SHADOWLESS |seongjoong|

#12#

Beomjoong:

I took Seonghwa and Wooyoung with me. No one else could join us. It would be too dangerous for mortals and Yeosang, whose energy was too low. So, the three of us proceeded with that ritual. We entered the shadow's chamber, immediately feeling the powerful spiritual energy. It felt even stronger than usual, maybe because Seonghwa and his shadow were so close.

"Seonghwa, please stand over there," I said, pointing at one of the corners. "Wooyoung, stand behind Seonghwa and hold him tight."

Once they took their positions, I reached towards the shadow. Seonghwa's shadow was restless. I could see it trying to pull towards its owner. The bad feeling inside of me was growing stronger. I was almost sure it would be a fail, but nothing was for sure before we tried anything. I took a deep breath before proceeding.

Taking off the protective talismans was hurting me. I could feel their power burning the skin of my hands. I clenched my teeth and continued. A little bit of pain couldn't stop me from helping Seonghwa. I ripped talisman after talisman as fast as I could. Dammit, I had put so many of those over the years it felt as if I did nothing. It took some time before I reached the shadow itself.

I took a look at Seonghwa and Wooyoung. They were watching us with a mixture of fear and excitement. I felt it. The more I took off, the closer we got to the crucial moment. Soon, I exposed Seonghwa's shadow halfway. The moment I did, I felt its power pushing me aside. The shadow ran towards Seonghwa. In less than a blink of an eye, they collided. Seonghwa's shadow melted into his body, releasing a powerful shock wave. It was so strong it sent me and Wooyoung flying to the walls. A burst of light blinded me. I could only feel the force field pressing me to the wall.

San:

The three of us waited in anticipation, waiting for something to happen. The heavy atmosphere was killing us slowly. We had no idea what was going on in that room. And we had no idea if our hyung was even alive. I wanted to go in there and check on Seonghwa, but Beomjoong had warned us not to. As he said, it was too dangerous for mortals like us to be in there. I was dying inside.

"Where is he?" Hongjoong asked, breaking inside the shrine.

"Hyung?" Yeosang spoke.

We all looked at the older grim reaper, who just materialized in front of us. His dark clothes, were torn to shreds. His skin was cut and bruised—scarlet blood dripping from his whole body. Hongjoong's state was rather bad as if he was coming from a dog fight. What had happened to him? We had no time to ask him.

Before anyone else could say more we got shaken by a strong wave of power. What happened? Was there an explosion in that room? What about my brother? Was Seonghwa okay? What was going on?

Hongjoong:

Dammit! That energy explosion was a bad sign. I had to go in there. I sprinted towards the secret chamber Beomjoong had shown me last time. I knew they were in there. I tried to go inside, but the door wasn't opening. Something was keeping it shut. For soul's sake! Why do things turn that way in such a short period? That wasn't important at the moment. The most important thing at the moment was to get inside of that damn chamber. I had to help Seonghwa.

I took out my scythe, stepping back. If the door didn't want to open, then I had to break my way. I swung my scythe at the door. A small piece of wood chipped out, but nothing more. I had to keep doing it until the door gave in. I had to get in there no matter what. Someone was going to die, and I could feel it.

My scythe broke after my last hit. I managed to break a hole big enough to crawl in. I did it. I crawled inside the chamber just to get blinded by bright light emitting from the corner of the room. I knew that light was Seonghwa, so I ran towards him. It was difficult. His power was intense, to the point it was pushing me back. I had to fight it. I had to reach Seonghwa. No matter how many times he pushed me away. I was desperately crawling towards him.

"Seonghwa! Please, stop it!" I yelled towards the blinding figure. "Please, Seonghwa, let me closer!"

Somehow, my words affected him. I could feel the force field getting weaker. It allowed me to get closer. But it wasn't enough. I wasn't close enough to grab onto him. I begged Seonghwa to let me closer, to look my way. I wanted to distract him. The closer I was, I noticed the limp outline of a body. Seonghwa was holding someone by the neck. That could be Wooyoung or Beomjoong. I had to do something, not only Seonghwa but the poor reaper he was holding onto.

"Seonghwa, please, look at me! Please, Hwa!" I begged.

I took one final step towards Seoghwa, grabbing his arm. I tried to pull away his arm from the person he was holding, but he didn't budge. Then, I tried to check who was the poor soul. I couldn't believe it. Shivers ran down my spine. It was Beomjoog. Seonghwa was choking Beomjoong. Even worse, I could see Beom's reaper's energy, getting drained from his body. Both of them could die if I didn't stop it all.

"Seonghwa, please look at me! Please, I'm begging you, Hwa!" I said, hearing the pain in my voice.

For a split second, I felt hopeless. Seonghwa didn't budge. Then, he dropped my brother and grabbed me. Seonghwa just replaced Beomjoong with me. He slammed me into the wall and started draining my energy. His grip was holding me down as if I had been tied down.

"Seonghwa, please, stop it!" I begged, but he couldn't hear me. "Please, Hwa, that's not you!"

Talking to him was pointless. Not a single word was reaching Seonghwa. I had to do something quickly, otherwise, I was a goner. I couldn't die. If I died, everyone would die. Think, Hongjoong! Think! I scolded myself. This power draining was affecting my brain. There was no time. I had to act fast.

I reached my hands towards Seonghwa and grabbed his shirt. Then, I pulled him closer. I couldn't see any detail of his face, but I managed to reach his lips. If he wanted my energy, I was ready to give it to him directly. Maybe that way, I could calm him down. I could only close my eyes and pray.

Seonghwa:

I felt something warm and soft on my lips. This warmth was leading me somewhere. I didn't know where that was. Yet, I had to follow it. It could lead me out of that white space I got trapped in. I needed to return to my brothers. I needed to go back to Hongjoong. I needed to apologize for causing that mess.

Slowly, the whiteness faded away, bringing me back to that room. My eyes opened. The first thing I saw was Hongjoong. Joong was close to me. Close. Hongjoong's lips were pressing on mine. A moment later, my body felt weak. We collapsed to the floor, getting separated. I took a better look at Hongjoong. His clothes were torn apart, and he was covered in blood. Did I do that?

"Hongjoong!" I called him, crawling to him. I took his frail body in my hands.

"You are back," Joong's voice was weak. Yet, I could hear the release in it. His shaking hand raised and stroked my cheek. I felt burning tears in my eyes.

"I'm sorry! I am," I cried.

"It's alright, Hwa. Everything will be fine," Hongjoong tried to calm me down before he blacked out.

I crumbled in tears. Nothing around me mattered. I was too fixated, on the man in my hands. I was the cause of this all.