"I don't do shit halfway, sweetheart. You step in my flames, you'll burn to ashes!"
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The Kings of the underworld are in a bit of a predicament; their rule over the city is challenged as an old enemy...
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So long as you fight the darkness, you stand in the light. ~ Sabaa Tahir, A Torch Against the Night _______________
As the first rays of sunlight painted the sky with hues of gold, Ashley found herself waiting outside the imposing walls of Seoul's prison, for the commencement of visiting hours. Her purpose for being there was strictly business.
Then again, there was no separating work life from personal affairs when thy were so deeply intertwined. To confront her father, the cunning and slithering mastermind known as Papa Snake, whose shadowy involvement in her brother's reign over the Serpents had left her with lingering suspicions.
She had asked Beanie how Soobin was doing, he had informed her that he was alive and well and that's all she needed to know. Her brother didn't deserve the mercy he got, but she didn't have the heart to watch him die. To her, he was still her idiotic baby brother, but he had fucked up too royally to even consider forgiving him.
She didn't even feel the need to see him off to his exile.
Leaning against her sleek black motorcycle, the newly elected Queen of Serpents exuded an aura of raw power and determination. Her piercing gaze fixated on the prison's entrance, waiting for the guards to open them.
The atmosphere crackled with a sense of foreboding, mirroring the turmoil within her. She couldn't help but wonder how deeply her father was entangled in the treacherous dealings concerning the Dragon Ring. It wasn't a matter of if, but of how deep he had sunk his poisonous teeth into the abyss of corruption.
He had to be the reason Soobin was acting that way. Her brother lacked the courage and brains to operate against Bangtan and as resourceful as Ghost might be, he couldn't have dragged Soobin into this mess on his own. Her brother was weak, but she always thought he had some sort of broken moral compass. Unlike her father who didn't even know what that was. Ashley wouldn't put anything past her father.
Memories of her brother's ruthless reign flooded her mind, intertwining with the whispers of the streets. Soobin had led the Serpents astray, drowning them in a sea of corruption. While they now reveled in ill-gotten wealth, Ashley knew that cleansing the blood-soaked dollars would come at a steep price.
It was either that, or letting Bangtan wipe them out completely.
Ashley realized that would've been easier, but Yoongi's punishments were never easy, she knew that by now. Although she was certain this was the last debt she'd have to clear in order to be back on Yoongi's good graces. Of course, in a true Agust D way, he made her last debt a life sentence.
Much like the one her father was serving.
As the prison gates creaked open, Ashley's heart quickened its pace, matching the rhythm of her unwavering resolve. She stepped inside, her footsteps echoing through the sterile corridors, each step bringing her closer to the truth, closer to the answers she sought. The scent of despair hung heavy in the air, a constant reminder of the lives confined within these walls, fueling her determination to dismantle the web of deceit that had ensnared her family.
