Dark Waters ✓ tk

TWENTY

The van eventually halted, though Jungkook and the rest of people sitting in the back had no idea why. They couldn't have reached their destination yet, could they? The werewolf glanced at his mate who had fallen asleep not too long ago. Lily, though her endless resistance against trying to fall asleep, eventually dozed off as well. Who knows how long she had already been awake for.

Bobby had woken up and was playing with the keychain that was attached to someone's backpack. Jungkook figured that they should have gotten toys or something, because he didn't want the kid to get bored.

He heard some stumbling going on and decided to check it out. Careful not to wake anyone up, he pushed the backdoors open and jumped out. He almost stumbled into Namjoon, who was on his way to open the doors as well. "Oh hi", the tall man smiled awkwardly, getting pushed back by the werewolf because of their sudden proximity.

"Why did we stop?", Jungkook asked gruffly, not liking the weird atmosphere lingering in the air, "What's wrong?" The male sniffed the air, his body reacting repulsive to the stench seemingly drenched in the air.

"Well-", Namjoon paused before glancing inside of the back of the van. He wrapped his hand around the werewolf's wrist (who growled at the contact) and tugged him to the front of the car, not wanting the kids to listen in. "There's seems to be a roadblock".

They halted in front of the car, Jungkook's eyes widening at what he saw. He hadn't been able to gaze outside for several hours now, so he had no idea it had been night time already. In front of him were several- well, at least 20 mutants, all chopped up together and placed in the middle of the road, the stench suddenly too overwhelming for his sensitive werewolf nose.

"What the fuck could do this", Hoseok asked, petting the dog that was still tightly in his arms.

Jimin had a grim look on his face, watching the bloody trail lead into the forest next to the road, "Who could do this is a better question".

Namjoon looked at him with a shocked expression, "You think a person did this?"

"Of course", Jimin hummed, turning away from the gruesome sight before walking back to the van, "Why couldn't it be a person? We can't expect us to be the only people with abnormal powers around".

Jin was still behind the wheel, a bit scared to step out. He didn't feel like getting a close look and rather be safe in the confinements of the vehicle. "Guys, can we go now?", he asked, voice having a hint of a tremble, "I bet we can just drive around it".

"I don't think that'll work", Jimin said, standing beside the driver's seat, his arm slung on the rolled down car window, "Besides, someone carefully placed them down here for a reason".

"I wouldn't say carefully", Jungkook spoke up, pinching his nose to block out the smell, "But you're right, this doesn't seem normal. Should we go investigate?"

"Oh no no no, we are not investigating a bloody trail that leads into a forest! Besides, why would we want to follow someone who can kill this many mutants, and then drop them onto a pile just for us to see? That just screams danger, and if it doesn't scream loud enough for you guys to hear, then I'll scream even louder!"

"Calm down Jin, you don't have to go", Jimin replied, rolling his eyes.

"We are not splitting up", Yoongi said, almost being forgotten by the rest. He had walked around the pile of mutants to check for any kind of message, "We have two children in the back and we all haven't slept for days. It's best not to make impulsive and irrational decisions".

"What do you propose then?", Namjoon asked.

"I say we clean up these mutants and pursue our way. Someone drives, the rest tries to sleep and then someone takes over the driving. We'll drive until we find somewhere safe where we can actually rest". Yoongi walked over to Jimin and poked Jin on the shoulder, telling him to move so he could drive.

Jimin huffed and walked back to the other side before climbing in, really wanting to investigate the mysterious trail. He felt Namjoon climbing in after him, Hoseok & dog soon following. Jin went to sit on the passenger seat next to Yoongi who watched how Jungkook still stood before the mass of mutants, trying to figure out a way to move them.

He felt how it had started to rain, the wet drops landing on his bare arms and face. An idea suddenly popped up inside of his head and he spurted to the back of the van, carefully opening the doors. His eyes landed on the sleeping figure of his mate, wondering if Taehyung would be up for the task.

Wobbling over to the kiddies pool, stepping over Lily so she would stay asleep, he reached Taehyung. He started shaking him awake, the water that was pooling around the merman's tail, shaking with him. "Taehyung, wake up", he whispered, feeling Bobby's eyes on him.

The mermaid's eyes blinked open, his dazed expression sending a smile on Jungkook's face. "What is it?", Taehyung asked, stretching his arms which had been tucked underneath his head for support, "Wait- why aren't we moving?" He suddenly realized how the van was so silent and not shaky, making him wonder how long he has been asleep for.

"We could use your help", the werewolf said, trying not to sound suspicious. He didn't want to worry Bobby who might be listening to their conversation, "Can I carry you outside for a moment?"

Taehyung's eyebrows furrowed but he agreed nonetheless, trusting Jungkook with every bit of his being. His wet body got hauled into the werewolf's strong arms, tail slithering between them. He frowned again when he realized how dark it had gotten outside, now really starting to wonder how long he had been asleep for.

"What's wrong Jungkookie?", his deep voice asked, not seeing what the problem was. Jungkook didn't say anything and brought the boy to the front of the van, huffing when he realized he couldn't pinch his nose shut with the merman in his arms. He heard the gasp coming from his mate and waited for the shocked reaction to pass.

"What the fuck happened here?", the merman said, eyes trailing to the dead bodies littering the highway, "How long have we been standing here?"

"Not too long, we were waiting for you", Yoongi said from inside the van, "Apparently Jungkook had some idea".

The merman frowned and glanced to Jungkook, "What do you want me to do about that?"

Jungkook gulped, "Well, you see, I'm not quite sure myself if you are able to do anything about this- but I was wondering- since it's raining, and you can control water-"

"You're wondering if I can move these mutants by using my water powers?", Taehyung said, completing his mate's thoughts, noticing the said mate nod. "Well, I've never did anything like that before, but I could always try".

"It's that, or us trying to move them with our hands", Yoongi replied, shuddering just at the mere thought of touching rotting body parts.

Taehyung rolled his eyes and focused himself on the pile of bodies. He held out his hands, trying to focus on the drops of water & the puddles on the ground. He could feel their mass and with the way it was raining now, he should be able to have enough water to move things with. The drops falling from the sky around him and Jungkook were sucked to the front of his hands, forming a big ball of water. The water on the streets also started moving towards them, feeding the ball of fluid.

"That's awesome", he could hear Hoseok say from inside the van, bringing a proud grin on his face. He told Jungkook to stand opposite of the forest with the bodies in between them. When he thought he had enough water, he released the big ball onto the piles of bodies, blasting a big part of them into the woods, enough for the van to be able to pass through.

"That was amazing Taehyung", Jungkook smiled brightly, looking down to the boy in his arms before realizing how drowsy he looked. "Oh god, are you alright?"

"Just a bit woozy from the energy that cost", Taehyung smiled sleepily, "Can we go back inside now?"

Jungkook smiled and nodded, bringing the boy to the back of the van and sliding him into the kiddies pool again. "You did great Tae", he grinned, stroking the boy's hair who smiled at the contact.

"Thanks Kook", he sleepily replied, before going back to sleep he heard the car engine come back to life and Jungkook's hand still running through his hair.