She whispered menacingly in his ear, her face so close to him that he could just feel the evil radiance glowing off her very own breath.

"Tell me where Sakura is... and I will let you live..."

...

Time: 15:03, October 23

"Stay alive... come on... please..."

Shaking hands gripped onto his shirt, pulling him from the rubble he had been encased within, up into the light.
He could feel the person's rattled breaths and puffs hit against his face as they checked for his pulse with their hand, leaning over him, their face filled with concern.

"Hey, Kim Sunoo... you're too young to die... not now, please, not now."

He felt paralysed, his body feeling disconnected from his mind. He couldn't even move his neck or open his eyes, half because of the numbing sensation, the other because a wave of weariness seemed to be keeping him pinned down.
Sunoo could only hear the panicked voice talking to him.
A voice he had needed dearly. From someone who could help him.

It was K.

The boy fumbled with the medical pack at his waist, ignoring the blood dripping from his shoulder from a large gnash, and extracted a vial.
He looked at Sunoo's leg.

It was a horrible sight; it appeared twisted at an awkward angle, bending at a point it shouldn't have been, and it was covered in blood. Sunoo's leg had been completely crushed from the brick wall which had fallen on him.

In reality, the brick wall had fallen onto both of them. The spirit could've killed them then and there, but by some type of luck they were able to keep consciousness, let alone survive the impact.
A large commotion erupted behind K, as Heesung and Jay fought the spirit side by side, whilst also providing cover for the two who were injured.

K crouched protectively beside Sunoo, taking small safety glances behind him as he attempted to nurse his comrade back to health.

Slowly but surely, Sunoo could sense the feeling of his body coming back to him, though there was still the effect of drowsiness. Yet, it was enough for him to raise a weak hand to K, signalling that he wasn't brain dead, at least.

K let out a large gasp of relief, taking Sunoo into an embrace.
"Oh my gosh, Sunoo- Sunoo, thank you... I thought you were gone!"

Gone.
Sunoo wasn't gone. He was saved.

But that was all in the past now.
Everything was different.
K had been their healer. Times had changed.
Now it was him. Sunoo.

And K was gone.
K was dead. There was nothing he could do to bring him back. No way to pay him back for the deed he was in debt to.

...

"Hey! Sunoo, wake up! Sunoo!"

A pair of hands shook him awake, and he opened his eyes groggily, but he couldn't see out of his left eye, as it was glazed with red blood.
But he didn't need his left eye to see what was happening; in front of him was Sunghoon and Kazuha, faces plastered with a scared and shocked look.

Sunghoon shook Sunoo's shoulder, upon seeing his opened eyes.
"Sun- Sunoo?!? Sunoo, what do we do?!?" he called, his face almost paler than Sunoo's with shock.

Sunoo could barely hear him, his voice sounded nothing more than a distorted echo far in the distance, despite Sunghoon being right next to him.

With one large grunt, Sunoo did his best to push himself off the floor, using his good hand. It was an extremely large struggle, and his efforts only got him to prop his upper body against the wall.
His body, especially his lower half, felt tingly and numb, and it took him a long time before he could actually feel them again.

Sunoo stared at Kazuha and Sunghoon, trying to find the words in his mouth. His eyes drifted between them, and it was difficult to tell who was who, because of his head which was throbbing painfully and because his vision was hazed such a violent white that they looked just like translucent white silhouettes.
It was extremely slow, but he could feel his vision coming back to normal, as the blood rushed back into his head.

Kazuha stared at his face, her body rigid with fear.
Half of his face had been covered in his own blood, where he had lain, and the other half was a ghostly pale. There was no colour in Sunoo's lips, or on his face at all, and his face looked almost skeletal, his cheeks beginning to sink inwards.

She heard Sunghoon curse loudly beside her, beating his hand on the ground in stress.
"Sunoo, for god's sake! Let us help you! Tell- Just freaking tell us how to help you!" He cried, desperate.

Sweat was dripping down his face.
He was genuinely worried for Sunoo, and Kazuha could see it clearly.

But, without Sunoo to tell then what to do, there was little to no assistance they could provide for him.
The game between life and death turned into a waiting game.

Kazuha supported Sunoo by the shoulders, trying to reassure him and Sunghoon, but also herself.
"Come on, Sunoo... Hang in there..." she mumbled.

She stifled a sniff.
As close as she was to breaking into tears, now wasn't the time for it. It would make the situation look worse for all of them.

They were completely helpless, and she knew it.
All they could do was wait for some stroke of luck to come by.
Whether that'd be the others coming back, or Sunoo able to move himself again, she didn't know.

It was really just a waiting game.
And Sunoo's life was on the line.

...

"Where did he go?" she muttered, jogging down the alleyway, her head swivelling left and right.

He had been there just mere seconds ago, before he had run away.
But now he was nowhere to be seen.
There was no sight of Heesung, and neither for male spirit they were looking for, either.

The rest of the group were just steps behind her, but it was Jungwon who caught up with Yunjin first.

She turned to him.
"Heesung- I don't know where he went." she said, her voice on an edge.

Jungwon shook his head.
"I don't know either. But we need to find him, or he'll get himself killed out there."

He took out his blade from its sheath, holding it tightly in his hand. Yunjin followed his action.

Jungwon turned to the others behind him, where some of them had pale faces, seeing the absence of Heesung. A few also took out their swords.

He took a deep breath in, setting his voice to a commanding tone.
"We need to find Heesung, quickly."

A voice replied back to Jungwon.
"And the spirit? Isn't that what we came here for?"

Niki had stepped out from the ground, his shoulders tensed up, as if he were itching to get on with it.

Jungwon pursed his lips.
From what he could see, there were two different problems that they were stuck in. One being the spirit, the next being Heesung.

Little did any of them know, the second problem had lead to a third.
To Eunchae.
And soon, she'd lead them to a fourth problem. One larger than any of them had ever faced before.
It was a fatal ticking time bomb waiting to set off.

Jungwon let out a breath.
"Alright, all of you set off for the spirit, me and Yunjin will go for Heesung."

The plan seemed alright to him, but unfortunately it didn't seem to sit well with a certain other, or even, certain others.

Jake stepped forwards.
"The spirit... Jungwon- you know that spirit, right? It's not weak, and it has a weapon. It's armed." He said, a clear pang of worry in his voice.

Jay backed him up, also stepping up, a look of concern plastered on his face.
"That would mean there's only three of us fighting that thing. We don't have Sunoo to help us if we get wounded, what if something goes wrong? Jungwon, you're the best fighter out of us here, if there's someone going to help catch that spirit, it's you." He said, committed to his words.

Jungwon raked through his hair.
They were down a large number, which wasn't ideal for them, especially in this situation.

But, a voice snapped him from his thinking.

"You should go with them. I'll go alone."
Yunjin looked him in the eyes.

"What? No, Yunjin, absolutely not-"

"It's fine, he can't be far. And, if he's at the spirit, at least we'll meet up in the same place. Sometimes, you've got to take risks if it's for the better, it's all part of our duty." She finished, interrupting him.

Yunjin lifted her blade, showing him that she was really willing to take up the challenge.
It was like the decision had already been made.

Jungwon shook his head.
"It's too dangerous..."

"Danger is what Heesung is currently running to. Are you going to sit and wait for him, or will you let me stop him from going? Jungwon, he'll be in more danger than me. You don't want that for him, right? So let me go, before it's too late for the both of us."

Jungwon let his shoulders sink.

"But Yunjin-"

"It'll be for the better for Heesung if Yunjin goes. The more we wait, the more he'll be exposed out there." Niki added, agreeing with Yunjin on her point.

Jungwon looked between the two, at their absolutely serious faces.
There was no changing their minds, not anymore.

"Yunjin... stick to the plan. Get Heesung, and come right back straight away, do not engage with that male spirit whatsoever, alright? To Heesung, and back."

Yunjin nodded.
"I'll take the safest measures. Be safe while fighting, we can't heal without Sunoo's help."

He nodded reluctantly, and watched as she set off down the alleyway at a sprint, disappearing down a bend.

Jungwon turned back to the others.

"Let's find that spirit."

...

Time: 15:20, October 23

She had only been running for mere minutes when a loud echo erupted around the walls of the alleyway.
Yunjin turned to her left, from where the sound had come from.

It had sounded like a large boom, like a mass being thrown against something.
Even though it seemed like an odd lead, it was the only lead she had, and she sprinted down the path.

However, with every step, it felt like more and more air was being pushed from her lungs. Her gasps came stronger and larger. The amount of air being expended was almost an abnormal amount.

It was almost like the air was becoming increasingly heavier and heavier, like some kind of humidity were in the air, but it was twice the density and slightly suffocating in a way.
Yunjin slowed her steps down, for her breath's sake but also because a looming feeling of caution was tingling down her spine.

A rush of adrenaline pumped through her, and goosebumps appeared upon her skin.
It was the same effect as if she were to be being watched, or if her fight or flight instincts were suddenly kicking in with nothing to trigger it.
It was almost like her body reacted to something that was there.
But something she couldn't see.

Yunjin edged to the end of the alleyway, squinting through the darkness, her eyes shooting all around in alarm.
She had her knife firmly gripped in her hand, ready to strike at anything that she could see as a threat.

Yunjin gathered up all the oxygen she could, letting out a large and deep breath to calm her senses.

A huge mistake.

A brute force clasped her by the neck, pulling her around the corner in a chokehold, leaving her to flail and kick around in a useless struggle.

Yunjin felt a large wave of fear consume her, and her heart beat through her chest. She spluttered and beat down on the thing that was attacking her, her lungs feeling completely empty and screaming for air.

In her flurry, she could hear two separate voices, one desperate and human, the other deathly coarse.
Like two pieces of metal scraping together.
Just like that spirit.

Just like Eunchae.

"NO! YUNJIN! WHY?!?" Came the human voice, which was nothing more than a small distant scream, as it was overridden by the inhuman one.

"Perfect timing..."
Eunchae stared down at the girl struggling in her hands with a menacing smile, backing her into the wall adjacent to them, with a horrible amount of force.

Yunjin looked at her with fearful eyes, gritting her teeth.
The girl let out a strained scream, hacking down at Eunchae's arm with her blade, causing her to let go with a unearthly hiss, black blood dripping to the floor, and her ego wounded.

Yunjin clutched at her neck, spluttering, tears up in her eyes.
She tried to retreat away, her legs clumping against the floor in a mess to try and escape.

"You bastard!" Eunchae screeched.

She ran up to Yunjin, sending her down to the floor with a strike across the face, three of her talons ripping through the skin on the girl's cheek.
Yunjin fell to the floor, her mouth agape with shock, clutching her face, which was now bleeding profusely from the gnashes. She let out a scream of pain and fear, staring at Eunchae's manic face as the spirit edged towards her.

"You'll die along with the girl I took over. Your dead soul was watch on while I consume your powers..."

She grunted, shoving her shoe deep into Yunjin's abdomen with a kick, sending her back against the wall with a sickening thud. The air was blasted from Yunjin's lungs, and her blade clattered out of her hands, just out of reach.

She let out a gasp, laying one hand on her stomach, the pain too great for her to stand back up. Whether or not there was a serious injury, she had to wait for the adrenaline to wear off before she'd know.

"N- No..." Yunjin panted.

Her hand drifted up to her blade, and she had to half crawl, half shift herself towards it before she was able to grasp it in her hand again.
But, Eunchae raised her foot, stepping down on Yunjin's hand, pinning it down with such force that she started to slowly crush her hand against the floor.

Yunjin screamed, as gruelling bone cracks rattled the air, and pain shot up the whole of her arm.

"Don't be worried, Yunjin... You won't feel this once I kill you..."
Eunchae smiled, and she continued to crush Yunjin's hand with her weight.

But a desperate voice behind her diverted her attention.

"EUNCHAE! STOP! STOP!!! FINE, FINE! I'LL TELL YOU!"

Momentarily, Eunchae paused in her tracks, turning back to face the person behind her, yet still keeping Yunjin's hand pinned under her sole.

Eunchae turned to Heesung.
He was leaning down on the opposite far wall to them, a thin line of blood dripping from his mouth. Heesung had his hands up, in an act of desperacy.

"Mortals... changing their minds out of pity. How pathetic. Tell me, then... and make it quick."

Eunchae crouched down, and pointed her talons dangerously close to Yunjin's wrist.

"Make it quick... or else dear Yunjin will never see her hand again. I'm sure you don't want anything bad to happen to her... not after our first, what should I call it? Encounter. I was so close to killing her then, and I won't waste an opportunity to kill her now, if you don't give me the answer I seek. Tell me, where she is... Sakura."
Eunchae placed emphasis on the last few words, almost loathing the name of the hunter.

Heesung breathed heavily, looking at Yunjin's fear filled eyes.
Still, through those fear filled eyes, he could see that she begged him not to tell her.

Not to tell Eunchae where Sakura was.
He knew it.
Yunjin'd be willing to give up her hand for the safety of Sakura and Chaewon. But, knowing Eunchae, that'd also mean she'd sacrifice her life, whether that'd be from Eunchae killing her or from blood loss from her severed hand.
Either way, not telling the whereabouts would end up in Yunjin's death.

Heesung took in a deep breath.
His decision would decide the fate of three of his comrades.
And his own one, as well.

"Yunjin... I'm sorry..."

Heesung pushed the words through, his body shaking violently with fear and immense guilt.

"Sakura... is back at base. Your base."

...