Endings and Beginnings
Title: Endings and Beginnings
Rating: PG
Fandom: U-Kiss
Theme set/prompt: Fantasy/03 - Evil
Summary: They face the man that started all this.
Author's Notes (optional): TEN! It's DONE! Please don't kill me.
Disclaimer: Not Mine, Not true
Inspiration from 10_what_ifs
Previous: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine
"Stay out of sight," Kibum told them yet again, but then rethought that and grabbed Eli's arm, pulling him to stand in front of the mirror. "You stay here," he said.
Eli stared at him. "Why?"
"Because if I can't get us through to him, I'd like him to come here to us." Kibum said. "Either way, you're bait or the first one through."
Eli took a deep breath. "That's not exactly comforting, you know," he said. He folded his arms, then let them fall to his sides again.
Kiseop laughed. "It's not supposed to be," he said, and then yelped when Kibum smacked him on the side of the head.
"Quiet," Kibum said, and they all settled down.
Eli didn't know what to do with his hands. "What do I do if he starts asking me questions?" he asked.
"Answer them, they way you would have before you met me," Kibum said, and then the mirror flared.
"Why are you contacting me now?" a voice demanded, and Eli's eyes widened. He sounded just like Kibum... like the man he'd seen in that resigned little town. He didn't show himself. "KyuJong, why...." He stepped in front of the mirror and stared at Eli, who looked back at him, not entirely able to hide his own fear. "What do you want."
Eli shifted. "I was told to stand here," he said. It probably sounded stupid, but it was all he could think of.
HyungJoon smiled, and Eli cringed. He knew better than to think there couldn't be evil in a smile, but it still disturbed him when he saw it. "Where is KyuJong?"
Eli gestured to one side of the mirror, where they'd put KyuJong outside that morning. He knew this place well enough to know where he was in reference to anything.
"Busy, is he?" HyungJoon frowned. "How'd he get you again? Did that foolish brother of mine bring you to him and hand you over?" He laughed, softly. "Where is Kibum?"
Eli looked away, rubbing one arm, and HyungJoon laughed again. "I see," he said. "Well, I'll have to come and find KyuJong, I guess. Hold still," he added, his tone stern. A moment later, the power around the mirror flared, and Eli could feel the mage siphoning off his power. And he remembered that feeling, now, how it had gone through most of his life. He blinked, slowly, feeling drained - which he had been - and when he opened his eyes again, HyungJoon stood in front of him.
The mirror tilted sideways and crashed to the floor, and Eli stumbled backwards as HyungJoon reached for him, nearly falling until he landed against the wall.
"Hello, hyung," Kibum said, a false cheer in his voice. "Long time no see."
HyungJoon turned around, no longer trying to reach Eli, and stared. "You," he said.
"Yes," Kibum said. "As for KyuJong, he won't bother anyone any more, unless some unfortunate soul decides to try and rescue him. But Eli tells me not a lot of people go through this part of the desert."
Eli winced, wishing Kibum hadn't brought him up to HyungJoon again. It did what Kibum wanted, though, because HyungJoon threw a spell at him, and he and Kibum were caught up in a battle that had the rest of them ducking just to keep from getting hit.
"You okay?" AJ asked, his voice quiet to keep from distracting the battling mages.
Eli flinched away from the touch on his arm before realizing who it was. He took a deep breath to try and calm down again. "I will be," he said, then AJ shoved him away, ducking the other way to avoid a lightning bolt that slammed into the wall where they'd been, chipping the stone.
"This is not good," Kiseop said, helping Eli to his feet without looking at him. "It's really not going well for Kibum."
Eli could see it now, see how Kibum struggled. He had to have known it would be like that; he knew what HyungJoon had gotten into, what he'd become.
"I can't reach him," Hoon muttered on Kiseop's other side. "He's got a shield." He nudged Kiseop. "I need a hole."
"You think I can get through his shields?" Kiseop demanded, still holding Eli's arm. "How?"
Hoon scowled. "I've seen you bore a hole through rocks thicker than this," he said, banging on the wall. "Can you get through his shields, just big enough to get this through?" he held up a small knife.
Kiseop let go of Eli and looked at it, then at HyungJoon. "If I'm at his back, maybe."
"Think I can distract him?" Eli asked, straightening. He wanted to do something. Anything.
"If anyone can, it's you," Kiseop said, wincing as DongHo flew across the room and crashed into the wall, collapsing at the base of it. "And well enough to get his attention off Kibum."
Eli nodded and slipped around the edge of the room to where AJ stood, looking for an opening. AJ nodded at him, and then Eli shoved him back and ran at HyungJoon.
It did what they'd hoped. HyungJoon looked away from Kibum, catching Eli with a spell that locked his legs and sent him crashing to the floor. He barely caught himself in time, elbows bruised from the impact. At least he hadn't caught himself with his face.
"Is that the best you can do, Kibum?" HyungJoon taunted. "You're throwing your boys at me like they could do...." He stopped abruptly with something like a gasp, and Eli looked up.
Hoon's knife stuck high in HyungJoon's back, and then Kibum did something and all the spells around the room that weren't his stopped. Eli slowly got to his feet, glancing round to see Kevin next to DongHo, Kiseop once again collapsed (but with Hoon next to him, instead of AJ), and SooHyun stood next to Kibum, supporting him. Eli blinked, trying to clear his eyes, and wondered where he'd been.
HyungJoon stood still, caught in a spell that looked something like the one he'd used on Eli, only covering his whole body. "What are you going to do with him?" Eli asked.
Kibum looked at him wearily and leaned heavier on SooHyun. "I don't know, yet," he said. "He's not going to do anything for right now, though." He glanced at Hoon. "Nice shot. Eli," he added, turning to look at him, "don't go anywhere near him, or we'll have to start all over again."
Eli backed up, running into AJ and nearly knocking him over. "Whoa," AJ said, catching him and steadying him.
It took them some time to get everything sorted out; by the time they had HyungJoon locked away (in a room Eli knew way too well), DongHo had woken up. It took Kiseop another couple of hours to regain consciousness, but as before, he had something to eat and went back to sleep.
"The mirror wasn't meant to be broken," SooHyun explained later, relaxing against the wall in the well room. The rest except Kiseop sat ranged around the room. "The spell rebounded and knocked me out for a bit. I guess I missed the whole thing. What happened?"
Eli let the others tell the story, eyes nearly closed as he listened. Everyone had a bit of the story to tell, much of it that Eli didn't know, so he let AJ explain what he'd done, adding only that he didn't know what exactly he'd wanted to do. Except distract HyungJoon.
"Well it worked," Hoon said. "And that hole Kiseop made was just big enough. He's good."
SooHyun nodded. "What's the plan with HyungJoon?"
DongHo grinned. "He said something about going to their mother. Considering how HyungJoon grimaced, I think that's probably the best thing that could happen, from our point of view," he said.
"How did you hear that?" Kibum asked from the doorway, and DongHo grinned at him.
"You taught me to spy, remember?" he asked, and Kibum sighed.
"To my everlasting regret," he said. "But yes, mother is... not pleased. She's going to be here soon."
"I hope it's going to be an easier meeting than when Eli met his mother?" SooHyun said, his voice sharp.
Kibum lifted an eyebrow. "She won't bother you," he said. "Probably."
"Probably?" SooHyun repeated, but Kibum was gone, the door closed, before SooHyun got all the way to his feet.
"He'll get you for hitting him," DongHo said.
SooHyun grimaced and sat back down. "I'm surprised he hasn't yet."
Eli sagged back against the wall, grateful for the cool of the room. "I'm ready for a nap," he murmured, and was asleep before he heard anyone say anything else.
"So, where to next?" SooHyun asked Kibum as they rode out the next morning. Kiseop was wide awake, but Eli wished he could have slept longer. He didn't have to ask why, either. He still felt drained, and likely would for another couple of days. It never went any other way.
"Are you going to fall off your horse?" DongHo asked him.
"You sound way too please at the prospect," Kevin said.
"I'm not," Eli said. "Not without help. Please do not render that help."
DongHo pouted. "You're no fun."
AJ snickered, grabbed DongHo's leg, and dumped him out of the saddle. "But you are," he said, and kicked his horse into a trot. Hoon grabbed DongHo's horse before it could go after AJ's, and DongHo had mounted again before the rest of them got very far. Eli smirked at the look on DongHo's face, and determined to stay out of the younger boy's way for a while. At l east until he got AJ back for that little stunt.
He relaxed again as soon as they left the sands, dozing until they stopped for lunch. He didn't realize that Kibum wasn't with them until after he'd eaten. "Where'd Kibum-sshi go?" he asked.
"He said he was going home," SooHyun said. "He'll still direct us, the way he was, but he thinks it'll be easier now, with his brother out of the way."
Eli hoped so. He certainly didn't need any more problems in his life.
They mounted up and started off, and they'd barely gotten out of the clearing they'd lunched in before AJ slid off the side of his horse, gripping the saddle that took him with it. He scrambled to his feet, face red, and glared at DongHo, who had collapsed over his horse's neck, laughing. Eli rolled his eyes and dismounted to help AJ get his saddle back on.
What would he do without these guys, anyway?
Table
Rating: PG
Fandom: U-Kiss
Theme set/prompt: Fantasy/03 - Evil
Summary: They face the man that started all this.
Author's Notes (optional): TEN! It's DONE! Please don't kill me.
Disclaimer: Not Mine, Not true
Inspiration from 10_what_ifs
Previous: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine
"Stay out of sight," Kibum told them yet again, but then rethought that and grabbed Eli's arm, pulling him to stand in front of the mirror. "You stay here," he said.
Eli stared at him. "Why?"
"Because if I can't get us through to him, I'd like him to come here to us." Kibum said. "Either way, you're bait or the first one through."
Eli took a deep breath. "That's not exactly comforting, you know," he said. He folded his arms, then let them fall to his sides again.
Kiseop laughed. "It's not supposed to be," he said, and then yelped when Kibum smacked him on the side of the head.
"Quiet," Kibum said, and they all settled down.
Eli didn't know what to do with his hands. "What do I do if he starts asking me questions?" he asked.
"Answer them, they way you would have before you met me," Kibum said, and then the mirror flared.
"Why are you contacting me now?" a voice demanded, and Eli's eyes widened. He sounded just like Kibum... like the man he'd seen in that resigned little town. He didn't show himself. "KyuJong, why...." He stepped in front of the mirror and stared at Eli, who looked back at him, not entirely able to hide his own fear. "What do you want."
Eli shifted. "I was told to stand here," he said. It probably sounded stupid, but it was all he could think of.
HyungJoon smiled, and Eli cringed. He knew better than to think there couldn't be evil in a smile, but it still disturbed him when he saw it. "Where is KyuJong?"
Eli gestured to one side of the mirror, where they'd put KyuJong outside that morning. He knew this place well enough to know where he was in reference to anything.
"Busy, is he?" HyungJoon frowned. "How'd he get you again? Did that foolish brother of mine bring you to him and hand you over?" He laughed, softly. "Where is Kibum?"
Eli looked away, rubbing one arm, and HyungJoon laughed again. "I see," he said. "Well, I'll have to come and find KyuJong, I guess. Hold still," he added, his tone stern. A moment later, the power around the mirror flared, and Eli could feel the mage siphoning off his power. And he remembered that feeling, now, how it had gone through most of his life. He blinked, slowly, feeling drained - which he had been - and when he opened his eyes again, HyungJoon stood in front of him.
The mirror tilted sideways and crashed to the floor, and Eli stumbled backwards as HyungJoon reached for him, nearly falling until he landed against the wall.
"Hello, hyung," Kibum said, a false cheer in his voice. "Long time no see."
HyungJoon turned around, no longer trying to reach Eli, and stared. "You," he said.
"Yes," Kibum said. "As for KyuJong, he won't bother anyone any more, unless some unfortunate soul decides to try and rescue him. But Eli tells me not a lot of people go through this part of the desert."
Eli winced, wishing Kibum hadn't brought him up to HyungJoon again. It did what Kibum wanted, though, because HyungJoon threw a spell at him, and he and Kibum were caught up in a battle that had the rest of them ducking just to keep from getting hit.
"You okay?" AJ asked, his voice quiet to keep from distracting the battling mages.
Eli flinched away from the touch on his arm before realizing who it was. He took a deep breath to try and calm down again. "I will be," he said, then AJ shoved him away, ducking the other way to avoid a lightning bolt that slammed into the wall where they'd been, chipping the stone.
"This is not good," Kiseop said, helping Eli to his feet without looking at him. "It's really not going well for Kibum."
Eli could see it now, see how Kibum struggled. He had to have known it would be like that; he knew what HyungJoon had gotten into, what he'd become.
"I can't reach him," Hoon muttered on Kiseop's other side. "He's got a shield." He nudged Kiseop. "I need a hole."
"You think I can get through his shields?" Kiseop demanded, still holding Eli's arm. "How?"
Hoon scowled. "I've seen you bore a hole through rocks thicker than this," he said, banging on the wall. "Can you get through his shields, just big enough to get this through?" he held up a small knife.
Kiseop let go of Eli and looked at it, then at HyungJoon. "If I'm at his back, maybe."
"Think I can distract him?" Eli asked, straightening. He wanted to do something. Anything.
"If anyone can, it's you," Kiseop said, wincing as DongHo flew across the room and crashed into the wall, collapsing at the base of it. "And well enough to get his attention off Kibum."
Eli nodded and slipped around the edge of the room to where AJ stood, looking for an opening. AJ nodded at him, and then Eli shoved him back and ran at HyungJoon.
It did what they'd hoped. HyungJoon looked away from Kibum, catching Eli with a spell that locked his legs and sent him crashing to the floor. He barely caught himself in time, elbows bruised from the impact. At least he hadn't caught himself with his face.
"Is that the best you can do, Kibum?" HyungJoon taunted. "You're throwing your boys at me like they could do...." He stopped abruptly with something like a gasp, and Eli looked up.
Hoon's knife stuck high in HyungJoon's back, and then Kibum did something and all the spells around the room that weren't his stopped. Eli slowly got to his feet, glancing round to see Kevin next to DongHo, Kiseop once again collapsed (but with Hoon next to him, instead of AJ), and SooHyun stood next to Kibum, supporting him. Eli blinked, trying to clear his eyes, and wondered where he'd been.
HyungJoon stood still, caught in a spell that looked something like the one he'd used on Eli, only covering his whole body. "What are you going to do with him?" Eli asked.
Kibum looked at him wearily and leaned heavier on SooHyun. "I don't know, yet," he said. "He's not going to do anything for right now, though." He glanced at Hoon. "Nice shot. Eli," he added, turning to look at him, "don't go anywhere near him, or we'll have to start all over again."
Eli backed up, running into AJ and nearly knocking him over. "Whoa," AJ said, catching him and steadying him.
It took them some time to get everything sorted out; by the time they had HyungJoon locked away (in a room Eli knew way too well), DongHo had woken up. It took Kiseop another couple of hours to regain consciousness, but as before, he had something to eat and went back to sleep.
"The mirror wasn't meant to be broken," SooHyun explained later, relaxing against the wall in the well room. The rest except Kiseop sat ranged around the room. "The spell rebounded and knocked me out for a bit. I guess I missed the whole thing. What happened?"
Eli let the others tell the story, eyes nearly closed as he listened. Everyone had a bit of the story to tell, much of it that Eli didn't know, so he let AJ explain what he'd done, adding only that he didn't know what exactly he'd wanted to do. Except distract HyungJoon.
"Well it worked," Hoon said. "And that hole Kiseop made was just big enough. He's good."
SooHyun nodded. "What's the plan with HyungJoon?"
DongHo grinned. "He said something about going to their mother. Considering how HyungJoon grimaced, I think that's probably the best thing that could happen, from our point of view," he said.
"How did you hear that?" Kibum asked from the doorway, and DongHo grinned at him.
"You taught me to spy, remember?" he asked, and Kibum sighed.
"To my everlasting regret," he said. "But yes, mother is... not pleased. She's going to be here soon."
"I hope it's going to be an easier meeting than when Eli met his mother?" SooHyun said, his voice sharp.
Kibum lifted an eyebrow. "She won't bother you," he said. "Probably."
"Probably?" SooHyun repeated, but Kibum was gone, the door closed, before SooHyun got all the way to his feet.
"He'll get you for hitting him," DongHo said.
SooHyun grimaced and sat back down. "I'm surprised he hasn't yet."
Eli sagged back against the wall, grateful for the cool of the room. "I'm ready for a nap," he murmured, and was asleep before he heard anyone say anything else.
"So, where to next?" SooHyun asked Kibum as they rode out the next morning. Kiseop was wide awake, but Eli wished he could have slept longer. He didn't have to ask why, either. He still felt drained, and likely would for another couple of days. It never went any other way.
"Are you going to fall off your horse?" DongHo asked him.
"You sound way too please at the prospect," Kevin said.
"I'm not," Eli said. "Not without help. Please do not render that help."
DongHo pouted. "You're no fun."
AJ snickered, grabbed DongHo's leg, and dumped him out of the saddle. "But you are," he said, and kicked his horse into a trot. Hoon grabbed DongHo's horse before it could go after AJ's, and DongHo had mounted again before the rest of them got very far. Eli smirked at the look on DongHo's face, and determined to stay out of the younger boy's way for a while. At l east until he got AJ back for that little stunt.
He relaxed again as soon as they left the sands, dozing until they stopped for lunch. He didn't realize that Kibum wasn't with them until after he'd eaten. "Where'd Kibum-sshi go?" he asked.
"He said he was going home," SooHyun said. "He'll still direct us, the way he was, but he thinks it'll be easier now, with his brother out of the way."
Eli hoped so. He certainly didn't need any more problems in his life.
They mounted up and started off, and they'd barely gotten out of the clearing they'd lunched in before AJ slid off the side of his horse, gripping the saddle that took him with it. He scrambled to his feet, face red, and glared at DongHo, who had collapsed over his horse's neck, laughing. Eli rolled his eyes and dismounted to help AJ get his saddle back on.
What would he do without these guys, anyway?
Table