FIC: Impasse (Chapter Sixteen)
Ohayo, minnasan, I hope everyone out there in Cyberland is doing well!
First and foremost, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BUNNY AND MYSELF!! Yesterday was Bunny's 26th birthday and today is my 30th! So, I have a few 'Thank you's' to send out to some of my friends!
Thank you Moonie for the wonderful gifts I received in the mail, I loved them all! Thank you to my Youkai for the phone call, it really made my day! Thank you to my family and my best friend K for the wonderful birthday dinner and ice cream cake! And last but not least, thank you to all my supporters of my fic!
So, as a gift from me to you on my b-day, I present you with the next chapter of "Impasse!" I hope you all enjoy, as I'm finally tying up alot of the storylines. But, not before I introduce one final twist! Thanks for reading! I'm off to have my cake and eat it too! X3
"Impasse"
By: Miracle Shining
PAIRINGS: HanHae, TeukHae, SiHan (past tense), KyuMin, ShinChul, YeTeuk, etc.
RATINGS: PG-13 to NC-17 (will be notated if NC-17)
GROUPS: Super Junior, DBSK, Kitty GYM, KAT-TUN
GENRE: Action/Romance/Angst
WARNINGS: Violence, Sexual Situations, Dark Themes, Character Death
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Don't own them, never will, but thanks for reading!
SUMMARY: AU Storyline~In the South Korean underworld, a popular form of entertainment is fighting matches. Men are judged by the fighters they own. A troubled fighter with a past catches the attention of two long time friends and may lead them both to the brink of obsession.
Character Profiles
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six~Rated R
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine~Rated R
Chapter Ten~Rated NC-17
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen~Rated R
Chapter Fifteen~Rated R
*****
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Whirlpools
Kangin followed the sound of the scream. A thousand thoughts rushed through his head. A fumble of memories of the fateful night Siwon was lost flooded his mind. All he could picture was Hankyung laying dead in a pool of his own blood. KyuHyun and Sungmin were quick on the older trainer's heels. They reached the doorway to the training center and stopped in their tracks.
Eunhyuk was standing silently, his pants coated with maroon. Behind him laid the two bodies of the fighters Golf and Mike. Yoochun was on his knees, his face anguished. The man was stroking the hair of the Japanese Kendo expert, Yamapi. It took Kangin only moments to surmise what had happened to the slender fighter.
Sungmin let out a cry and quickly turned into KyuHyun, hiding his face from the violence. KyuHyun swallowed back the bile that rose in his throat. He watched as Kangin quietly approached the two men. He stopped beside Eunhyuk, looking down at Yoochun and the limp body of Yamapi.
"What happened?" Kangin finally croaked out.
Eunhyuk swallowed thickly and turned his gaze to Golf and Mike's still bodies. He tried to form words but everything seemed to be frozen inside of his vocal chords. He then looked back at Kangin, his face troubled and his eyes damp.
:"......yunho." Yoochun whispered suddenly.
The elder trainer blinked for a moment and then shook his head. He ran his hand through his tousled strands of hair and exhaled slowly. His gaze was drawn down to Yoochun again, the man's hand still stroking dark hair in his lap.
"I'm sorry."
Yoochun stopped sliding his fingers through Yamapi's hair. He looked up at Kangin. The expression almost startled the man. Yoochun's eyes were blazing like hell's fury. His lips were drawn into a taut line, the words spat out viciously.
"Sorry?" he hissed. "Sorry is the least of things that could have been said. Sorry?! Sorry?!"
Yoochun moved Yamapi's forehead from his lap. He reverently lowered the man's head downwards, the body remaining in the hunched over position. Yoochun then stood slowly and turned to the four looking at him.
"Sorry?" he said again, his voice catching with a bitter laugh. "Your precious Chinese man is the reason I have nothing! No, let me rephrase that. JUNSU'S precious Chinese man is the reason I have nothing! NOTHING!!"
Eunhyuk grabbed Yoochun and shook him. The man let out a heart breaking sob and tried to fight off his friend. Kangin was quick to step in, taking hold of Yoochun as the man thrashed. The two did their best to calm the other. Yoochun continued to struggle when he suddenly felt a set of hands on his face. His hard gaze shot forward to see soft brown eyes framed by black hair looking at him kindly.
Sungmin very gently began to use his thumbs to wipe away the tears that were sliding unbidden down Yoochun's cheeks. The act was simple but calmed the frantic man immediately. Sungmin said nothing as he continued to tend to Yoochun's face until the last tear was wiped carefully away.
"Yamapi was always very kind to Kyunnieah and I, even if we only knew him for a couple days. He always smiled and said hello. Golf and Mike were good to us too, they made us Thai food only yesterday."
Yoochun let out a shuddered breath. KyuHyun approached the other men and laid a hand on Sungmin's shoulder.
"We are sorry, Yoochun. We can't change what happened. But maybe we can help you?"
"H-h-how?"
"We can find Yunho."
"It's just not Yunho... It's... It's Changmin too... Why, Hyukjae? Why?" Yoochun pleaded to his friend.
"I don't know, I just don't know." Eunhyuk admitted.
The taller of the two men reached and pulled Yoochun against him. The man finally broke down. He felt as though he had shattered into a thousand pieces. The sobs were ragged and fierce against the nape of Eunhyuk's neck.
Kangin gave an approving nod to his new trainer and fighter. The duo nodded back, understanding the simple language. Kangin looked silently at the three bodies laying on the floor.
"We need to call someone. I don't know who, just someone."
"Junsu. We have to tell him, he'd know how to take care of it."
Everyone nodded when Yoochun suddenly pulled back. His eyes were a little too wide, as if shock had finally set in. But he spoke clearly when the name slipped from his lips.
"Jaejoong."
"What about him, Yoochun?"
"He'd know where Yunho is. We have to find Jaejoong!"
"Junsu first, Jaejoong second." Kangin stated.
"Jaejoong first!!" Yoochun snapped back.
Kangin gripped Yoochun's shoulders from behind. The man looked vehement before Kangin spoke softly.
"You're my friend, Yoochun. I taught you and Eunhyuk everything you know. You trusted me then, please, please, trust me now. We'll get to Yuhno and to Changmin, I swear. But first, we need to talk to Junsu and put our three companions to rest."
Yoochun was stiff for a few moments before his shoulders slumped forward.
"All right." he barely whispered.
Kangin gestured to KyuHyun and Sungmin.
"I want you two to come with us. I don't want anyone down here with these bodies until we see Junsu."
The duo made a movement of agreement.
"Come on, Yoochun." Eunhyuk said gently. "Let's make sure that Yamapi, Golf and Mike didn't lose their lives in vain."
Eunhyuk caught Yoochun's hand and pulled the trainer along. The man seemed to be working on auto pilot. Kangin followed behind, keeping one of his hands on Yoochun's shoulder. KyuHyun and Sungmin followed then after Kangin.
"You better damn well have a good way of fixing this, Xiah Junsu." Kangin thought silently.
*****
Junsu sat silently in his leather chair. The sound of the rain pouring down overhead was almost deafening in his otherwise still office. His hands were folded carefully over one of his knees. He could hear the wind whistling through the trees. Branches struck over the large picture window periodically, the tapping sound echoing through the room.
His eyes never left the person sitting across from him.
There was a loud pounding on the double doors that led into his office. Junsu raised an eyebrow slightly and then looked at his visitor. The person gestured for Junsu to allow the people in. The man carefully pressed the button on his desk, the doors to the office swinging open slowly.
Five men came almost tumbling through the entryway. Yoochun and Eunhyuk were stained with blood. Kangin, Sungmin and KyuHyun were quick to appear from behind the duo.
"JUNSU!" Kangin boomed. "You've got to..."
All words fled from anyone as they saw the visitor sitting quietly in the chair across from Junsu's desk. The bare glint of light on a pistol caught Kangin's eye.
"What the hell?" the man said softly.
The other in the chair turned slightly. Sandy colored hair and dark eyes observed the five men across from them. A finger clicked idly on the trigger of the pistol. The person's face was sullen, lips pulled down in a frown.
"......jaejoong?" Eunhyuk whispered.
Jaejoong just nodded slightly and turned his attention to Junsu. The man remained seated. After a couple more drawn out moments, Jaejoong looked back at the other men.
"The trio who fought for Changmin and Yoochun? Are they lost to us?" he questioned.
"Why? Why? Why?!" Yoochun suddenly demanded.
The man sprang forward from Eunhyuk's grip. He ran and struck at Jaejoong. The fist impacted the man's face, turning his head. Everyone sucked in their breath, waiting for the other to draw his gun on Yoochun. Instead, Jaejoong turned his head back and spit out a little bit of blood. Yoochun stared at the other man, his fists shaking in rage.
"I will take that as a 'yes' then." he stated simply.
"Where is Yunho?!" Kangin demanded. "And why are you holding Junsu at gunpoint?!"
Jaejoong looked at the men mildly. His expression was unreadable. He lowered his gun finally but kept the weapon visible. He stood slowly from his seat.
"Yunho and Changmin are at an old fishing plant down by the abandoned docks on the outskirt of the city."
"Why didn't you stop them?" Eunhyuk questioned. "You knew what they were going to do!"
"I had my reasons." Jaejoong answered.
"So you let our friends die?!" Yoochun spit. "I'll kill you!"
The man moved forward again. This time however, Jaejoong placed the barrel of the gun against Yoochun's chest. Sungmin let out a gasp.
"Please, please, no more!" he begged. "There's been too much already!"
Sungmin's pleadings didn't go unnoticed. Jaejoong lowered the pistol and drew back from Yoochun.
"If you want to save your friends, I suggest you head down to the docks. I can take you there."
"How do we know this isn't a set up?" KyuHyun suddenly spoke from behind.
"Because if I had wanted to kill you all, I could have already." Jaejoong responded. "But that's not my goal."
"Then what is?" Kangin rapidly returned.
"I have unfinished business with Minwoo. That's all you need to know." he stated.
"Minwoo?" Eunhyuk asked.
"Did you really, really think that Yunho and Changmin would want to get rid of Hankyung for just any old reason? I can guarantee those two have already snagged that kid Donghae and his friend Eeteuk too."
"How do you know all this?" Kangin demanded.
Jaejoong looked back at Junsu. The man's face was distressed. He stood quietly from behind his desk. Jaejoong waited until he moved around to the front.
"Junsu?" Eunhyuk felt as though his world was ready to fall apart.
"I received a call from our friends Heechul and Shindong. Shindong was shot through the foot earlier in the day. Heechul said an intruder had forced him to send two text messages, one to Donghae and one to Eeteuk, telling them they were to meet at the dock address. He hasn't been able to get into contact with either of them. He thinks they were in trouble."
"So why didn't you just call someone to help?!" Kangin sharply asked.
"That would be where I come in." Jaejoong said softly. "You see, I happened to be talking to Junsu when that phone call came. I had suspicions that Yunho and Changmin may be up to something. I couldn't have Junsu reporting anything or I would lose my chance to get to Minwoo. I know for a fact that man is who our two traitors are working for."
"Why?!" Yoochun blurted out.
"Because over three years ago, Hankyung took someone very important from Minwoo. Now he wants repayment for it."
"No, it can't be..." Kangin whispered more to himself than anyone else.
"Boss?' KyuHyun asked from behind the larger man.
"That fight. The one the week before Siwon was killed. Hangeng struck his opponent in the back with a kick. We didn't know the fighter had a previous spinal injury. He was paralyzed and a week later, they had to pull the plug on him. He was a vegetable."
Kangin's face shown a moment of realization as the pieces fell together in his head.
"That's why there was that assassination attempt at the fight against Jin! Minwoo was trying to have him killed. When that went sour, he hired someone else who could do the job."
Jaejoong nodded at the explanation.
"As much as I regret the loss of your friends, I couldn't let anything interfere between me and the path to Minwoo."
"You still haven't told us what you have to do with this whole thing." Eunhyuk pointed out.
Jaejoong just sighed softly, rubbing his temple with his free hand. He tapped the pistol on his leg before looking back at everyone.
"That's something I can't reveal right now. But if you want to save your friends, listen to me. We, and I mean that literally, need to go down to the docks. I know the address, I hacked into Yunho's private files. Junsu will make the necessary calls to have your deceased taken to a respected coroner. It's all I can offer you right now. Eunhyuk, you need to stay with Junsu. Make sure everything gets taken care of."
"Who the hell put you in charge?"
Jaejoong suddenly raised his gun, his eyes hardening. Everyone stood still as the man gestured to the doorway.
"I don't have time for this and neither does your friends if they're still alive. I'm asking you to believe me. And if you don't, then believe this gun. I will use it if I have too."
The silence was thick, the sound of rain above matching the harsh breathing from the members in the room. Finally Kangin broke the silence.
"If we go with you, how do we know we're not walking into a trap?"
"You don't."
Somehow that honest answer made the difference to the bigger man. He gave a quick nod and turned to KyuHyun and Sungmin.
"Never thought I'd have to put your fighting skills to the test like this, boys. It really is a life or death match."
"We're ready for it, Boss." KyuHyun said. "We want to help."
"Even if it means going down for the count permanently." Sungmin added.
Kangin felt an immeasurable amount of pride at his duo.
"We're with you for now, Jaejoong. But the moment it looks like you're turning on us, I'll break your neck with my bare hands."
"Not if I do it first." Yoochun said dangerously. "I'm coming too."
The sandy haired man simply made a sound of agreement. He turned his attention to Eunhyuk and Junsu.
"Here is the address and the information. Call whatever authorities are under your payroll. Just give us some time."
Junsu took the small piece of paper. Jaejoong looked at the two men for a long time and then barely smiled. The act seemed strange and yet somehow comforting to everyone in the room.
"I'm sorry it had to be like this, Xiah Junsu. Thank you for being so good to me and taking me in. I don't think I'll be coming back, but I'll try to make sure everyone else does."
Junsu went to open his mouth, but Jaejoong shook his head. The smaller man then gestured to the other four to follow him out the door.
"JAEJOONG!" Junsu suddenly shouted.
The man turned quickly to see something silver flying through the air. He reached out and caught the object with his hand. A set of shimmering keys glimmered in the light.
"Take my private car, it'll get all of you there faster."
Jaejoong nodded and headed out, the other four following quickly behind him.
Eunhyuk turned his attention to Junsu. The man was standing very still and then suddenly collapsed forward. Eunhyuk caught him quickly, letting his own knees give to hold onto his partner. He maneuvered Junsu so he could look down at his face. The man was very pale and his bottom lip quivered.
"It's all my fault, Hyukjae. I wanted too much. I wanted it all."
"Sssh, no, no, Junsu. No one could have known that this was all going to happen. Just hold it together, we need to take care of our friends downstairs and then help the others. You need to stay with me."
Junsu sobbed softly and grabbed Eunhyuk's shirt. He buried his face into the cloth as his body was wracked with sobs. Eunhyuk held tight to the man and rocked him slowly, trying to calm his companion. Inwardly, he sent a prayer to whatever heavenly entity was listening to spare the remaining friends they had.
*****
Cold wetness struck his face.
Hankyung opened his eyes with a start, sputtering water out from his mouth. The droplets slid down his forehead and trickled over his neck. The chill was bitter to his already frigid skin. He tried to move forward but felt the pull on his shoulders. Glancing back, he could make out he was bound by a heavy chain around a support pole in the middle of a large room.
He didn't remember going unconcious, but he did remember seeing the man's face in front of his vision.
"Welcome back to the living, Dancer."
The voice was too recognizable to Hankyung. His eyes shot up to see a man looking at him from across the room. Minwoo was sitting on a shipping box, his legs swinging idly over the side. The Chinese man blinked away the few bright spots of light again to see that next to Minwoo was Donghae. The young man was tied to the chair, a gag in his mouth.
"DONGHAE!" Hankyung shouted.
His words were interrupted by a hard slap across his jaw. His temper flared as he looked up to see Yunho looking down at him smugly.
"Don't talk unless you're asked."
"Why?" Hankyung growled.
"Because." came Yunho's sharp reply.
"Now, now, Yunho. Don't talk to our main event that way. You'll get opportunity enough to have your chance at him. After all, Changmin was very wise to invest in your talents, even if he didn't tell me."
"What can I say, I'm very dedicated to making sure I get my clean up jobs done right." Changmin's voice came from behind.
Hankyung's head whipped to the sound of Changmin's voice. The man had his hands resting on two different people. The first Hankyung recognized as Eeteuk. He was struggling against the binds on his wrists, cursing violently. The other man Hankyung didn't know, he was a younger raven haired youth who seemed to have resigned himself to his bindings.
"Oh, that's right! You don't know about our other special guest, do you, Hangeng?" Minwoo questioned. "You'll be more than glad to meet him, I'm sure. Yunho, why don't you pull our Dancer's bindings away from the pole and take him over to meet our other friend?"
Yunho smirked viciously and pulled the loose end of the chain away from the pole. He yanked hard and Hankyung was ripped from his sitting position to his feet. He immediately tried to pull away when he heard the click of a gun behind his back.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Yunho said frankly.
Hankyung glanced behind him to see that the gun was actually not pointed at him. Instead, the weapon was poised and ready to be shot straight through Donghae's skull. The young man's face was streaked with tears as he tried to work the gag free from his mouth.
"One false move and your pretty little friend's brains will be painting the sawdust."
"I'd believe him, Hangeng." Minwoo said mildly. "Yunho doesn't like you as it is."
Hankyung let out a series of curses in Mandarin. Minwoo just smirked as Yunho kicked at Hankyung's rear, forcing the man forward. The two made it the short distance from the pole to where Eeteuk and the stranger were tied to their chairs.
"You know, Hangeng, I wasn't expecting this 'two for one' deal. I only had intended on Eeteuk being here at the docks to lure your new lover Donghae here. But to my great surprise and delight, he had brought himself a friend. Now this friend of Eeteuk's, he's very special to me. And he'll be exceptionally special to you too. Would you like to know why?" Minwoo asked rather cheerfully.
Hankyung just shot Minwoo a deadly look. The man gave a cruel smile in response.
"Well, that man in front of you, he goes by the name of Yesung. His real name is Jongwoon. And he's the man who killed your Charmer, Siwon."
At that moment, Hankyung's world came crashing down again.
First and foremost, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BUNNY AND MYSELF!! Yesterday was Bunny's 26th birthday and today is my 30th! So, I have a few 'Thank you's' to send out to some of my friends!
Thank you Moonie for the wonderful gifts I received in the mail, I loved them all! Thank you to my Youkai for the phone call, it really made my day! Thank you to my family and my best friend K for the wonderful birthday dinner and ice cream cake! And last but not least, thank you to all my supporters of my fic!
So, as a gift from me to you on my b-day, I present you with the next chapter of "Impasse!" I hope you all enjoy, as I'm finally tying up alot of the storylines. But, not before I introduce one final twist! Thanks for reading! I'm off to have my cake and eat it too! X3
"Impasse"
By: Miracle Shining
PAIRINGS: HanHae, TeukHae, SiHan (past tense), KyuMin, ShinChul, YeTeuk, etc.
RATINGS: PG-13 to NC-17 (will be notated if NC-17)
GROUPS: Super Junior, DBSK, Kitty GYM, KAT-TUN
GENRE: Action/Romance/Angst
WARNINGS: Violence, Sexual Situations, Dark Themes, Character Death
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Don't own them, never will, but thanks for reading!
SUMMARY: AU Storyline~In the South Korean underworld, a popular form of entertainment is fighting matches. Men are judged by the fighters they own. A troubled fighter with a past catches the attention of two long time friends and may lead them both to the brink of obsession.
Character Profiles
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six~Rated R
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine~Rated R
Chapter Ten~Rated NC-17
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen~Rated R
Chapter Fifteen~Rated R
*****
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Whirlpools
Kangin followed the sound of the scream. A thousand thoughts rushed through his head. A fumble of memories of the fateful night Siwon was lost flooded his mind. All he could picture was Hankyung laying dead in a pool of his own blood. KyuHyun and Sungmin were quick on the older trainer's heels. They reached the doorway to the training center and stopped in their tracks.
Eunhyuk was standing silently, his pants coated with maroon. Behind him laid the two bodies of the fighters Golf and Mike. Yoochun was on his knees, his face anguished. The man was stroking the hair of the Japanese Kendo expert, Yamapi. It took Kangin only moments to surmise what had happened to the slender fighter.
Sungmin let out a cry and quickly turned into KyuHyun, hiding his face from the violence. KyuHyun swallowed back the bile that rose in his throat. He watched as Kangin quietly approached the two men. He stopped beside Eunhyuk, looking down at Yoochun and the limp body of Yamapi.
"What happened?" Kangin finally croaked out.
Eunhyuk swallowed thickly and turned his gaze to Golf and Mike's still bodies. He tried to form words but everything seemed to be frozen inside of his vocal chords. He then looked back at Kangin, his face troubled and his eyes damp.
:"......yunho." Yoochun whispered suddenly.
The elder trainer blinked for a moment and then shook his head. He ran his hand through his tousled strands of hair and exhaled slowly. His gaze was drawn down to Yoochun again, the man's hand still stroking dark hair in his lap.
"I'm sorry."
Yoochun stopped sliding his fingers through Yamapi's hair. He looked up at Kangin. The expression almost startled the man. Yoochun's eyes were blazing like hell's fury. His lips were drawn into a taut line, the words spat out viciously.
"Sorry?" he hissed. "Sorry is the least of things that could have been said. Sorry?! Sorry?!"
Yoochun moved Yamapi's forehead from his lap. He reverently lowered the man's head downwards, the body remaining in the hunched over position. Yoochun then stood slowly and turned to the four looking at him.
"Sorry?" he said again, his voice catching with a bitter laugh. "Your precious Chinese man is the reason I have nothing! No, let me rephrase that. JUNSU'S precious Chinese man is the reason I have nothing! NOTHING!!"
Eunhyuk grabbed Yoochun and shook him. The man let out a heart breaking sob and tried to fight off his friend. Kangin was quick to step in, taking hold of Yoochun as the man thrashed. The two did their best to calm the other. Yoochun continued to struggle when he suddenly felt a set of hands on his face. His hard gaze shot forward to see soft brown eyes framed by black hair looking at him kindly.
Sungmin very gently began to use his thumbs to wipe away the tears that were sliding unbidden down Yoochun's cheeks. The act was simple but calmed the frantic man immediately. Sungmin said nothing as he continued to tend to Yoochun's face until the last tear was wiped carefully away.
"Yamapi was always very kind to Kyunnieah and I, even if we only knew him for a couple days. He always smiled and said hello. Golf and Mike were good to us too, they made us Thai food only yesterday."
Yoochun let out a shuddered breath. KyuHyun approached the other men and laid a hand on Sungmin's shoulder.
"We are sorry, Yoochun. We can't change what happened. But maybe we can help you?"
"H-h-how?"
"We can find Yunho."
"It's just not Yunho... It's... It's Changmin too... Why, Hyukjae? Why?" Yoochun pleaded to his friend.
"I don't know, I just don't know." Eunhyuk admitted.
The taller of the two men reached and pulled Yoochun against him. The man finally broke down. He felt as though he had shattered into a thousand pieces. The sobs were ragged and fierce against the nape of Eunhyuk's neck.
Kangin gave an approving nod to his new trainer and fighter. The duo nodded back, understanding the simple language. Kangin looked silently at the three bodies laying on the floor.
"We need to call someone. I don't know who, just someone."
"Junsu. We have to tell him, he'd know how to take care of it."
Everyone nodded when Yoochun suddenly pulled back. His eyes were a little too wide, as if shock had finally set in. But he spoke clearly when the name slipped from his lips.
"Jaejoong."
"What about him, Yoochun?"
"He'd know where Yunho is. We have to find Jaejoong!"
"Junsu first, Jaejoong second." Kangin stated.
"Jaejoong first!!" Yoochun snapped back.
Kangin gripped Yoochun's shoulders from behind. The man looked vehement before Kangin spoke softly.
"You're my friend, Yoochun. I taught you and Eunhyuk everything you know. You trusted me then, please, please, trust me now. We'll get to Yuhno and to Changmin, I swear. But first, we need to talk to Junsu and put our three companions to rest."
Yoochun was stiff for a few moments before his shoulders slumped forward.
"All right." he barely whispered.
Kangin gestured to KyuHyun and Sungmin.
"I want you two to come with us. I don't want anyone down here with these bodies until we see Junsu."
The duo made a movement of agreement.
"Come on, Yoochun." Eunhyuk said gently. "Let's make sure that Yamapi, Golf and Mike didn't lose their lives in vain."
Eunhyuk caught Yoochun's hand and pulled the trainer along. The man seemed to be working on auto pilot. Kangin followed behind, keeping one of his hands on Yoochun's shoulder. KyuHyun and Sungmin followed then after Kangin.
"You better damn well have a good way of fixing this, Xiah Junsu." Kangin thought silently.
*****
Junsu sat silently in his leather chair. The sound of the rain pouring down overhead was almost deafening in his otherwise still office. His hands were folded carefully over one of his knees. He could hear the wind whistling through the trees. Branches struck over the large picture window periodically, the tapping sound echoing through the room.
His eyes never left the person sitting across from him.
There was a loud pounding on the double doors that led into his office. Junsu raised an eyebrow slightly and then looked at his visitor. The person gestured for Junsu to allow the people in. The man carefully pressed the button on his desk, the doors to the office swinging open slowly.
Five men came almost tumbling through the entryway. Yoochun and Eunhyuk were stained with blood. Kangin, Sungmin and KyuHyun were quick to appear from behind the duo.
"JUNSU!" Kangin boomed. "You've got to..."
All words fled from anyone as they saw the visitor sitting quietly in the chair across from Junsu's desk. The bare glint of light on a pistol caught Kangin's eye.
"What the hell?" the man said softly.
The other in the chair turned slightly. Sandy colored hair and dark eyes observed the five men across from them. A finger clicked idly on the trigger of the pistol. The person's face was sullen, lips pulled down in a frown.
"......jaejoong?" Eunhyuk whispered.
Jaejoong just nodded slightly and turned his attention to Junsu. The man remained seated. After a couple more drawn out moments, Jaejoong looked back at the other men.
"The trio who fought for Changmin and Yoochun? Are they lost to us?" he questioned.
"Why? Why? Why?!" Yoochun suddenly demanded.
The man sprang forward from Eunhyuk's grip. He ran and struck at Jaejoong. The fist impacted the man's face, turning his head. Everyone sucked in their breath, waiting for the other to draw his gun on Yoochun. Instead, Jaejoong turned his head back and spit out a little bit of blood. Yoochun stared at the other man, his fists shaking in rage.
"I will take that as a 'yes' then." he stated simply.
"Where is Yunho?!" Kangin demanded. "And why are you holding Junsu at gunpoint?!"
Jaejoong looked at the men mildly. His expression was unreadable. He lowered his gun finally but kept the weapon visible. He stood slowly from his seat.
"Yunho and Changmin are at an old fishing plant down by the abandoned docks on the outskirt of the city."
"Why didn't you stop them?" Eunhyuk questioned. "You knew what they were going to do!"
"I had my reasons." Jaejoong answered.
"So you let our friends die?!" Yoochun spit. "I'll kill you!"
The man moved forward again. This time however, Jaejoong placed the barrel of the gun against Yoochun's chest. Sungmin let out a gasp.
"Please, please, no more!" he begged. "There's been too much already!"
Sungmin's pleadings didn't go unnoticed. Jaejoong lowered the pistol and drew back from Yoochun.
"If you want to save your friends, I suggest you head down to the docks. I can take you there."
"How do we know this isn't a set up?" KyuHyun suddenly spoke from behind.
"Because if I had wanted to kill you all, I could have already." Jaejoong responded. "But that's not my goal."
"Then what is?" Kangin rapidly returned.
"I have unfinished business with Minwoo. That's all you need to know." he stated.
"Minwoo?" Eunhyuk asked.
"Did you really, really think that Yunho and Changmin would want to get rid of Hankyung for just any old reason? I can guarantee those two have already snagged that kid Donghae and his friend Eeteuk too."
"How do you know all this?" Kangin demanded.
Jaejoong looked back at Junsu. The man's face was distressed. He stood quietly from behind his desk. Jaejoong waited until he moved around to the front.
"Junsu?" Eunhyuk felt as though his world was ready to fall apart.
"I received a call from our friends Heechul and Shindong. Shindong was shot through the foot earlier in the day. Heechul said an intruder had forced him to send two text messages, one to Donghae and one to Eeteuk, telling them they were to meet at the dock address. He hasn't been able to get into contact with either of them. He thinks they were in trouble."
"So why didn't you just call someone to help?!" Kangin sharply asked.
"That would be where I come in." Jaejoong said softly. "You see, I happened to be talking to Junsu when that phone call came. I had suspicions that Yunho and Changmin may be up to something. I couldn't have Junsu reporting anything or I would lose my chance to get to Minwoo. I know for a fact that man is who our two traitors are working for."
"Why?!" Yoochun blurted out.
"Because over three years ago, Hankyung took someone very important from Minwoo. Now he wants repayment for it."
"No, it can't be..." Kangin whispered more to himself than anyone else.
"Boss?' KyuHyun asked from behind the larger man.
"That fight. The one the week before Siwon was killed. Hangeng struck his opponent in the back with a kick. We didn't know the fighter had a previous spinal injury. He was paralyzed and a week later, they had to pull the plug on him. He was a vegetable."
Kangin's face shown a moment of realization as the pieces fell together in his head.
"That's why there was that assassination attempt at the fight against Jin! Minwoo was trying to have him killed. When that went sour, he hired someone else who could do the job."
Jaejoong nodded at the explanation.
"As much as I regret the loss of your friends, I couldn't let anything interfere between me and the path to Minwoo."
"You still haven't told us what you have to do with this whole thing." Eunhyuk pointed out.
Jaejoong just sighed softly, rubbing his temple with his free hand. He tapped the pistol on his leg before looking back at everyone.
"That's something I can't reveal right now. But if you want to save your friends, listen to me. We, and I mean that literally, need to go down to the docks. I know the address, I hacked into Yunho's private files. Junsu will make the necessary calls to have your deceased taken to a respected coroner. It's all I can offer you right now. Eunhyuk, you need to stay with Junsu. Make sure everything gets taken care of."
"Who the hell put you in charge?"
Jaejoong suddenly raised his gun, his eyes hardening. Everyone stood still as the man gestured to the doorway.
"I don't have time for this and neither does your friends if they're still alive. I'm asking you to believe me. And if you don't, then believe this gun. I will use it if I have too."
The silence was thick, the sound of rain above matching the harsh breathing from the members in the room. Finally Kangin broke the silence.
"If we go with you, how do we know we're not walking into a trap?"
"You don't."
Somehow that honest answer made the difference to the bigger man. He gave a quick nod and turned to KyuHyun and Sungmin.
"Never thought I'd have to put your fighting skills to the test like this, boys. It really is a life or death match."
"We're ready for it, Boss." KyuHyun said. "We want to help."
"Even if it means going down for the count permanently." Sungmin added.
Kangin felt an immeasurable amount of pride at his duo.
"We're with you for now, Jaejoong. But the moment it looks like you're turning on us, I'll break your neck with my bare hands."
"Not if I do it first." Yoochun said dangerously. "I'm coming too."
The sandy haired man simply made a sound of agreement. He turned his attention to Eunhyuk and Junsu.
"Here is the address and the information. Call whatever authorities are under your payroll. Just give us some time."
Junsu took the small piece of paper. Jaejoong looked at the two men for a long time and then barely smiled. The act seemed strange and yet somehow comforting to everyone in the room.
"I'm sorry it had to be like this, Xiah Junsu. Thank you for being so good to me and taking me in. I don't think I'll be coming back, but I'll try to make sure everyone else does."
Junsu went to open his mouth, but Jaejoong shook his head. The smaller man then gestured to the other four to follow him out the door.
"JAEJOONG!" Junsu suddenly shouted.
The man turned quickly to see something silver flying through the air. He reached out and caught the object with his hand. A set of shimmering keys glimmered in the light.
"Take my private car, it'll get all of you there faster."
Jaejoong nodded and headed out, the other four following quickly behind him.
Eunhyuk turned his attention to Junsu. The man was standing very still and then suddenly collapsed forward. Eunhyuk caught him quickly, letting his own knees give to hold onto his partner. He maneuvered Junsu so he could look down at his face. The man was very pale and his bottom lip quivered.
"It's all my fault, Hyukjae. I wanted too much. I wanted it all."
"Sssh, no, no, Junsu. No one could have known that this was all going to happen. Just hold it together, we need to take care of our friends downstairs and then help the others. You need to stay with me."
Junsu sobbed softly and grabbed Eunhyuk's shirt. He buried his face into the cloth as his body was wracked with sobs. Eunhyuk held tight to the man and rocked him slowly, trying to calm his companion. Inwardly, he sent a prayer to whatever heavenly entity was listening to spare the remaining friends they had.
*****
Cold wetness struck his face.
Hankyung opened his eyes with a start, sputtering water out from his mouth. The droplets slid down his forehead and trickled over his neck. The chill was bitter to his already frigid skin. He tried to move forward but felt the pull on his shoulders. Glancing back, he could make out he was bound by a heavy chain around a support pole in the middle of a large room.
He didn't remember going unconcious, but he did remember seeing the man's face in front of his vision.
"Welcome back to the living, Dancer."
The voice was too recognizable to Hankyung. His eyes shot up to see a man looking at him from across the room. Minwoo was sitting on a shipping box, his legs swinging idly over the side. The Chinese man blinked away the few bright spots of light again to see that next to Minwoo was Donghae. The young man was tied to the chair, a gag in his mouth.
"DONGHAE!" Hankyung shouted.
His words were interrupted by a hard slap across his jaw. His temper flared as he looked up to see Yunho looking down at him smugly.
"Don't talk unless you're asked."
"Why?" Hankyung growled.
"Because." came Yunho's sharp reply.
"Now, now, Yunho. Don't talk to our main event that way. You'll get opportunity enough to have your chance at him. After all, Changmin was very wise to invest in your talents, even if he didn't tell me."
"What can I say, I'm very dedicated to making sure I get my clean up jobs done right." Changmin's voice came from behind.
Hankyung's head whipped to the sound of Changmin's voice. The man had his hands resting on two different people. The first Hankyung recognized as Eeteuk. He was struggling against the binds on his wrists, cursing violently. The other man Hankyung didn't know, he was a younger raven haired youth who seemed to have resigned himself to his bindings.
"Oh, that's right! You don't know about our other special guest, do you, Hangeng?" Minwoo questioned. "You'll be more than glad to meet him, I'm sure. Yunho, why don't you pull our Dancer's bindings away from the pole and take him over to meet our other friend?"
Yunho smirked viciously and pulled the loose end of the chain away from the pole. He yanked hard and Hankyung was ripped from his sitting position to his feet. He immediately tried to pull away when he heard the click of a gun behind his back.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Yunho said frankly.
Hankyung glanced behind him to see that the gun was actually not pointed at him. Instead, the weapon was poised and ready to be shot straight through Donghae's skull. The young man's face was streaked with tears as he tried to work the gag free from his mouth.
"One false move and your pretty little friend's brains will be painting the sawdust."
"I'd believe him, Hangeng." Minwoo said mildly. "Yunho doesn't like you as it is."
Hankyung let out a series of curses in Mandarin. Minwoo just smirked as Yunho kicked at Hankyung's rear, forcing the man forward. The two made it the short distance from the pole to where Eeteuk and the stranger were tied to their chairs.
"You know, Hangeng, I wasn't expecting this 'two for one' deal. I only had intended on Eeteuk being here at the docks to lure your new lover Donghae here. But to my great surprise and delight, he had brought himself a friend. Now this friend of Eeteuk's, he's very special to me. And he'll be exceptionally special to you too. Would you like to know why?" Minwoo asked rather cheerfully.
Hankyung just shot Minwoo a deadly look. The man gave a cruel smile in response.
"Well, that man in front of you, he goes by the name of Yesung. His real name is Jongwoon. And he's the man who killed your Charmer, Siwon."
At that moment, Hankyung's world came crashing down again.