4.6 | Dark Ages ✓

- 0 4 : 0 5

  

– 0 4 : 0 5

IT'S NIGHT AGAIN.

The time-shift disorientates him. On instinct, he glances around in search of her. She'd been running after him when he last saw her. Was she safe now? Had the bullies gone back for her? Not for the first time, he wishes that he didn't have to time-jump. That he could stay to see how the rest of the past would play out. That he didn't have to leave.

Letting out a frustrated breath, he continues to drive. The street is dark, but the headlights are sufficient for him to see up ahead.

Just then, something dashes past in his peripheral.

A man stops in front of the car.

Startled, Taehyung barely manages to jam down on the brakes. The car comes to a screeching halt, and he stares warily up at the man. The first thing that he registers is the livid expression on the man's face.

The man slams a hand down on the hood and gestures towards him. "Get the fuck out of the car, Taehyung!"

He knows my name.

Apart from her, this is the first person he's met who actually seems acquainted with him. Taehyung grabs his bag and shoves the gun into his jacket. He climbs out of the car, raising his hands in a placating gesture as the man strides over.

"Who are—"

"You absolute shit!"

The man punches him square in the jaw. Pain bursts through him, and he stumbles back. It had been so unexpected that he hadn't even thought of bracing himself. He catches his balance and brings a hand up to his burning jaw.

"What the fuck was that for?"

"Retribution," the man snarls. "And that's not even a fraction of it—"

The man lurches forward to grab him by the collar. But this time, his instincts kick in. He spins round into a brawler's stance and grabs the man's arm, twisting it behind the latter's back. Then he shoves the man onto the ground, pressing a knee into his back.

"What retribution?"

"—we thought you were the best one among us," the man hisses. "And when you got your doctorate, our Mom used to brag about what a genius you were. Yeah, you're a fucking genius, alright—"

The man's words make him freeze. "Our mom?" His mind races a mile a minute—the familiarity begins to make sense, but he needs to be sure. "You...you're my—"

"Have you finally gone batshit crazy like the rest of the world? I'm Seokjin—your brother!"

Brother?

Stunned, he lifts his grip on the man's arm. The man shoves him aside to climb to his feet. Seokjin's not much taller than he is, but Taehyung finds himself quailing under the ferocity of his brother's glare.

"I didn't—I don't—"

"Cut the bullshit," Seokjin snaps. "I didn't come here for any of your half-hearted apologies. You've never meant any of them anyway! Not even when the world went to hell—"

The last time he'd felt this confused was when he'd woken up in the Dark Ages, with not a clue as to who or where he was. He swallows. Bewilderment and dread threatens to overwhelm him. Who had he been, in his past, to have created such strong hostility from his own brother?

"I—I don't know—"

"—and now that the world's gone to hell, you're gone into hiding instead of fixing it! Classic Taehyung." The man lets out a bitter laugh. "Do you have any idea how long it's taken me to find you? Do you know what we've been through because of you? You just—"

"Hold on."

He shushes Seokjin, turning his eyes on the dark road ahead. They've been so caught up in their fight that he's failed to notice the distant shouts and patter of feet. But there, where the sole light on the street falters and flickers, he finally sees it.

Sees them.

His heart begins to pound, cold sweat pickling down his back. "Get in the car."

The urgency in his tone stops the other man. "What? What're you—" Seokjin trails off, going still.

The crowd comes in the dozens, charging towards them like a herd of rampaging bulls. Shouting and screaming, a cacophony of shrill and hoarse voices, they wield all kinds of weapons as they come running towards the car. Pitchforks, baseball bats, knives—any equipment meant for daily use has been weaponized in the course of their wrath. Taehyung's been so used to fighting zombies, but these...these are people.

At least, he thinks they are people.

"Give us the car!" Amidst the din, one of the voices catches his ears. "Give us the car, you assholes! No one is leaving this town alive!"

A wave of fear surges through his veins. He's never felt this unnerved before—not even when he'd been attacked, on multiple occasions, by zombies. The difference now is that these are lucid, intelligent and living opponents. How can he kill any of these people?

He takes a step back. "Get in the car."

"What?"

"Get in the damn car!"

This time, his brother doesn't argue. He dives into the passenger's seat, while Taehyung scrambles for the driver's. With a jolt of the engine and a sharp screech of tires, they peel off down the road.