⛔🚫WARNING!!!!

There're some mature contents in this chapter; violence, explicit murder scenes, mention of cannibalism, a lot of blood, and strong language.

I've warned you, read at your own risk!!!

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The earth seemed to realize how pathetic it was. It rained out profusely just like a broken heart one shed tears. But then after there was nothing left to take out and the tears had dried up completely-nothing left to shed anymore-it stopped.

The rain had stopped, leaving behind the brutal horror that was soon to come.

Sergeant Park Jimin was still standing among the bushes hidden in the dense towering trees, watching the bus carrying his members, his friends left and disappeared in the distance.

The scene he was witnessing made him oblivious to the sound of howls, growls, and the sound of clattering feet that resembled a large number of soldiers in a war zone that getting closer to where he was standing.

"If you saved me just to give me to other monsters, then get lost, dude! I'll manage to take care of myself." The tiny body that was shivering on his back brought Jimin back from his train of thoughts.

"For a Redties, you have a big mouth, kid," he scoffed, lowering the boy from his back.

Standing straight while shutting his eyes, he tried to listen intently to every sound of movement, maximizing that particular sense-his hearing sense.

'They're close,' he thought as he opened his eyes back.

He turned to face the boy and said, "listen carefully. You're gonna experience the worst moment of your life. Listen to whatever I say, don't ask, and don't do anything without my permission. And... no buts, understand?"

He gave the boy a proper look for the first time. The boy in front of him was skinny with curly brown hair, large eyes, and skin as pale as ghosts. But from all of that, he paid the most attention to the boy's eyes. They were sharp and... Challenging? Things that weren't common for someone in his age, especially considering he was just a Redties.

"Every single day of my life is bad or worse, so no need to worry. I'm used to that," he replied nonchalantly, looking away.

Jimin heaved a heavy sigh as he threw a glance at the boy next to him. "I'm not worried, kid. I just don't wanna get in any trouble because of you," he snorted, responding to the boy's attitude equally sharply. He then took off his wet shirt, squeezing it.

"Asshole. . ." The boy mumbled under his breath, making Jimin snicker.

'This kid has balls,' he thought.

Crouching down with his back facing the boy, Jimin said, "what are you waiting for? Hop onto me fast if you don't wanna be a dessert for those beasts!" He tapped his back and the boy rolled his eyes at him.

Feeling the boy on his back, Jimin stood up, encircling his wet shirt around the boy's body and using it as a safety belt for him. He twisted it together, tying it tightly around his torso.

"Wow! For such a small body, you have a really well-built one, dude!" The boy blurted out innocently after feeling Jimin's burly back against his frail body.

Mustering up his courage, he tried to touch one of the muscular arms, but before that happened, Jimin nimbly brushed his hand off,

"Keep your hands to yourself, kid. I don't like being touched!" Jimin's stern voice convinced the boy not to mess up with him. "Hold on to me as tight as you can, I'll run really fast. If you fall, I'll leave you and-"

"How can I hold on tight without touching you?" The boy smartly satirized Jimin's previous sentence, making the sergeant fall in silence while low-key smiling.

'Smart ass,' Jimin thought.

'Dumbass,' the boy thought. He rolled his eyes as if he just heard the most stupid joke ever.

"Ready, kid?" Jimin wrapped the boy's legs around his waist and put the hands around his shoulders.

The boy nodded. His rapid heartbeat could be felt clearly by Jimin through his bare back that pressed directly to the boy's chest. Jimin took a big amount of air as he cracked his neck. In just one second, he dashed back into the forest, retracing the path he had been on earlier-to the opposite direction from the sound of the beasts.

The path they were on was really slippery because of the rain. However, it didn't make Jimin slow down his pace. He was being extra careful to not fall as he sprinted constantly with the sounds behind him growing louder, signaling the nearer danger.

'Is this dude flying? His speed is unbelievable,' the boy whispered in mind, tightening his grip unconsciously.

Jimin scantily slowed down as he saw the two beasts he killed earlier when he saved the boy. They just sprawled out on the ground with some parts of their bodies broken and bent in the wrong direction. Without stopping, he grabbed them on the right and left hand each.

"What do you take them for?! They'll hold your pace!" The boy shouted right on Jimin's ear, making him wince in annoyance.

"No question, kid!" Jimin shouted back.

When they arrived at a rather steep descent, Jimin immediately put the two beasts down and untied his shirt from around his stomach, lowering the boy. Without saying a thing, he stabbed both the beasts, tearing their bodies apart. It caused black blood to spurt out and he directed it to his face and body, making the boy frown in disgust.

"What the-"

The boy couldn't able to finish his sentence because unexpectedly, Jimin took a large amount of black blood that was pooling on the ground and rubbed it onto the boy's face and body.

He dodged it, taking a few steps away from Jimin. But then Jimin held his arm hard and glared at him. "Just do what I told you to if you still wanna live! We've no time for a trivial argument!" Frightened, the boy gave in as he nodded.

In the middle of that, they heard the howls and growls were getting louder and louder. Looking at each other with their wide eyes, Jimin immediately grabbed the boy by the hand and brought him to jump into the small ravine at the side edge of the road. They landed smoothly on their knees, then moved to a niche behind them, hiding their bodies in the dense bushes.

"When later they're right above us, hold your breath. Our scent will be disguised by the beast's blood, but our breath..." Jimin shook his head.

The boy nodded obediently. His heart was beating so fast and his face expressed intense fear on it. That real terror he was about to face forced him to undo his haughtiness. His eyes were teary and his breath was shallow and unstable. He could feel that his mouth and lips felt so dry so suddenly.

He was too anxious, too scared of being killed without being able to meet his sister first.

When the rumble of footsteps began to arrive and the sound of howls and growls was right above them, that's when he started to whimper. His tears started to trickle down his cheeks with the sob that was muffled in his palm. He couldn't help it, his body was trembling violently out of utmost anxiety.

Jimin's eyes softened as he looked at him with concern. "It's okay... Stay... Calm..." He mouthed. "Hold your breath," he added, getting a weak nod from the frightened boy as the answer.

The silent atmosphere was soon replaced by the sound of something being shredded and torn apart. The chewing and sucking sound, the groans, and the aggressive movements were clearly heard. The beasts, they ate their dead fellows lying on the ground.

They were being cannibals.

And the frightened boy dwindled even more. From his unblinking eyes, tears profusely descending his cheeks with his mouth slightly opened, sobbing. He was too anxious to realize that he just let go of the breath he was holding.

The grumbling of the beasts became more aggressive and violent. They growled nonstop, one high pitch accumulated another. That's because they were finally aware that there were humans around them though they couldn't spot them yet. The loud clatter of their hooves scampering from one point to another could be clearly heard by those two humans under them. The beasts continued to sniff, trying to capture the familiar scent of their prey.

Jimin shut his eyes tightly as he bit his bottom lip. He knew it well that he had no other choice but to come out of his hiding place and fight them. Because in the end, the beasts would find them anyway. He let out a long sigh before opening his eyes, bringing his mouth right next to the boy's ear, "wait here and don't make any sound, okay?"

The boy shook his head right away, whispering, "no... don't... leave... me..." He tightly held Jimin's arm, showing his pleading eyes.

Jimin grabbed the boy's hand, squeezing it lightly before he brushed it off gently. "You'll be okay, I won't let anything bad happen to you, trust me, hmm?"

"But-"

"Just trust me." Jimin held his shoulders while looking at him intensely right in the eyes. His face showed neither weakness nor fear, just immense strength, and utmost confidence.

And the boy nodded, enchanted by the convincing figure before him. The unknown feeling was growing within him-the sudden unusual feeling that urged him to fully trust the guy softly gazing at him. They locked eyes for a few seconds more before finally, Jimin lightly squeezed his shoulder, then left.

He climbed up to where the beasts were as he took out his machete from underneath his shirt. The beasts turned around when they heard his footsteps. Their black eyes turned fully red as they saw him move closer. Low growls came out of their watery mouth.

One second later, they already fled to him, striking with extreme aggression. Seven beasts, they attacked Jimin simultaneously, making him cornered in the middle of their throng.

He brought out his whole fighting skill, using all the strength he had. They were just lower-class beasts, but the rain disaster had made their powers skyrocket. He had to keep dodging the militant incursions without even the slightest chance of attacking back.

One beast managed to land a powerful claw on his chest, flinging him hard to the ground. Using his machete as a stool, he rose to his feet. His chest heaved up and down with a big wound gaping in the center of it, turning his white undershirt red with the blood seeping out of it.

He tried to manage his unstable breath, calming himself. Standing with a solid stance, he shut his eyes as he let out a long shaky breath. He impelled his exposed self to focus, giving his hearing sense a chance to work at its best.

And it worked. He could feel their movements better. Could even catch every little motion when the beasts swept around him, surrounding him from every direction. Still with his eyes closed, he tightened his grip on his machete before snapping it to the beast closest to him at a lightning-like speed.

He opened his eyes to see two beasts collapse with a loud thud, causing the other to roar furiously. One brilliant idea entered his mind when his eyes darted to the muddy surface. Running, he pulled out his machete from the beast's lifeless body, then ran even faster as he flung his body on the slippery ground, sliding forward to tackle down the other three beasts by kicking hard their feet.

His body rolled far forward before stopping. From his position, he saw how the fallen beasts still struggling to get up. Wasting no time, he scurried to them, ramming them back to the ground. He took out his dagger from the sheath on his waist, jabbing it on the beasts' foreheads one after another.

"HELP!"

The terrified voice of the boy pierced the air, urging Jimin to turn his panic face to the direction of the voice. He was about to move when suddenly, his feet were grabbed by the other beast. It gripped him tight, dragging him along the descending path. Just as he tried to escape the grip, the boy's louder voice boomed once again.

"HELP ME! PLEASE!"

Hearing that, Jimin jerked his feet as hard as he could. He used his hands to slow down the beast by clawing onto the ground. And it worked. Before the beast could even blink, Jimin kicked it right in its stomach, crashing it hard to the muddy surface. When the beast was about to get up, he shot his dagger right into between its eyes, leaving the beast to die right there and then.

"Aarrrgghh!" The boy screamed.

Jimin flipped up and dashed to the boy who was screaming hysterically. But when he reached the place, the sight left him paralyzed. He was too late-the beast's sharp teeth had already stuck in the boy's calf.

The boy screamed his lungs out, bringing the astounded Jimin back to his senses. Like a raging hurricane, Jimin grabbed the beast from behind, yanking its hair and dragging it away from the boy before crashing it hard to a giant jagged log behind them.

He lunged to the lying beast, strangling it under him. He smacked its head and body ferociously before finally, he lifted his hands, uniting his fists, then crushed them against the beast's chest. It jerked hard with a lot of black blood spurting from its mouth.

Still breathless, Jimin strode up to the boy. "Shit! You got bitten!" He dropped down on his knees beside him, checking the bite marks.

'He's a Redties. And the beast's bite will infect him for sure. Soon, he'll turn into one of them,' the words ran through Jimin's mind. He stared blankly, his eyes quivered and his hands were trembling. The extreme guilt enveloped his whole sense.

"I- I'm sorry, I-" Jimin stuttered, bowing in remorse. His voice was barely audible.

"I... won't change..." whispered the boy as he lay flat on the ground.

"Huh?" Jimin lifted his face, confused.

"I won't turn... into beast, chill... Dude..."

*****

It had been over two hours. Jimin was once again walking through the forest with that boy sleeping on his back. He was increasingly confused at the fact that what the boy said is right.

'He really doesn't turn into a beast. But how?' He thought.

"Where're your friends taking my sister with that bus?" The boy's weak voice chimed beside Jimin's ear.

Jimin glanced at him. "You're awake?"

Getting no response, Jimin opened his mouth once again. "Camp one."

"Camp one? Really?" The boy shifted too suddenly, causing him to nearly fall off Jimin's back.

"What's with the sudden excitement, kid? You said you're tired when I asked about the beast bite earlier, but why-"

"That's where he is, right?" The boy cut off.

"He? Who?" Jimin was getting more confused.

"The famous one, Sergeant Park Jimin. He's a Sapphire Blueties just like my sister," the boy answered in excitement. "You know what? She's so crazy over him though she's never met him. She's so obsessed with that man, geez... She would've died by now from overexcited." The boy chuckled at thought of it.

Jimin stopped abruptly. He could feel his heart thumping strangely and his face started to heat up. "W-wow... Really?" Jimin covered his stammering voice with his dramatic gasp.

"Do you know him?" The boy asked innocently, tilting his face forward right beside Jimin's left cheek.

"What? Mmm... I mean who?" Jimin asked back, unfocused.

The boy clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Oh come on... Of course him, Sergeant Park Jimin!" He rolled his eyes, soughing exaggeratedly as if he was talking to the dumbest creature in the world.

Hiding his broad smile, Jimin answered in a joking tone, "yeah! I mean- yes... of course! I know him well," he chuckled in between, "he's so famous like what you said." Struggling to hold back his laugh, he took his bottom in between his teeth.

"Yeah? What is he like? I mean, is he nice? Strong? Handsome?" The boy couldn't hold back his curiosity about the sergeant's figure who low-key was the person who had been carrying him from the beginning.

"Enough with the random questions, kid, now go back to sleep," Jimin pushed backward the boy's head that slightly poked his right ear.

"What? Why?" The boy tried to lean forward once again, but Jimin halted just to eye him sharply from the corner of his eyes.

The boy pouted, annoyed. He gave up to ask further. They continued the journey in silence. Jimin chose to walk off the path, tracing through shrubs and thickets that were getting dense. This was to minimize encountering the beasts. He kept cleaving apart that tall and lush bushes, giving him a new path to pass. None of them made a sound until finally, the boy broke the quietness once again.

"Archer, call me Archer," he mumbled.

"I know," said Jimin.

"And you? What's your-"

"Shhhh...!" Jimin suddenly halted, closing his eyes as he tucked strands of his wet hair behind his ear.

His eyes shot wide open as soon as he caught that familiar sound.

"Beasts!"

In that exact second, he sprinted in the opposite direction as he yelled to Archer, "hold on tight!"

His hands were busy with the shrubs and his feet deftly avoided some big rhizomes that got in his way. He kept running, jumping once in a while and tilting his body side to side to avoid the reeds.

He picked up the speed as he heard the clatters and the howls of the beasts approaching. His super-high velocity caused him to be unaware of what was laid ahead. That was until he saw a beast trap-rusty old iron with big, sharp teeth.

"Watch out!!" Archer shrieked.

Jimin was too late to avoid it, his foot fell into the trap. As soon as the contact happened, that big jagged iron instantly closed tight, ramming its sharp teeth into his flesh. Stumbled, his body flung to the ground and Archer slipped from the knot, landing flat on his back directly next to him.

"Ouch!" Wincing in pain, Archer tried to get up and move closer to Jimin. "Uh, hey... Y-you... o-okay d-dude?"

His voice was weak and cracked, he could feel the strange bitterness from the base of his tongue to his throat. Was that because he fell off hard to the ground earlier? He wasn't sure but his vision began to blur as he coughed nonstop. He tried to inhale deeply but his body shook violently from the action. There was something off with him, for sure.

"Hey, Arch, you okay?" Jimin grabbed Archer's face gently, tilting it side to side.

"I-I am... b-but you- your foot-"

"You sure? You're soaked in sweat. Why are you trembling?" Jimin cut him off, "and you're burning hot," he added as he put his knuckles on the younger's forehead.

Archer brushed Jimin's hand off and looked at him instead. "You're bleeding... Dumbass... This thing..." The boy attempted to open the trap with his trembling hands but of course, it was useless.

Jimin calmly smiled at him. "Don't worry Arch, it's nothing."

He shifted his eyes to the iron trap. With his bare hand, he forced open the tight grip of the teeth, unlocking the beast trap with no difficulty. It caused the blood to flow out profusely from the fresh wounds. He flinched as he removed the big rusty trap from his ankle.

He took off his undershirt, wrapping it around that bloody wound without paying much attention to it as if it was really nothing for him. Archer stared at him in awe.

'He's unbelievable,' he thought.

"Now, hop on my back, we don't have much time," Jimin ordered as he crouched down next to him.

"But-"

Long and powerful growls broke their hearing.

"NOW!"

As soon as Archer was on his back, Jimin ran once again. His blood seeped through his wrapped undershirt, dripping along the path that he took. And he was aware of it. The beasts were getting closer. With hints from the blood he left behind, they would soon find him. He was sure of it.

He continued his slightly wobbly steps until he reached the edge of the road. It was a dead end. Ahead of them was a cliff, a deep one. He made a halt, taking some little steps toward the steep slope to take a glimpse of what was under them but it was dark. There was no way they turned around in the direction of the beasts.

'I think I know that area, but-'

He had no time to think. Untying the knot, he lowered Archer from his back. The Redties boy eyed Jimin in puzzlement. He was silent, mind jumbled with questions.

'Why did he stop here?'

'Why did he drop me?'

'What's with the cliff?'

'Why didn't we turn around?'

'I-'

'Don't tell me -'

In a squat position, Jimin took Archer's trembling hand as he stared deeply into his teary eyes. "You trust me, don't you?"

'I don't want to, but I don't know why I trust you with all my heart,' Archer whispered in his mind.

And Archer with his weak state nodded without hesitation. From their position, they could faintly see the beasts' shadows. Jimin placed his palms on Archer's shoulders, squeezing them. "I won't let anything bad happen to you, okay?"

Smiling weakly, Archer nodded once again as he hugged Jimin tightly. "I know."

And with that, Jimin took Archer's frail body, embracing it entirely, then...

He threw himself off the cliff.

Insert Img1: Beast-trap

A/N

Hey yo, bubs!❤

How's this chapter, like it?

I Hope y'all guys do🥰

B-But... Will our sergeant survive? And what had happened to Archer actually?

Meet me in the next chapter, will ya?

👉👈

Much lob❤❤