Mists of Celeste - an Ateez Fanfic

act four ➻ part seven

"Captain won't hurt him."

You don't need to turn to see who has just stepped in, but you do nonetheless at least for the smallest semblance of confirmation. It doesn't make it any easier to see who stands at the edge of the tunnel, bright light cascading around his tall form and casting crude shadows across the floor as he walks closer to the group. You swallow around nothing in anticipation although nothing could prepare you for what Mingi says next.

"Because I'm the one going in there, not Jongho."

"Absolutely not!" Yunho blurts without a breath of hesitation, hand jerking down by his side in a fist clenched so tightly that his knuckles go white.

"Mingi, how did you get here?" Seonghwa adds. This must not be according to plan for him to sound so bewildered, unless Hongjoong has truly kept him out of the loop but again that wouldn't make an ounce of sense since Hongjoong spoke so adamantly about Jongho being the one to go in with him. So the only reasonable conclusion is that —

"I left the bunker."

The only reasonable conclusion is, in fact, that Mingi has come to the arena by his own choice and volition.

"How the hell did you get out?" San interjects, pushing closer to Mingi with a hand stretched towards the man's arm. Mingi merely blinks back at the shorter man without seeming surprised in the slightest.

"I knocked on the door and they let me out. How else would I have gotten out?"

"Why?" Seonghwa's tone is nothing short of livid, and for a moment, you fear that his rage will affect Mingi in turn, but the Berserker manages to keep his steady expression with little effort.

"That's my captain in there. That's my captain who is about to fight, and that's my crewmate who is taking the place that should be mine. Lieutenant, you said yourself that if he let you, you would take Captain's place in a heartbeat. I feel the same way about Jongho."

Feel. Mingi feels the same way about Jongho. It shouldn't have as much impact as it does, but your heart clenches painfully in your chest and you blink at Mingi's expression of determination with a certain sense of disbelief. The anger on Seonghwa's features melts away, replaced by some other emotion you can't quite place upon first glance.

"I was there when they prepared this plan yesterday," Mingi continues. "I heard Jongho and Captain discussing what would happen as a last resort. Captain had wanted to talk Vladimir down and make him see reason. But in the event that he was not able to do that–"

"He would put himself on the line," Seonghwa finishes, gaze falling to the dusty cobblestone. His jaw shifts as he mulls over his next words, and you can practically see the gears turning in his head. "Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth."

"Exactly. But Jongho doubted that Vladimir would take Captain up on the offer, didn't think he would allow Captain to select his own opponent." Seonghwa hums, a sound that is noncommittal and meant to fill the small lapse in conversation when Mingi finishes speaking.

"Vlad only accepted because he has something else in mind. He can't trust Jongho not to go easy on Hongjoong or anything like that."

"But... he can trust the Brute of Kebos to do his job. What that man wants is more than blood. He wants the Brute of Kebos in his arena because that's what he can trust. And so, I must deliver it."

"No," Yunho mutters, head shaking from side to side almost violently. "No! This could ruin everything. Don't you see that? All the years of progress, everything I've done, all of it–"

"It won't though." Mingi sounds far too confident. There is a sense of finality to his words, and even Yunho is forced to stop speaking and focus on what Mingi has to say for himself. "The second Vladimir sees me in the arena, the tide will shift. His plan will go out the window because everyone here heard what he said. He craves to control the beast. The way he exercises that power is through his hand. It's just like my father. I have seen it time and time again, lived it time and time again. Vladimir wants to see Captain dead, and he will want me to deliver the killing blow. But when he puts that thumb down and tells me to kill Captain... I won't do it."