Chapter Text
The City of TaceCivi,
08/04/3027
Miss Bae, or rather The Prophetess, as everyone knew her, looked up from her crystal ball. The Emperor, the current leader of the world, locked eyes with her.
“Well? What do you see?"
"I see fire." she answered coldly "Fire and destruction. You will be defeated by a person with the voice of angels and the power of gods. And there's nothing you can do to change it."
The man snarled "We will see about that."
Within days all music was banned across the country. And those who refused were used as an example to the others.
Miss Bae took her son by the shoulders. He was staring at her with wide eyes, fear no thirteen year old should ever feel visible in the subtle shaking of his body.
"I need you to listen to me, darling." she said "He will not stop here. After he's done with us, he will move onto the children of anyone who dared to disobey."
Doohoon tried his best not to cry, but it was getting harder and harder "Mom-"
"You have to find the one who will save us. This will help you." she shoved a book in his hands, a black necklace with red crystal dangling from between the pages "They'll take me too, they are already coming. They know what you can do so you have to run, do you understand?"
Her son gulped, holding onto the book like it could save him "But-"
"I love you, darling, okay?”
He wanted to do something, to at least hug her back. But he was frozen in fear and confusion.
Then the door was thrown open with a loud bang. Doohoon almost lost his balance when a guard pushed him away, catching himself on the cupboard. His eyes widened as his mother was led out.
"Mom!" he ran after them.
His mother didn't resist as they led her towards the execution site. He tried to keep up with them, only for the guards to keep pushing him away.
"Mom!"
Doohoon was pushed away for the last time, falling to the ground with a yelp, dust flying into the air around him and gravel embedding itself in his hands. He looked up to see his mother getting the rope tied around her neck.
Loud crying and sobbing made him turn away. A few feet from him stood two boys. The younger of the two was sobbing and crying hysterically while the other held him close, trying to calm him down even though tears were streaming down his own cheeks. Two women up next to his mother muttering soft apologies while crying as well. Doohoon turned back to find his mother looking at him with a soft smile. She nodded, mouthing a single word.
'Run.'
Doohoon wiped at his eyes, taking a last look at her before booking it. He aimed straight for the two kids, grabbing the older by the wrist and dragging him along.
"Hey!"
He turned around when he found he couldn't run quite as easily to find the older boy with his heels planted firmly into the ground.
"What do you think you're doing?"
By the sound of the crowd they didn't have much time anymore. Doohoon bent down slightly to be eye level with the kid "Look, I know we don't know each other, but right now you have to listen to me." he looked around, catching a glimpse of the guards walking through the people "We don't have much time. Once the people up there are killed, we are next. I can help you but I need you to trust me."
The boy looked back at his younger friend who was holding onto his jacket in tight grip, eyes wide and glassy with tears. The older of the two pursed his lips, his face way too serious for a child that could've been 10 at most. And he turned around to face the youngest boy, crouching "Woorimie, can you do something for me?"
"Hyung…?" the boy whispered unsurely.
"I need you to hold onto my hand, okay? Hold really tight and don't let go."
The boy nodded, holding onto his hand. Doohoon smiled a little, taking a hold of his other hand carefully. And they ran.
As long as he focused on the two boys he wouldn't break down. Yeah that's it, he just needed to focus. Focus on the way, focus on the gravel moving under his feet, focus, focus, focus.
He didn't know how long they ran. They stopped far away, almost at the border of the city, with the youngest gasping for breath, his small legs almost not keeping him up anymore. Doohoon motioned for them to be quiet, entering one of the rundown houses with the two boys behind him.
They found out the house was a pub. Or was supposed to be, at least. Only a few, very questionable, people were sitting at the tables. An older woman behind the bar turned to them. Her eyes softened when she caught sight of Doohoon "Oh, young one. It was your mother's turn wasn't it?" she asked. Doohoon nodded, biting the inside of his cheek.
"Ah, she knew it'd come. I promised her to help you. That's why you're here, isn't it?"
"Yes, ma'am." he took a step forward "Just for tonight. I-I promised her to leave the city." he gulped.
Doohoon helped put the youngest to bed. It wasn't ideal, three of them sleeping in one tiny cramped room, but the little one was basically falling asleep on his feet so they would survive it. And it was only for one night.
“What's your name?” asked the older of the two boys. He turned to look at him with a surprised hum.
“Well, we are obviously stuck together for now. Might as well know it.”
“Bae Doohoon.” he said softly “You two?”
“I’m Mingyu.” he turned to look at his friend who was already fast asleep “And that’s Woorim.”
Doohoon nodded, falling silent for a second “How… How old are you two?”
Mingyu shrugged, sitting on the bed “I’m nine and he’s six.”
Dohoon’s breath hitched. He assumed they were young, but this… God, he can’t drag them along during this. He’ll have to find somewhere for them before anything.
“Your mom was The Prophetess, wasn’t she?”
He nodded, looking out of the window. The book of prophecies was now in his lap. He was surprised the necklace didn’t fall out while they were running. Mingyu hummed before getting in bed with Woorim, the younger immediately nuzzling to him.
“A lot of people are blaming her…” Mingyu muttered, pulling Woorim slightly closer.
Doohoon looked up, trying to stop the tears that were gathering in his eyes "Are they…"
"Yeah." Mingyu settled in the bed properly, pulling the blanket over himself "I can't say I don't know why."
Doohoon didn't react. He sat by the window in silence as tears rolled down his cheeks, reflecting the light of the stars and the moon.
"Why couldn't you just lie?" he whispered, looking into the sky. Maybe his mom could see him from there "Why-Why did you tell him? You could've still been here…" he wiped at his eyes, trying to stifle the sobs that bubbled in his throat, threatening to suffocate him "Why would you leave me?"
He grabbed at his hair, curling up in the chair. The book fell to the ground with a soft thud, but he couldn't be bothered to pick it up. Not now, not when everything was crashing down, not when his mom was gone…
Chapter Text
Woorim sat up with a soft rustling of the sheet. He looked around, confused about his surroundings. Before everything from the day before came flooding back. If all of his tears weren't already wasted yesterday he'd have probably cried again.
Instead he looked around. The sun wasn't up yet, but he could see the sky lightening up from the window.
Speaking of the window, the older boy from yesterday was still on the chair, his back in a weird position, with his arms crossed under his head on the windowsill for at least some comfort.
Woorim carefully pulled Mingyu's arms from his body, jumping down from the bed. He didn't know what exactly he wanted to do, but he had the feeling he should do something.
That something became more concrete when he saw the book on the ground. He walked over to it, picking it up from the ground. It looked huge in his hands. And it was also heavier than he expected.
He put it on the windowsill, about to go back when he noticed the necklace dangling from the pages. With a soft, curious hum he carefully pulled it out, looking it over in his hands.
It was a simple black chain. He wouldn't find it so interesting if the red crystal didn't look so… dead. Even though it was still dark there should be some light reflecting on it.
"You shouldn't touch what isn't yours."
Woorim jerked in surprise, turning to find Doohoon's eyes open, looking out of the window. The older's eyes were red, tear tracks visible on his cheeks as the first rays of sun started to set on his face. He muttered a quick apology before putting the necklace on top of the book.
He looked at the boy unsurely "I don't blame your mom." he said softly, fisting his hands at his sides.
Doohoon looked at him, his expression unchanging "What?"
"I heard you and hyung talking… I don’t blame her. My mom didn't either."
Doohoon had to force himself to get up and start moving. His muscles and bones protested with every step he took, but he knew they had to move. They entered the chilly morning air, armed with some clothes the woman found and a bag with things Doohoon's mom left there for him. He took a deep breath, shivering slightly.
He looked down when he felt chubby fingers wrap themselves around one of his own. Woorim was looking up at him with such childish innocence in his eyes he almost broke down again. Almost.
"Let's go." he muttered, trying to smile at him.
Woorim was holding onto Mingyu's hand as well, pulling him along.
"There's a town a few miles south." Doohoon said as they left the city behind "It will take a few days to get there…"
'There are villages on the way… I can leave them there.'
The main problem with his plan was the fact the first village was also miles away. If he were alone it'd take him a few hours, maybe he'd get there while there was still light. But he had two kids with him, which slowed him down by quite a bit.
"Hyung, I can't go anymore!" whimpered Woorim, pulling at Mingyu's hand.
The other boy huffed "I know, Woorim, but we have to."
"But my legs hurt…"
Doohoon sighed and turned around. Woorim had stopped a little behind, tears in his eyes. Mingyu looked like he was going to cry as well as he tried to pull Woorim along "Woorim, come on…"
"Come here." Doohoon crouched in front of the boy "I'll carry you."
Mingyu helped Woorim climb onto his back. Then, Doohoon took his hand and they started walking again.
"How much longer?" Woorim asked, eyes drooping and voice soft.
"We need to go as far as we can." Doohoon answered softly "So we walk for as long as possible."
"Aren't you tired?"
"No, no I'm not tired." he was exhausted, but the child didn't need to be burdened by that.
They were walking through a forest, all three of them now stumbling over the roots and their own feet.
"We need to stop." Mingyu said, pulling at Doohoon's hand "We are all tired, we need a break."
Doohoon looked back at them. If it were only him he'd walk until his legs gave out, but the two of them were looking like they were going to drop dead any second and he didn't have the heart to keep dragging them along.
So he nodded. He gave them some of the food that was in the bag and sat a little away, opening the book of prophecies. Maybe his mom left something in there, something that could help him. He frowned when he opened the first page to find it empty. Only for words to slowly appear. He blinked, as if to make sure he wasn't dreaming before reading it quickly.
'You should listen to those near you.
- love, mom'
He stared at it for a second, before a soft laugh bubbled out of his throat.
Doohoon knew for a fact the village wasn't that far away anymore. That's why he insisted on walking without another break. Looking back at it, he should've expected it to end up like this.
Within minutes of the dark falling, he had Mingyu fast asleep on his back and Woorim on his hip, carrying the two of them forward.
And seriously, Doohoon should've thought more about this. He wasn't the strongest person he knew by far and he was just thirteen. He could feel himself tiring out the second he picked Woorim up. But at the end, it was worth it when they finally reached the village.
The streets were empty and quiet except for a few homeless people, some of them drunkenly blabbering about something he couldn’t quite make out. Doohoon was careful to keep to the shadows and not alert them. Because with two children hanging on him, he couldn't very well outrun them if they were aggressive.
The plan was clear, find the orphanage, leave the two kids there, and move. on. It was a flawless plan really. He'll leave them at the doorstep and before they wake up he will be far far away.
But as he stood in front of the building, with Woorim holding onto his shirt in small fists and Mingyu nuzzling to him like a kitten in his sleep, he found he couldn't do that. No matter how much the rational part of his brain tried to talk him into moving.
So he sighed, adjusted his hold on the two boys and moved on.
Chapter Text
The City of TaceCivi,
15/11/3041
Kang Hyungho was a constant presence on the "Dark Sides", as they were called by the locals, since he was 15.
A place where rebels continued to live like The Emperor could never touch them for breaking the rules. Laughter, alcohol and, most importantly to him, music were at every corner, making the dark filthy streets feel like… home. Or more of a home than the quiet, surgically clean "Light Sides" ever were.
He walked through the streets, his guitar strapped to his back. This time he had a more concrete goal than usual. One of the others told him about a bar, where music was the clearest and most alive.
So of course Hyungho had to check it out. He followed the other man through the streets, making turns and turns until they were at the very border of the city.
"Are you sure it's here?" Hyungho asked when they stopped in front of a small, falling apart house. It looked more like a cottage that should be somewhere out in the forest than a house in a city like this. Phillip grinned "Trust me."
He led Hyungho down a few stairs that led to a short tunnel. There, in front of an iron door stood a man, tall and threatening. He looked like he was either a bouncer or just someone who would really like to beat the crap out of you.
"I brought a new guy." Phillip said.
The bouncer looked Hyungho up and down coldly "Does the boss know?" he asked. Hyungho took an unsure step back, holding onto the strap of his guitar case anxiously.
"Well he technically doesn't, but come on! That never stopped you when Mingyu or Woorim brought someone."
The man rolled his eyes "Just this once." he motioned Hyungho over.
He hesitated. Who's to say they won't just hand him right over to the guards? It has happened before to many people. His dad would probably go crazy if they brought him because of this and-
"Go on. He doesn't bite." Phillip said. Hyungho took an unsure step forward.
"Your left hand. Palm up." instructed the bouncer.
He unsurely obeyed, looking up at him "What's that for?"
"To make sure you aren't a snitch." he took out a pen from his pocket. And before Hyungho could even wonder what that was for he poked his palm with it.
Hyungho yelped in surprise at the sudden pain. He was about to pull his hand back on impulse, but the man grabbed his wrist. He started muttering something in a language Hyungho didn't dare guess the origin of.
And within seconds the pain was gone. Hyungho blinked in surprise, staring at the palm where there was no evidence of anything ever happening, before looking up at the man.
"You can go in now." he said simply, like that explained everything.
Hyungho didn't have time to actually ask anything as Phillip opened the door. And he froze in surprise and awe. He could clearly see inside. Numerous people were laughing and talking in a room that was bathed in warm yellow light. But he couldn't actually hear anything.
Phillip smiled at him, as if to say 'see? told you it's cool!' before walking through the door. Hyungho blinked as his friend's body caused the air in the doorway to ripple like water.
Carefully, he extended a hand, caressing the air. It was soft, like there was a silk curtain across the doorway, small waves and ripples appeared where his hand touched. He pulled back, looking at his hand in wonder. And finally, he took a hold of the guitar case and made a step forward.
And for a second, there was only silence and dark. Before everything hit him at once. The bright lights, the voices, the music.
Hyungho looked around in wonder. He couldn't suppress a smile as he took it all in. The place was like a replica of an old inn he'd see in fairytale books, a small stage at one of the walls. On the stage itself was a man, singing his heart out while a few people sat close by, listening.
"Isn't it great?"
He turned to Phillip, nodding with a bright smile. His friend suddenly grabbed his wrist "Before anything, there's a ritual. The newcomers always gotta perform."
His smile fell "Excuse me?"
But he was already pulled to the side of the stage. There stood a slight man with a clipboard in hand. His features reminded Hyungho of a cat. Especially when he lifted his head and looked him up and down like he was a mouse he was supposed to catch.
"Hello, Mingyu." Phillip said brightly.
"Who is that?" the man, Mingyu, asked.
"His name is-"
"Pitta." Hyungho stopped Phillip. He really didn't need people he didn't know to go around using his real name "I'm his friend."
Mingyu raised an eyebrow before looking at Phillip "Does Doohoon-hyung know about him?"
"Well, no. But you and Woorim bring new people all the time without telling him! Speaking of the kid, where is he? I thought today was his turn."
"Yuna came so I let him have the bar tonight, so they can talk." Mingyu turned back to Hyungho "I hope you can sing."
And he walked on the stage, passing the previous singer on his way. He took the microphone, smiling "Alright, everybody. We got a new person here and you know what that means!" there were excited yells and whistles at that, causing Mingyu to laugh "Yes, I know, let's give him a hand, shall we?"
"He's quite the showman, isn't he?" Hyungho asked.
"Well, there's nothing wrong with being a little extra." Phillip shrugged "Get your guitar out, time to show them what you can do."
When Mingyu called him on stage, he realized he had no idea what he was going to sing. He didn't plan on singing today at all, to be fully honest.
"Well…" he muttered to himself "I shall do my worst."
Only when the people started laughing did he realize the mic picked that up. His cheeks went slightly pink, but he smiled nonetheless.
Chapter Text
Doohoon was seriously going crazy at this point. He kept flicking through his mother's book of prophecies but the page was still empty.
"Why are you empty, why isn't anything there, why are you doing this to me?"
For the past 15 years, without a mistake, there always appeared a small prediction, something he needed to know that day. For 15 years… But today? Nothing. The blank page stared at him back almost mockingly. He closed the book. And opened it again. Still blank. Doohoon groaned, letting his head fall and smack against the book.
He looked up with a confused frown when he heard soft rustling behind him. Slowly he turned around in his chair.
“What the hell…?” he muttered when he saw one of his drawers shaking, like something was trying to open it from inside.
He took the letter opener on his desk before standing up and opening the drawer slowly. Something flew up so fast it threw him back, making him crash against the table.
Doohoon looked around in shock to find the necklace his mom left him trying to get through the closed door.
His eyes widened in realization. He ran forward, opening the door and following the necklace down the stairs towards the basement, almost falling over numerous times.
Only for the necklace to suddenly stop and drop. He caught it hastily, his eyes still wide and breathing slightly ragged.
And he broke into a sprint, almost causing the door that led inside the bar to fall from their place. The people inside were cheering but he couldn't see anyone on the stage.
When he reached the bar he found Woorim leaning towards Yuna with a small smile on his face. He grabbed the younger's shoulder making him startle.
"Hyung, what's wrong?" Woorim asked, blinking in surprise.
"Who was it? Who was singing just now?" Doohoon asked, taking a hold of his jacket, eyes wide and hair a mess. He must've looked crazy, but he was past the point of caring.
"I-I don't know, Mingyu-hyung took over today." Woorim stuttered out.
Doohoon stared at him for a second before the words fully registered "I- Aish!" and he ran off.
Woorim and Yuna exchanged a confused glance.
He pushed through the crowd, hastily bowing back to whoever greeted him. When he finally reached the stage he grabbed Mingyu by the shoulders, now definitely looking crazy "Who was singing just now?"
Mingyu stared at him for a second before handing him the clipboard "Some new guy. Phillip brought him. He was pretty good."
"New guy?" Doohoon asked, finally seeing the name "Pitta?" Mingyu shrugged "Nevermind that, where is he?"
"I don't know, he went off with Phillip."
Doohoon was about to run off again, but Mingyu grabbed his wrist, stopping him "Hyung, what's going on?"
He looked around anxiously before turning to his friend "The necklace woke up."
Mingyu frowned "What do you mean it 'woke up'?"
"It's him. The one mom's prophecy was about."
Mingyu's eyes widened "Are you serious?"
"Yes! Yes, I am serious. Now help me find him!"
Mingyu turned around, shoving the clipboard into the hands of a random man "Take over for me for a bit." and they were off.
He grabbed Doohoon's arm, steering him in a different direction "Here they are! Phillip!"
The man turned around in surprise. He took a step back, his eyes widening "Oh-uh- Doohoon-hyung!" he smiled anxiously "Look, it's not what it looks like-"
Doohoon ignored him completely, grabbing his friend by the wrist "We need to talk."
Hyungho tried to pull away, but didn't manage to get out of his hold "What's wrong with you?"
"Look, I know this looks weird-"
"Weird? You look straight up crazy, let me go!" he finally pulled his hand free.
Doohoon, shook his head abruptly, catching both of his hands "Nonononono, please! Please just hear me out." he was almost kneeling, staring at him with pleading eyes.
People were starting to give them weird looks. But mostly because they weren't really that familiar with Hyungho. Most of them either knew Doohoon for years or met him on the streets after a vision so they were used to his antics by now.
"Hyung, what's going on?" Phillip asked, only to be ignored again.
"Please." Doohoon repeated, dropping his voice slightly "It's really important."
Hyungho stared at him, unsure whether to be scared or weirded out. He looked at Phillip who looked to be in a similar position.
Chapter Text
Hyungho scoffed, sitting opposite of the three men in the storage room "Are you serious?"
"Listen." Doohoon said, ruffling his hair "I know it sounds crazy, I know. But it's the truth."
"Right. 'The Chosen One' that's going to save the world that some weirdo predicted."
"It wasn't 'some weirdo' it was my mom."
"Right, sorry." he put his hands up "The Chosen One that your mom predicted."
"Will you just hear us out?" Mingyu said.
"No." he stood up "No, I think I heard about enough actually."
Woorim and Mingyu were immediately up as well.
"Wait, please." Woorim tried.
"I'm not waiting for anything, I came here because of Phillip and for the music. I didn't come here to listen to made up stories!"
"We are not making it up!" Mingyu said "You are one of the reasons we opened this bar, we've been searching for you for years-"
"No! No, I-I'm not going to listen to this any longer!"
Woorim looked down at Doohoon hoping he was going to help. Only to find his friend looking vaguely ill. He leaned down slightly "Hyung?" he put a hand on his shoulder "Are you alright?"
Doohoon blinked, jerking slightly "I-I don't-" he gulped, covering his mouth "I need a second, I'm-I'm sorry." he practically ran out of the room.
Hyungho looked after him in surprise "What was that?"
Mingyu shook his head.
Doohoon shut the door to his office behind him, leaning against them with his back. He tried to force himself to breathe, stumbling to the table to sit down.
The book of prophecies was still opened, but he ignored it for the sake of covering his mouth when he gagged. He could feel his lunch coming back up, gulping to stop it from actually seeing the light of the day again.
"Remember what mom said. Deep breaths, deep breaths, deep breaths-" he grabbed at his hair in an attempt to ground himself. His eyes were losing focus and when he tried to blink the blur away it only seemed to worsen. The world was spinning around him and he could feel the ground give out beneath his legs-
Heavy boots stomped along the floor of his bar. Men armed with bulky high-tech guns grabbed and pushed the people inside. He looked around, the sounds of the screaming muffled, the colors too bright and distorted.
But he could hear one scream loud and clear, ringing right in his head.
Mingyu got thrown onto the bar, painful looking bonds cuffed onto his hands as he tried to struggle free.
"Hyung!"
Before anyone could do anything to stop him, Woorim rushed past to help him, bumping into Doohoon's shoulder in the process. Only to get three more men on top of him. Somewhere he could hear Yuna scream.
Everything was just a chaos of noise and movement as people tried to run away, only to get chased after. And Doohoon lost balance when a guard pushed him.
He crashed against the chair with a loud gasp, looking around in panic, only to find bloody drops on the book's pages and all over the table. He wiped at his nose, more blood on his hands and face.
And slowly the realization dawned on him. He stood up, stumbling slightly as he tried to rush out the door as fast as he could, the book held tightly in his hands.
He threw the door to the storage room open, making it bump against the wall loudly. The three occupants froze.
Mingyu was the first one to wake up from the shock, quickly rushing over to support his shaky friend.
"Hyung?" Woorim asked "What happened?"
"We need to get out." he said instead of answering, looking around wildly "Someone ratted us out, they-they sent soldiers. We need to leave, now."
Woorim was immediately out the door, practically punching the emergency button on the wall which caused a red light to flicker throughout the entire place. He ran into the main room, seeing everyone scrambling to get out of the back door.
"Woorim!"
He turned around to find Yuna running over to him. Immediately he caught her in his arms "You need to get out." he said quickly "Doohoon-hyung said there are soldiers coming. You have to go."
She stared at him for a moment, holding onto his hands tightly "What about you?"
"I will be fine." he dropped his voice slightly "We found him. The one the prophecy was about."
"What?"
He lifted his head, seeing Taein on his way out with his friends "Taein-hyung!"
Taein turned to him, running over through the crowd.
Woorim looked back at Yuna, smiling a little "Stay with them until it's over."
"But-"
"Look after her for me." he handed her hands over to Taein who gently took one of her wrists. He didn't want to let go. But it was safer. She was safer if she didn't follow them.
The older man nodded "I'll make sure she's safe." and he started dragging her along.
"Woorim, wait-"
"I'll find you when it's over!" he promised, trying to not let his uncertainty show. He owed her at least that little bit of comfort.
When they got lost in the crowd, he quickly grabbed the two bags he and Mingyu kept under the bar in case of emergencies like this.
He met the others in the hallway, throwing the bag at Mingyu before supporting still shaky Doohoon from the other side.
Pitta was still with them, which he considered a small victory.
"Follow us." Mingyu said.
Although there probably wasn't a need to clarify that. It's not like he had anywhere else to run when he didn't know this place or what was going on properly.
Chapter Text
Doohoon promised himself he wouldn't cry.
He always knew this might happen, but no matter how much he tried to reason with himself he couldn't help the tightening in his chest and the lump in his throat when he watched the insane amount of guards storming the place he called home for the past decade.
Mingyu gently pulled at his arm “We have to go, hyung.”
He nodded “I know.” he knows. He just can't. He just can't force himself to turn his back, his legs refusing to move and his vision blurring.
“Hyung.” Woorim’s hand feels heavy on his shoulder. It grounds him a little “Hyung, come on.”
Doohoon released a deep breath. And he let Woorim drag him along.
The streets were empty. It's always been something Hyungho hated about his part of the city. It was so… sterile. His dad would say it was heaven. It was safe. He disagreed. It just looked dead.
Woorim pushed them all back into the side street, panic in his eyes “Guards. There are guards.”
Hyungho looked at him for a second. Then, he turned to Doohoon “Act drunk.”
He frowned, looking at him like he was crazy “Excuse me?”
“You and you,” Mingyu put a hand on his chest ‘me?’ “Act drunk. I can talk us out of this but you need to look out of commission.”
They didn't really have many choices. They couldn't outrun them and the footsteps were steadily approaching.
So Mingyu slumped against Woorim, Doohoon leaning against the wall with his arm and gagging, covering his mouth. Hyungho managed to hide his guitar behind a dumpster just as two soldiers rounded the corner, aiming their weapons right at their faces “Identification and-”
“WOAH!” Hyungho put his arms up “Damn it guys, you scared me.”
The two guards stared at him over the white breathing masks covering their faces. Hyungho raised an eyebrow “Will you put the guns down or not? Jeez, dad wasn't kidding when he said the new guys are dumb.”
One of them finally put his gun down “And your father is…?”
“Chairman Kang.” he answered immediately, watching their eyes widen when he showed them his ID “I mean, seriously, I'm trying to get my friends home-” Doohoon understood the cue, gagging loudly “-and you just start aiming these at us for no reason.” he pushed the other gun out of his face “Is that what they're teaching you now?”
“N-no, sir.” one of them stuttered out, grabbing his colleague by the sleeve “Have a good night, sir.” and they were gone.
Hyungho waited until they rounded the corner before turning to the others “Coast’s clear.” Mingyu was staring at him. Oh he hated when people stared at him like that “Listen, you can either get over it and we can keep moving or you can stare at me until they come back and shoot us. I know which one I prefer.”
Mingyu still didn't move. So Woorim grabbed his arm, pulling him along “Come on, let's go.”
They wanted to talk about it. He could tell they wanted to talk about it.
“Dad and I don't really get along.” he said finally as they neared the borders of the city.
“And you still use his name to get out of trouble?” Mingyu asked, almost an accusing tone to his voice.
“I watched him and The Emperor take the lives of hundreds of people, I think I deserve to make something good out of it.”
Woorim pushed Mingyu’s shoulder. His friend waved him off.
There was a ladder, mounted to the wall with rusty screws, holding on just by the power of will. Nobody uses these anymore, no reason to keep them in check. It bent and creaked as Doohoon took a hold of it, pulling himself up.
Not the safest route he'd choose, but they don't have many choices.
“You really think you can stop him?” Hyungho asked, stopping them intheir tracks.
Doohoon looked at him “Not without you.” and he meant it “I understand why you don't trust me. But if you help us, we can finally end this.” his face softened suddenly, looking at the guitar case still hanging on Hyungho’s back “Don't you want to sing?”