TARGET

서른 넷

"Your reputation precedes you,"

The blond smirked, mane dazzling against the distortion of luminescence due to the crystal pillars that stood tall in a staggering forest,

"I think it's more of my pleasure, sir,"

Similar to his counterpart, the intruder wore sleeping garments. He carried himself nicely, bulky arms embraced by the sleeves of his midnight tinted cotton shirt, the corresponding trousers hung over his toes that licked the tip of the grass trail. He wore a mask of the same lineage of his partner's, but the lips were painted an inky black, a stark juxtaposition to the dainty porcelain of the doll face.

The intruder rolled his sleeves up, revealing his vein-strewn arms, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything too important,"

"No, of course not. Be my guest,"

A rather deafening silence stretched between the four, the soft crackle of the ice merely a white noise in the background.

Spontaneously, vines shot out of the heels of Jeonghan's feet, breaking apart into multiple tentacles to ambush the target from various angels. A blur of greenery cocooned the man, the quilled vines dove into the ice-concrete mix that comprised the floor beneath them.

Not a word was spoken, seconds passed like hours as their staggered breaths swam in the thick tension.

At the moment, Jeonghan didn't know what to expect, but he knew that his rather straightforward attack wouldn't faze the target much,

he wanted to test the waters, he didn't want to just fight this opponent,

he wanted to push him to his limit.

In the midst of the silence, a sharp slice, analogous to the piercing of skin, rang out. The cage of vines limped, plunging to the floor, revealing the target from the inside of the body with a small blade in his grasp.

Jeonghan eyed the specimen, and from behind the eerie mask, the specimen leered back at him. The vines that lay on the bed of ice hissed, emitting steam from the heat that ate away at the frost path. The man seemed to not intend on attacking, Jeonghan assumed that the target would find his vulnerabilities through his advances, playing a passive offensive stance.

So Jeonghan would give him what he wanted.

In the blink of an eye, another vine rocketed from the grass path, with the speed and stealth twice that of the first attack-

Without batting an eye, the target sliced the tentacle in mid air.

So Jeonghan did it again,

and the target repeated the action without missing a beat.

And again,

and again,

and again.

With the third attack and neither of them remotely winded, a clamorous guffaw broke the silence,

Jeonghan squealed in delight, throwing his head back and sighing. He scanned the ceiling in which ice crept up the corners, debris falling from the crevices. Many of the light fixtures were either cracked or flickering with their last breaths of life.

"What are you playing at?"

Jeonghan lowered his head, alternately studying the room,

The formerly pristine condition was ransacked by the mixture of Stargifts, supporting pillars had fallen, replaced by stalagmites of crystal frost, which distorted the scant lighting with a iridescent tint. Greenery danced across the room, debris mixed with leafs fell gracefully- like petals of a cherry blossom tree wafting in a delicate current, a dichotomous resemblance.