Super

56. what you gotta do

By the time they reached it, the building was on fire.

Baekhyun's eyes widened as he saw the tongues of flame lick up the brick walls of the uppermost floor, the fire spreading across the floor and progressing to the levels below with every passing second. The tips of the fire on the roof reached up to the sky as if calling out to its brethren in the stars, shining bold and bright against the inky sky.

The asylum had fallen into disuse decades, perhaps more than a century ago, but the high walls around it stood firm, trellises and vines climbing the rotten walls almost all around. It almost looked more like a historical mansion than an asylum, though it could very well have been both. The gate had been easy enough to break through, and the garden and ground beyond it was all muck, mud sticking to their boots and creating sucking sounds upon separation when they progressed to the garden.

Despite the dry weather, sweat made the back of his black t-shirt sling to his back, chilling his skin in the cool night air. His pep talk—which hadn't been much, Baekhyun admitted—hadn't done much to raise the Supers' spirits, and all of them were grim-faced as they stared up at the ramshackle old building, jaws set at the unsettling sight.

"What's happening up there?" Taeyong muttered from next, brow creased with concern. His hands were clenched inside his gloves, and the mask that was pulled up to reveal his face pushed up strands of his blue hair that made him stand out among the sea of faces. "Do you think Mark is okay?"

"He's a smart kid, but I can't say anything for sure," Baekhyun answered, trying to keep the worry out of his voice. He had to be an example, which meant he couldn't do or say anything which might incite even more agitation among the others. "Whatever happened, we know one thing—we have to act fast. That fire isn't going to stay put, and getting people out of there is the most important goal right now."

"No, it's stopping the fire," Taeyong said.

Slow realization dawned upon Baekhyun at the words, and he bit back a curse. "The gas pipes."

"We can't let it spread downstairs," Ten agreed. "It's a blessing it started upstairs, but it's spreading fast, and we don't have more than a few minutes. We can't waste any more time here."

"And yet we cannot rush in without even a partly-formed plan," Baekhyun breathed. The smoke wasn't even reaching them, but he could feel the heat, radiating off the building as if someone had shined a mini sun right in his face. His thoughts seemed to be squeezing in, trying to choke him into submission so he couldn't think of anything. "We have to improvise."

"Just dandy," Taeyong mumbled.

They were a little more than a dozen inside the courtyard, the Supers under squad C left out as backup behind the rotten walls ringing the place, but he was beginning to feel that they'd need them a lot more than he had realized.

"Okay, everyone knows what to do," Baekhyun spoke into the mic, addressing squad A, which comprised the original lineup except for Lucas, who was leading B. "Stick to the plan. Leave the evacuation to squad B, but if you see someone in dire need of help, don't hesitate. You know what role you have to play. Ten, you think you can handle stemming the spread of the fire?"

"No," Ten answered, "but I know someone who might."

A flicker of understanding passed in Taeyong's eyes. "Are you sure?" the blue-haired male murmured.

"Nope," Ten sighed. "But I really don't see another option."

"I wish I could have gone with you," Kai said regretfully. He had a pivotal role to play in the progression of their plan, which required him to be in a specific place at all times. Baekhyun could see the strain in his shoulders, the drawn-bow tautness in his voice that he tried to play off with lightness. "But I gotta do what I gotta do."