Defy The Earth

Chapter 10

Peace, Mother Nature said, is a spur of a moment.

Chanyeol's eyes opened to many things – inhuman whispers, a rocking bed, writhing Baekhyun - but most prominent of all of them was The Tree of Life. Chanyeol's sleepiness dissipated as he took in the purple, glowing image, except it wasn't glowing. Every branch was bent in defeat and the roots were crawling out. The powers weren't shining like they usually did. Instead, they were dim lights like fireflies on the massive tree.

Chanyeol sat up. Beside him, Baekhyun did too. The older took considerably less time to understand and analyze the situation. Chanyeol turned his head to look at him. Baekhyun's eyes were wide with panic and alarm. He looked at Chanyeol with dead seriousness and said –

"We need to go, now!" Chanyeol was struck with how familiar the words were to one of the first words that Baekhyun had spoken to him, on one eventful night. That seemed like centuries ago. But this time, he realized the danger – if they didn't leave, there was also a slight chance of this house toppling over because it was shaking violently. Chanyeol nodded and hurried over to the dresser, taking out his weapons. Baekhyun hurried to bathroom as Chanyeol loaded the weapons in their car. When Baekhyun came out, he was wearing clothes similar to the ones he had worn when he first met Chanyeol – black leather jacket, jeans and boots. Chanyeol knew the clothes had lots of spaces to keep hidden weapons in them. Just like his did. Chanyeol dressed up too, and at once they were in the car and out of the area.

Baekhyun's first attack came seconds after they left. He conjured a big, light bolt in one swift movement and threw it out of the window. The shaking of the Earth seemed to lessen for a few moments. This gained time was enough for Chanyeol to drive out of the woods and into the city, where the center seemed to be. It was useless to ask them how they knew all of this – it was just plain instincts.

"Drive faster!" Baekhyun shouted and Chanyeol's foot slammed the accelerator as they sped into the city at one hundred-ninety kilometers per hour and only rising. There wasn't anybody awake and on the roads anyway, so it was okay.

Oh, how wrong they were.

A squad of boys and girls appeared in the road at once. Chanyeol's eyes widened and he was vaguely aware of Baekhyun shouting "BRAKE!!" before he put the break and the car skidded and turned once, twice and then, thrice before coming to a stop. Chanyeol was paralyzed. His breaths were heavy. Bile rose up his throat and he swallowed it down. The boys and girls just shouted at him –

"Drive safe, mister!" and went their way.

Chanyeol tried to calm his breathing down when something stuck his mind. He turned to his right to Baekhyun grasping the seatbelt like it was his life and breathing quite heavily. He didn't seem much better than Chanyeol.

"Are you okay?" Chanyeol asked anyway and Baekhyun nodded. His eyes trailed the children.

"There couldn't be that many people who are..." Suddenly, another man crossed the road and ran, screaming 'Earthquake! Big, big Earthquake!' and then, it registered in their minds. Chanyeol was reminded of a down-putting conversation that all of them had once and Lay's voice rang clear through this mind. The human body is really fast at adapting to things... the resistance is getting stronger and that most people are sleeping now for the sake of sleeping and not because of the gas. Chanyeol's mind refused to register this. He shook this head. No, this can't be happening. Not now, not ever.

He looked at Baekhyun, who seemed to be thinking the same things. His eyes were blown-wide and his breaths were ragged. When he looked at Chanyeol, the taller noticed the pain and the purefear in his eyes.