick to Yeonjun, who seems be as equally surprised as me. He stares at his own hand, an unexplainable look passing over his face. By the time I've reached him, that emotion has completely disappeared.

"You... okay?" I ask, unease making me fidgety. Seeing those beasts, with wisps of shadow swirling around their forms... No, it can't be.

That darkness in my nightmares is different. At least, it should be.

Eyes meeting mine, Yeonjun flashes me a reassuring grin. "Never been better."

Somehow, those words don't sit right with me.