Black Magic

Dark Deals

Chapter 18: Dark Deals

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As the weeks went on, the number of Dark Dragon attacks increased. The signal, a sound that had once chilled Kyungsoo to the bone, was quickly becoming something similar to background noise. It would sound once, twice, thrice, however many times necessary, and then the EXO members would be bursting from different classrooms (depending on the time of day) and grouping close together to confer before splitting off again, some staying at the school, others shifting forms and swiftly disappearing over the horizon.

From what Kyungsoo could glean from rumors and the little amount of information Kris was allowed to give the students, there was no pattern evident in the Dark Dragons' movements. Nothing, except for the recurring fact that the number of enemy dragons increased with every attack. That, and they always targeted the Lower Ring.

Kyungsoo had been worried the first few attacks, convinced that maybe Kris was right and the Dark Dragons had some sort of grand plan to storm the school in attempt to spirit him away.

But Kyungsoo didn't seem to be what they were after; the Dark Dragons always retreated just as the EXO members arrived, never pushing closer to the school or fighting to gain ground. They were acting like a bunch of flighty scavengers, backing off at the first sign of challenge, but never departing too far, always circling around, waiting, waiting, waiting....

And that was the part that was really worrying Kyungsoo.

Because what were they waiting for?

It was weird behavior that left Kyungsoo feeling uneasy and tense, a sensation similar to the eerie calm before a violent storm. But there hadn't been any close calls since Minseok's injury that first time, and Kyungsoo had to remind himself that everything was going to be fine.

Nothing was going to happen.

At least, nothing that the EXO members couldn't handle.

They would be fine.

Kai would be fi----

Kyungsoo jerked to a stop, palm meeting his forehead with a hard thwack.

Stop it, he chided himself. Just stop it. Don't even go there. Kai is none of your concern.

After a few more moments of forehead bashing, Kyungsoo resumed his walk along the lakeside, tossing a pebble in his hand distractedly, and wondering exactly how long the EXO members would be gone this go round. Another sighting had been signaled, the 5th this week, and it had become such a common occurrence that students were no longer even put on lockdown.

Kyungsoo tossed the pebble into the air and this time it hung there, caught in the force field of his powers. He pulled another stone up from the ground, so that both pebbles floated above his hand, and he idly twirled the smooth rocks through the air as he walked.

He wondered how many Dark Dragons would be pummeling the Lower Ring this time? And what if they randomly decided to attack the EXO members? Could they handle it if they were outnumbered?

Kyungsoo came to a stop, pebbles dropping into his outstretched palm with a soft clack. He clenched his fist around them, feeling their worn smoothness and listening to their soft voices; they were agitated, reflecting his own mood.

Kyungsoo stared out at the lake, turning in a slow circle to take in the training field and the high silhouette of the dorms. He could see the faint spires of the library in the distance, the sharp hedges and walls of the gardens.