the lost king [ hongsang ]

012

❝ and so it begins, the war of species. ❞

WOoyoung, san and jongho scurried through the dense wood with inhuman speed, impossible to track to the naked eye.

they only coasted to a stop when they had reached the end of the forest, coming face to face with the large rock formations.

"are you sure of this, san," wooyoung questioned his lover, unease clear in his tone.

"it is our only lead. besides the foul stench is most prominent here," the aforementioned nodded. whether he was convincing himself or his brothers, though, he hadn't a clue.

"should we not inform or at the very least wait for the others? our king would want to be present—

"there is no time," san hissed lowly. "we have no choice if we are to find the boy in time."

"you heard what our king said," wooyoung attempted to reason. "we have never ventured into enemy territory. i fear we will start a war we cannot finish," there was a pause. wooyoung glanced up, catching his lover's gaze, his eyes shining with unshed tears. "my sannie, i have just gotten you back, i cannot lose you once more."

"you will not lose me this way, my love," san caressed the latter's cheek in adoration. "however if we lose the lost king, all will be lost. vamporia, our clan, as well as our own lives. we must fight."

jongho rubbed his chin in thought. "as much as i do not wish to admit it, san is correct. i will inform the king of our whereabouts so he and the others can join us. i propose we scope out the situation and assess before proceeding. we must outsmart them. if we barge in their territory with a fight, it will be futile and end in our deaths."

wooyoung and san nodded in agreement, knowing this was their best option. "but there is still one thing, we must mask our scents. if we do not they will snuff us out before we can even reach the perimeter."

san grinned mischievously as he pulled an elixir from his breast pocket. "i thought this might come in handy," he shrugged as he tossed the glass bottle to jongho. "it is the perfect neutralizer."

jongho carefully read the ingredients. "pine, jasmine and lemon grass. this could work. you took this from yeosang's study didn't you?"

"indeed, i was merely thinking ahead, our king will be most understanding. now," san removed the lid from the elixir, putting a generous amount on his neck and wrists before handing it off to the other vampires, them doing the same. "let us go save a damsel."

YEosang and seonghwa slowed to halt. there was no sign of hongjoong and it seems the others had no luck either. as the minutes passed, a feeling of dread overcame the king.

his breaths were shallow, coming out in short pants. a cold sweat formed at the base of his neck and hairline. then came the nausea.

seonghwa eyes fell upon him, a look of worry was written upon his features. "yeosang, are you alright?"

"yes i'm fine," the vampire grumbled, waving off the latter.

"do not lie to me, kang yeosang. you forget i am your eldest and dearest friend. i am able to see right through you," seonghwa quirked a challenging brow.

"do not be ridiculous, brother. i am perfectly—

yeosang fell forward, braced on his haunches, unable to keep up his facade.

"my king," seonghwa was at yeosang's side in an instant consoling him. "what is it? what makes you this way?"

"it is the bond. something is happening to hongjoong and i fear the worst," yeosang glanced to seonghwa warily.