Jihoon

"We need to get past the Laurel Prince, sir- I don't-"

"SHUT UP and let me think for a second," Jihoon yelled at one of his men, construing a plan to sneak past the blonde in his mind. Jihoon had learned a lot about the Laurel Prince during his stay at their base...namely about his strong connection to his nephew. Prince Kim had even admitted to loving Jungkook in one of his hallucinations, which Jihoon couldn't forget about.

Because he knew that love blinded people. Or...distracted them. 

When all of the pieces in his mind came together, he motioned for one of his two side soldiers to listen in. The northerner leaned in, a confused look on his face. 

"I need to you distract Laurel for a while. Draw him out and away from the stairs leading up to the statue," Jihoon paused, running his fingertips along the edge of his mask, "You need to piss him off--do so by mentioning his close relationship with the Oak Prince--Prince Jeon--Jungkook. Got it?" Jihoon raised an eyebrow as if passing some message through the air between them. 

The soldier slowly understood what his boss was getting at and sucked in a breath of air. Underneath his mask, he smiled. 

"Will do, sir. It's my pleasure."

 Jihoon was about to walk away from the man when another flustered soldier ran up to him, obviously disappointed by something. 

"Jihoon, sir! We're all out of gas capsules, they've all exploded or evaporated already..."

The man watched in shock as Jihoon raised his hands up to his mask, peeling it off of his face and throwing it down on the mud, "We won't need the masks anymore then...tell the other soldiers to forget about them, it'll help with their visibility in battle."

Soon, men around him were following his example, unlatching the masks from their faces and tossing them casually to the side. The poison was either all evaporated or soaked into the mud already, posing them no threat. Finally, they could breathe freely. The Oak Soldiers began to get the idea too, removing their masks as well. The tiny clinks of masks tossed over fallen men sounded out around the field. 

"You," Jihoon pointed to the other man that walked alongside him, "Come with me to that statue...we have a little something to take care of..."

"Sir," the soldier bowed, following his boss as he took off towards the stairs. 

The Oak Prince was being pursued by him and his side man. 

The Laurel Prince was being targeted by another man...

This would be fun. 

Laurel Prince

Slender, tan fingers reached up to remove the gas mask off of Kim Taehyung's face. Throwing it onto the ground in relief, the Laurel Prince scoured the flanks for any sign of threat. So far, everything had gone well, better than well for that matter.  The Oak Soldiers were wiping out Jihoon's men quickly...for every Oak Soldier down there was at least five northerners who died. The intricate formations and skills that Jimin taught the boys really made the difference out on the battle field. 

The blonde watched as not too far from his left, an Oak Soldier killed two barbarians in a strange twisting fashion. Internally, Taehyung applauded the boy's sense of his surroundings. 

His eyes continued to another part of the back, where an Oak Soldier was slashing quickly at another man, soon lobbing his head off with a stroke of his sword. 

Jimin really liked teaching them decapitation...huh.

The Laurel Prince resumed his scanning, mostly in approval and pride. That was, until a man approaching him caught his eye. Surrounding Oak Soldiers lunged at the man, swiping at his arms and legs. However, the barbarian was too powerful for them, and the man killed three Oak Soldiers in less than thirty seconds. The man's blood-thirsty eyes rose to met the blonde's and he smiled in amusement. 

Oh joy. 

"Hey, Prince Kim!" the man walked towards him but stopped a few meters away, "Where's your little boy toy Jeon?"

Taehyung ignored the man's comment, rolling his eyes as more Oak Soldiers went after him. The Laurel Prince wasn't scared of this man, he knew that he could take him...but the man was pushing his buttons. He tried not to let it get to him. 

As expected, the Oak Soldiers fell to the man, who brutally bashed their heads together with his strong arms. Taehyung tried to suppress a wince as the boy's heads cracked together, knocking them out instantly. 

"Oh...you aren't fighting Kim? Well I guess it makes sense...I bet you can't even walk straight from all that royal dick shoved into you!" the man smirked, watching as Taehyung tensed up, "Hmmm...doesn't seem like you talk either...lost your voice from all that Oak dick you've been sucking? What a shame..."

The man turned away slightly, egging the blonde on with his nonchalant demeanor. Taehyung's fingernails dug into his hand, the anger he felt inside threatening to bubble over. 

"Hey!" the man's voice was extra loud, teasing Taehyung with its sugary coating, "Can I borrow Jungkook when you two aren't fucking? I'm sure he'd like my company waaayyyy more...I'm not an annoying, entitled brat like you who uses money to wipe his ass and needs wine to drown his sorrow in...BOO HOO!" the man turned all the way around then, his back towards the blonde, "Jeon Jungkook doesn't even love you Laurel...you're just a worthless scumbag dressed in jewels to mask the ugliness hiding underneath...Prince Jeon is smart enough to know that--he probably just uses you as a sex toy-"

Taehyung couldn't stand it any longer. If he was on the battlefield, armed with a sword and treated in this manner-

He would fucking kill that bastard. 

A growl escaped the blonde's throat as he charged the man from behind. The barbarian reacted quickly, but instead of fighting back, he took off. In his fiery daze, the Laurel Prince followed him, leaping over corpses and gas masks to catch up to the man. 

"COME BACK HERE!" Taehyung shouted, rage pulsing through his veins. The man suddenly stopped and spun around, holding up his sword in defense as Taehyung's smashed against it. 

"You...are...a fool!" the man grunted in exasperation as the blonde pressed down hard, gritting his teeth. The man's sword was faltering, shaking as it came closer and closer to his neck. The barbarian spat in Taehyung's eyes to throw him off, but the blonde didn't need to see when his sword sliced through the man's skin, blood pouring from his throat. 

Taehyung panted as the man's tipped over, the light gone from his eyes. Swiping the spit from his face with the back of his hand, the Laurel Prince finally registered the words that the man had just spurted out before he died. 

A fool? 

Then it hit him. The barbarian had drawn him out far from his post near the stairs...which meant-

Taehyung's head whipped around towards the castle, eyes growing when he saw the result of his mistake. Two men had slipped past the back lines of the Oak Army, sprinting up the open staircase towards the statue with their swords clasped tightly in their hands.

Fuck fuck FUCK!

Taehyung rushed back to the stairs, stopping only to clutch onto a nearby soldier's shoulder and scream something at him. 

"TELL THE STONE PRINCE THAT 'THE TREE IS ON FIRE!' HURRY!" Taehyung's face was contorted in a panic, which spread easily onto the soldier's stubbly face. 

"YES SIR!" the soldier yelled back, sprinting off towards the front lines. 

Taehyung shouted out in fury and fear, his vocal chords straining. How could he have been so blind? 

His feet carried him to the stairs as fast as they could, where a new situation was rapidly developing. Jungkook's guards had ran out from behind the statue towards the threat that approached the Oak Prince, swords raised high. Neither group hesitated to fight; it was like watching two sets of angry magnets being pulled together. The four people fighting appeared evenly matched, slicing and parrying quickly as they moved about the stairs. One of the pairs was in a deadly rhythm, each person coming close to sending the other to their demise before regaining the advantage. Taehyung picked up the pace. 

Get to Jungkook, get to Jungkook-

Suddenly, one of the barbarians stabbed an Oak Soldier in the leg and pushed at the man's chest, sending him toppling down the staircase. Taehyung clenched his jaw as the barbarian stepped closer and kicked the soldier's head with all of his strength, putting the man out easily. The Laurel Prince shouted in despair as the barbarian stabbed the unconscious man's throat, blood flooding out of the incision. 

FUCKING DAMN IT!

The soldier moved on to help his friend attack the remaining Oak Soldier. Taehyung's feet pushed forward as fast as they could go. The mud stuck to the bottom of his shoes with disgusting adhesiveness that slowed the blonde down. 

"FUCK YOUUUU!!!" Taehyung hissed out as his legs reached the base of the stairs. 

One of the barbarians turned around at the sound of the blonde's voice. His face was blood-covered and harshly-set, a bit of mud covered his cheek...

But Taehyung couldn't miss the jet black eyes that blinked at him curiously. 

They belonged to the asshole that had tortured him, the asshole that had destroyed both the Stone and Laurel Castles and had laid ruin to the countryside. The man who was now bearing a sinister grin, white teeth peeking out from behind cut up lips. 

Jihoon.

Behind the evil man that was staring him down from the stairs, Taehyung watched as the remaining Oak Soldier fumbled against the side railing of the staircase. His arms flailed out in a desperate attempt to catch himself against the metallic pole. Jihoon's side man took the opportunity to kick the man's stomach, sending the man onto the ground in a sprawling heap. Five seconds later, a sword was through the man's neck, his eyes wide in shock as it twisted around in his skin. 

Jihoon's soldier laughed evilly as he turned to face his boss. The blonde stared at them both, mouth agape in resentment and a hint of fear. Taehyung ran up the stairs to apprehend the men in front of him. Jihoon responded fast. 

"Take care of him," Jihoon ordered the man at his side before taking off towards the statue. Both of the Oak Soldiers lay on the steps bleeding out as Taehyung ran after the man. 

"YOU BETTER FUCKING STOP JIHOON!" 

But the northern bastard paid him no mind. The other soldier was on him in a moment, sword flashing past the blonde's irate face. Taehyung faced the man, seeing nothing but red. The Laurel Prince kicked out the man's leg from underneath him when he was close enough. The barbarian fell half onto another step, rolling back onto his feet in the blink of an eye. 

This guy was fast...

Before Taehyung could make another move, the man whipped behind him and swung at the blonde's back. The Laurel Prince moved forward to dodge the blow, squatting down and spinning before making his next move. 

The man wasn't expecting an upper cut from the prince and hardly parried it off, a surprised grunt leaving his lips.  Slinking backwards, the man eyed him in hatred. Prince Kim moved forward like a cat hunting its prey, feet light against the white stairs. A vibration of distaste pushed its way up his throat, his yell echoing through the air. Taehyung leaped down the two steps that were separating him and the man and he pushed his sword-bearing arm out. 

A sharp crash of swords hitting each other broke the air, the barbarian's arm jolting backwards. Taehyung took the opportunity to finish the man off with a blow to the head. The man crumpled in pain, whimpering on the step by the blonde's feet. Raising his sword up to lob the man's head off, Taehyung stopped when a sharp pain ran through his ankle. 

He glanced down to see a dagger wedged into his armor, pierced through the flesh of his lower leg. The man must've kept his second weapon tucked away in his boot for times like this. The Laurel Prince kicked the man's face with his injured leg and hurled his sword forward to continue the job he wanted done. 

Die already. 

The sword came down cleanly, slicing through the man's neck like butter. His head rolled off of his body, bouncing down the steps until it came to a stop on the mud of the battlefield. Internally, Taehyung rejoiced. 

But externally...

"Fuck," Taehyung bit his cheek as he reached down to pull the dagger out of his leg, flinching when a piece of flesh came with. Warm blood gushed out of his new wound. He nervously glanced up towards the statue to see Jihoon walking around the massive rock slowly, hunting down his nephew with cunning stealth. 

That was when Taehyung screamed. 

"JUUUNNNNGGGKKKKOOOOOOOKKKK WAAAATTTTCCHHH OOOUUUUTTT!!!!"

The blonde screamed as loud as he could, the words booming across the field. There was no way the ravenette could've missed that. The Laurel Prince rushed up the stairs as fast as he could to get to the Oak Prince...but his stabbed leg was paining him quite a bit. Limping as fast as he could, Taehyung reached the top of the stairs in a panic. 

Jihoon was no longer visible and neither was the Oak Prince...

They must be on the other side...

"DAMN IT NO NO NO!" Taehyung shouted out anxiously as he sprinted around the base of the large statue, freezing when he rounded the corner. 

Jihoon was there, sword extended, pointing it at the very person Taehyung and Jimin were supposed to protect. But as the Laurel Prince moved to the side, he realized that the Oak Prince also had his sword out, facing his evil uncle with rage dripping through every feature of his face. Thankfully, they were only sizing each other up; Taehyung had arrived early enough to fight against Jihoon himself. 

"Jihoon, don't you fucking touch him!"

The blonde rushed at his mortal enemy from behind, sword raised high. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Wow. Okay...

Jihoon just makes you want to punch a window and then eat the glass shards...doesn't he?

Haha, just kidding. 

I hope you are all on edge for what comes next...

You may or may not like it--depends on where you stand. 

And if you're laying or sitting while reading this...well, joke's on you. 

:) Thanks for reading!