•𝑶𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑺𝑰𝑫𝑬•【√】

▽fínαl▽

He's the last demon still fighting. He's got an arm wrapped around an exposed support beam in the broken wall, laughing wildly. He's at least forty feet away, on the other side of the whirling flames, and I can barely look at him through the blindingly bright fire, but I know it's him. His grey hair whips around his sharp face, matching the billowing of his clothes. His one free arm is reaching out, his long fingers pointed at me.

I can't breathe. My lungs are caving in on themselves, and I can't fucking breathe. A shuddering jolt runs through me, further crushing my aching lungs. Something's caught in my throat. I choke and gag and cough, trying to breathe. I need to breathe. The taste of blood floods my mouth. I hold my hands over my face to wipe the blood away, but there's too much. I can't scream. Even if I could, no one would hear it over the shrieking Hell-hole. Everyone else is still locked in battle or trapped along the circle of the portal. No one would notice if I died right now.

Sangchul smiles at me, still laughing. He's barely holding onto the beam, and the raging wind batters against him, pulling him towards the portal. Just slip. Just fucking go back to Hell you unimaginable bastard. I can't breathe. The burning of my oxygen deprived chest and the blistering of my skin makes me feel like I'm being burnt alive from the inside. My legs give out, but I'm still up. How am I standing? Whatever force that's holding me in place is keeping me up.

The spell. It needed three people ringed in a circle. If I die the circle would break. The spell would end. Sangchul  isn't after revenge or a final kill before he goes. He's trying to close the portal.

The roaring that fills this place fades, or maybe I just can't hear it anymore. Please, God, just make him fall. As long as he's back in Hell I'll die, I promise. I'll go quietly, just take him first.

I turn to look at what's left of the fight. Taehyung  is sparring against a redheaded woman I recognize from being held captive. Joon is blasting the last stragglers trying to run. Jimin is wrestling that horrible curved knife out of Soojung's hands. Yoongi is swinging his bolt cutter at a short, burly man; he catches the guy right in the shoulders and the force sends him to the ground. Someone must've hit Jin with iron, because I can't see him. I can't find Jeongguk.

I see sparks, and my already shaky sight begins to go black at the edges. I can't go yet. Not yet. Sangchul  is still here.

SOMEONE GET SANGCHUL. I close my eyes and hope someone hears my telegraph. Over there! Please! I spit as much blood from my mouth as possible. How long can a human go without breathing?

My thoughts are turning to static. I can't go yet. Please. I force my twitching eyes open, but everything's a swirl of blinding lights and dense blackness. Not yet. I feel like I'm going to be sick, but my throat is sealed shut. Not yet.

My blood is boiling. He can't get away. The stink of burning flesh is everywhere. Not after all this. My legs are twitching, convulsing from lack of air. I'm dying. The fierce wind slows. No, not yet. Please. I can't see. I can't think. I'm dying. The searing heat of the flaming Hell gate seems to lessen. No, I'm not dead yet. Don't close. I fall, my kneecaps cracking against the concrete floor. The circle is broken. One final gust of sulfurous wind rages, and the fire rises to the roof as it gets swallowed by the Earth.

No. The floor falls away in front of me. The center of the crater is still fiery. The portal is still holding itself open. I'm right on the edge, about to plummet down. I'm losing it. I'm going to pass out if I can't breathe soon, and I'm going to fall right into Hell.