From the Darkness

12. The Shelter

A path that would take Wooyoung three hours on foot without breaks ended up taking almost an entire day with the added weight of Jongho hanging from their shoulders. They marched until sundown and took frequent breaks to check on Jongho's injury. So far, it didn't get infected, but there was little hope even with their medications. Coyotes gnawed on fouls and getting the fungus spores directly into one's bloodstream increased the risk drastically.

Jongho needed a dry and clean place to rest. And once the desert darkened with the night's gloom, their goal finally came into sight.

A massive cave spanned the bottom of the cliff. It was sealed by a sturdy iron gate with military-grade security panels. The entrance was big enough to allow carts to pass through - if one found an operating one among the debris - and though it was painfully visible; it looked like a fortress.

San whistled through his teeth.

"This is where you live? Maybe we should hear you out. No fanatic builds all that."

Pale in their grip, Jongho huffed in offense.

"You were the ones who decided I was a madman. I know what I offer. Only the truth. Always the truth." He ended in a whimper when his injured foot dragged over a dip in the ground. Wooyoung glanced at the soaked bandage.

"Let's hope you have medication just as fancy in there to save your life. Otherwise, it's of no use to you in death."

They dragged Jongho over to the entrance, and Wooyoung exhaled. Though he didn't trust the unexpectedly complex hideout, at least they were out of the desert.

While Jongho punched in a code to open a smaller door within the gate, Wooyoung skimmed the metal with his eyes. What lay beyond there? An ancient governmental structure? A science lab? An army of people, perhaps, who would overwhelm Wooyoung and San to force them to join their cult?

"I do," Jongho muttered as the door opened with a heavy clang. "Just get me in there and everything will be fine."

Wooyoung ducked in first, hauling Jongho along. San came last, and he tugged the door shut with a resounding boom. The cave echoed back at them and the mismatched colors of various light sources flickered.

Before Wooyoung got to skim the nearby tables with his eyes and figure out what Jongho had been working on, a shadow moved behind him. The time it took him to let go of Jongho sufficed to get him ensnared. Instead of down to his weapons, his hands flinched up when a cold blade pressed to his neck. It was a massive knife, big enough to hack off a limb. Not keen to get to know it, Wooyoung presented his palms in empty, fingerless gloves.

"Who are you?" A grumbling voice hissed behind him, and Jongho winced as he spun with the help of San's arm.

"Don't hurt him, Mingi! He brought me here!" He called in alarm. Wooyoung breathed flatly, betrayed eyes directed straight ahead at the wall.

Of course, Jongho wasn't alone. Of course, someone waited to trap them here.

A moment of silence, then the knife disappeared.

"You're injured?" A head of orange and yellow hair dipped by Wooyoung's side to examine Jongho's leg. Recognition flared in Wooyoung's eyes the same moment San opened his mouth.

"The trader."

The man in question rose to look at the two properly. Finally, he realized, as well.

"It's you two. These are the ones you sought?"

"Yes," Jongho pressed out, hopping over to Mingi's grip. The tall man balanced him, used to the other's body. "They were so kind to drag me here after coyotes attacked, so I insist you let them live."