Destined {𝕄𝕀ℕ𝕊𝕌ℕ𝔾}

Chapter Fifty

The carriage – or whatever it was – was not pleasant. Minho felt as though his stomach were about to flip and his heart about to burst through his throat as he pressed a hand to his mouth to keep his queasiness at bay. Jisung cast him a concerned glance, but he merely shrugged it off with a weak, wavering grin.

They were in the center of a forest; a very dark, very eerie forest. Goosebumps rode up along his arms, and he fought the tantalizing urge to shuffle closer to Jisung. He wrapped his arms around himself as he observed the forest, wincing away from any shadows that seemed to move within his peripheral vision.

Something about this place felt... off. Strange. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath, shuffling along behind Jisung; he didn't want to stay in this creepy forest a moment longer than he had to.

"This is as far as they can take you, Alpha." The man – Minho found out his name was Sangchul – said, bowing his head slightly, the white wolves standing behind him almost protectively. Minho definitely wouldn't want to get on their bad side. "There is a protective ward around the castle – if we were to breach it, the Vampire King would know immediately." Sangchul's eyes drew in confusion. "Whichever witch they have, they're incredibly strong."

He shook his head, almost in disbelief. Jisung's lips pressed in a thin line as he nodded. "Yes, I know." He took a deep breath and turned in a direction, deeper within the forest. Minho swallowed thickly; he could only assume that was where they were going.

Something weighed heavy on his chest as Jisung and Sangchul exchanged quiet words, words he could not bring himself to pay attention to; he was too busy focusing on the darkness of the trees around them, the strange, intricate details of the scenery, the light fog that had settled around them.

One particular tree stood out amongst the rest, and he slowly walked towards it, tilting his head, eyes narrowing. It seemed familiar, relevant. But it was quite literally just a tree. He knelt next to it, hand reaching out to touch one of the roots that lay just above the dirt before curling back into the ground.

His eyes widened as he touched it; something flashed through him, and he quickly drew his hand back, continuing to stare at it. His breath caught in his throat, his heart beat picking up as he let his hand fall upon it again.

It was almost as though it sucked him in, drawing out something deep within him. He felt as though he was flickering through time, but where was he going, really? He felt warmth, and happiness, and something he'd never felt before. Well, perhaps he had felt it, he just couldn't remember.

A hand on his shoulder brought him out of his daze and he gasped, startling as he fell back. He looked up, only to meet Jisung's inquisitive gaze. He slowly stood, dusting off his pants and shrugging. "It's nothing," he said, to which the wolf nodded, turning back towards the forest.

He turned around again, placing both of his hands on Minho's shoulders; a slight warmth spread through him. "When we get there..." Jisung took a deep breath, staring straight into his eyes. Minho gulped. "When we get to that castle, Minho, I want you to stay close to Jeongin. Don't give yourself away, no matter what happens." He swallowed thickly, to which he nodded hesitantly. No matter what happens.

That sounded foreboding, and he didn't like it. Not one bit.

Before Jisung could walk away, he caught his wrist, his eyes intense and serious. "Only as long as you don't do anything stupid." To that, Jisung cracked a small grin. "I'm serious." The wolf sighed and nodded, shooting him a comforting smile.

"Don't worry. I plan to get everyone out of there. Alive." There was a spark in his eyes, one that made him believe every word he said. Minho nodded, a small, nervous smile playing at his lips.

Their plan had many flaws, but he was still tempted to believe that Jisung really would come through on his promise; he had to. He didn't know what he'd do if anyone got left behind. Or worse.

He wouldn't let that happen – no matter the cost.

~#~#~#~#~#~

Changbin stirred in his sleep, eyes slowly cracking open. Jisung was at his side in a moment, helping him sit up. "Felix...?" he croaked as his eyes opened more and more, slowly, obviously still impacted by his unconsciousness.

"We're almost there. We'll get him, I promise." Changbin looked down at the ground, fists curling as he clenched his jaw. He did not say another word, but then again, Jisung hadn't really expected him to. He stood and backed away, eyeing Minho from the corner of his eye as he sat down and leaned against a tree, closing his eyes.

He truly hadn't taken the carriage too well.

He chuckled softly, a delicate smile curving the edges of his lips. He really hated the fact that they'd have to bring him right under Chan's nose; if they weren't smart about it, they'd lose, and he knew that once that Vampire King got his hands on the human, there would be no way to get him back.

He wouldn't let that happen. He wouldn't. Everyone would come with him – even Hyunsik, if he could manage it. If there was one thing Jisung would never give up on it was it his friends. Besides, he had a special bone to pick with the vampires that most other wolves didn't have.

He'd make the King pay for what he'd done. All of it.

He took a deep breath; but, of course, they first had to get there. He'd let them rest for a little while, and then they'd head off towards the Crimson Castle; the more rest they could squeeze in, the better. They'd need all the energy they could get, especially if things didn't go as planned.

He took a deep breath and turned to the sky, though it was mostly shielded by trees. They'd go under the cover of night, he decided.

Wolves always had a better advantage in the dark.

A/N: And thus commences Act III (ish... I think-)

Q: Okay, so, so, I have a question for y'all (for research purposes for my novel, mostly). The Internet is giving me mixed answers and I'm ugh. Okay, so, here's the question: how do you honestly feel about cliffhangers at the end of the first book of a trilogy?

A: {ANSWER HERE}!!!!!

Lots of love,

~Junnie