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Titan has always been their base. It’s free–the atmosphere around them open and friendly– and it leaves them with little doubt that Chanyeol can venture throughout the moon’s surface without needing his face mask made for adapting to a planet’s atmosphere. It leaves them less to worry about, knowing his height and sharp mind can make it on his own without needing their help, and Kyungsoo watches as the human leaves to go to the one restaurant he always craves when he misses his home planet. It helps that he’s dyed his hair a vibrant silver to counter his rare tanned skin, but artificial coloring can only last so long between all the changes of space.Kyungsoo stands with the rest of their crew, loitering at the entrance of Baekhyun’s aircraft, and he waits until he sees Chanyeol’s newly dyed hair disappear in a crowd of blues, purples, and reds. Chanyeol can take care of himself. He’s proven it more times than any of them can count, but none of them can deny worrying about him for just a moment, a little bit, because humans are fragile creatures. Their bones break under the right amount of pressure and a little wind chill can be their downfall into death. It’s strange in all the right ways, but then Kyungsoo starts to hear soft murmurs in the back of his mind, the way these voices always make themselves present when he gets lost in his thoughts.It’s Baekhyun and Jongdae’s voices, speaking in a language Kyungsoo has yet to understand, and he doesn’t think he wants to, not when he looks over his shoulder and into the foyer of the ship to see Jongdae reaching out to touch Baekhyun’s grey hand. It almost appears dusky, as if Baekhyun himself lacks the vibrant energy of life, but every time Jongdae touches him, Kyungsoo can see a soft shimmer start to radiate from that simple gesture to the rest of his body. Baekhyun practically glows with the soft touch and Kyungsoo wonders if he’s noticed it at all.“Kyungsoo is staring again,” Baekhyun murmurs, though his small smile–one that Kyungsoo recognizes as soft, reverent, and only towards Jongdae–changes when he faces him instead. This smile is something lively, playful, and Kyungsoo instinctively frowns at him, something he’s learned from both Chanyeol and Jongdae from the years they’ve all been together. But before he can say anything, Baekhyun’s already shifting his form, his golden eyes slowly changing into a darker hazel as he tilts his head in the direction of the crowds farther in front of them away from the docks. “Bring back some more supplies. We’re only going to be here for two weeks maximum and we have another assignment across the galaxy.”There’s a hitch in breath, one that Kyungsoo catches from Jongdae, but then he hears a much louder, much more mocking scoff. “Aye, captain,” Jongdae says next, making Kyungsoo roll his eyes at him. The other reaches out to pinch Baekhyun’s arm and it’s amusing to see Baekhyun’s hazel eyes flicker green in the distraction of pain. “We’ll make sure we bring back the good stuff.”“Good,” Baekhyun says, still staring at them as the color of his skin starts to change from the area between his eyes and outwards. It’s always enchanting for all of them to watch, the way a shifter morphs into another being, but Jongdae is dragging Kyungsoo away with a hand on his arm before he gets stuck watching their friend shift in the shadows for the next few hours.Beside him, Jongdae’s skin is a soft, pale blue in comparison to Kyungsoo’s own rosy-colored complexion. It’s a nice change in hue, but Chanyeol has always made jokes that they would make purple one day. Kyungsoo still doesn’t understand the reference, but Jongdae usually tends to flush a deeper blue, almost as dark as the night sky surrounding Neptune, in response. Baekhyun doesn’t understand either, so he guess it’s okay, as long as he’s not the only one left in the dark.The crowds are thicker today–too many people in a smaller station such as Station 92–and Kyungsoo grunts when Jongdae practically forces both of them into the throng of beings moving in front of them. There are species Kyungsoo recognizes and some he doesn’t and he sucks in a breath when he feels something brush along the side of his waist. Jongdae, he murmurs, pushing his thoughts into his friend’s head next to him. Within seconds, he can feel Jongdae’s colder hand leave his arm to wrap around his waist instead, brushing off whatever is clinging onto him.“Yeah, I got you,” Jongdae murmurs in return. His eyes never leave their destination, a sign with foreign letters and symbols that translates into ‘market’ when Kyungsoo stares at it long enough, and Kyungsoo takes that as his cue to keep his eyes open too. He suddenly becomes hyper-aware of his body, internally feels for the items he knows he’s placed along his waist and the clothes he’s wearing, and he makes sure he doesn’t feel anyone trying to take their money. It shouldn’t be a problem though, not with the marks of mercenaries permanently pressed into their skin on the sides of their necks.There are too many people here, Kyungsoo mutters, for lack of something to say. Even if he can’t verbalize his thoughts and words, he still needs to speak, to say something so he doesn’t go crazy from the silence. It’s not usually a problem when his crewmates consist of Baekhyun, Jongdae, and Chanyeol, but Jongdae is too focused on getting them into the market. Kyungsoo feels like he’s sticking out again. Is today a holiday?“No,” Jongdae grunts, the slits of his eyes narrowing when they both feel something brush along their backs. He instantly turns his head, hisses, and the sensation is gone. “But I assume it’s going to be one with how many beings are here at this time.”At that, Kyungsoo rolls his eyes. Holidays aren’t created on a whim.“Tell that to humans who created National Donut Day.”Oh, Kyungsoo mumbles, looking away from the crowd to stare at Jongdae with wide eyes. I guess you’re right. But human donuts are delicious.The tense expression fades from Jongdae’s face. The lines around his lips soften to show the natural curl of his mouth and the pupils of his eyes widen the slightest bit in happiness. “They are, aren’t they?” he concedes, laughing when Kyungsoo does. Though, it’s always been strange when Kyungsoo laughs. It’s surprisingly soft, melodious, and it always attracts the attention of those they walk past. They don’t pay them any mind though and Kyungsoo feels a smile linger on his lips when he feels Jongdae squeeze his hip in reassurance. “Come on. We’re almost there.”I know, Kyungsoo says, even sounding happy. He places his hand on top of Jongdae’s on his waist in response. The crowds are thinning the further they make their way into the center of the station, where all the markets and stalls are located, but he doesn’t want his friend to let go yet. He can still feel the presence of whatever touched him minutes ago and he taps his finger once on top of Jongdae’s hand on his waist when he can feel him gently squeeze him again. We should get some human fruits for Chanyeol too.“Only the necessities,” Jongdae agrees, laughing louder. It almost sounds like he’s wheezing with how genuinely amused he is. “We should probably stock up on anesthetics and cleaning supplies too.”Yeah, that sounds good.The innermost market isn’t as crowded as they expected. Only those with obvious weapons attached to their bodies and big packs on their backs are here and Kyungsoo releases his hold on Jongdae when he starts to pull away. Neither of them have their weapons equipped, but they each know the aura they have the ability to present. They know how to use it to their advantage, to make those around them fear them within a well-place stare, a release of pheromones that makes others become acutely aware off their presence, and Kyungsoo channels his inner Dretteite power. Within seconds, they have the entire market’s attention on them.“Oh, a renowned Dretteite,” one of the stall owners call out, tilting their head down in a bow in greeting. It makes Jongdae snicker next to Kyungsoo, though with the slight fangs peeking out when he smiles, they all know Jongdae demands respect in another form. “And the Neptunian Kuanos. It has been a while since I have last seen you.”“It has,” Jongdae speaks freely, smiling and leaving himself wide open, as he walks towards the other. Kyungsoo makes sure to stay a step behind him, close, protective. They’ve survived death a few times, getting lost in the orbits of various planets and rogue pirates, but sometimes the most civilized of places can be the most dangerous. Kyungsoo is also pretty sure he’s seen the big guy in the corner before. He might be worth something to the Galaxy Corps.“List to me all the items I may provide you with and I will gather them for you,” the stall owner informs.Kyungsoo takes the moment to look away from the big creature in the corner with horns on its head. He reigns in his aura, his presence, and within no time, the inner market is bustling with noise as it was before. His species is known for their silence, their stealth, and it’s no different when he meets others. He only pushes his thoughts into the minds of those he trusts–or is planning to kill–for communication and he eyes the way the stall owner is gathering everything Jongdae lists off the top of his head. Don’t forget the human strawberries, Jongdae, he mumbles, and the Venusian fish.Out of the corner of his eye, Kyungsoo can see Jongdae nod before listing off ‘Earthen strawberries and Venusian fish, if you have it.” He pulls out of Jongdae’s head then, trying to keep the connection one-sided unless he feels Jongdae trying to push back, and turns to look around the marketplace again.There are several beings moving in and out of the area, buying what they need before continuing on, and he eyes a row of foreign plants to the far right. They’re all lined up on a steel wall. Some of the stems are moving on their own accord while others remain stagnant. He wonders what type of flora they are. Jongdae, what are those plants? he asks, sweeping his gaze through the area again, and he belatedly notices another creature glancing over at them every few seconds. This one is a smaller being, appearing female, but Kyungsoo doesn’t still long enough to alert his awareness. He simply keeps the female’s presence in the back of his mind as he turns back to Jongdae who’s ignoring his question in favor of bargaining with the vendor. Considering there are seven bags to carry back, Kyungsoo assumes he’s going to be carrying four of them.“A hundred and twenty-two runes,” Jongdae muses aloud, enough for Kyungsoo to hear.It’s honestly not a bad price, Kyungsoo answers back, feeling something shift behind him. He looks over his shoulder, watches as the big creature with horns walks out of the area, and reaches out simultaneously to push Jongdae slightly to the side when he sees a flash of something head for them. The smaller female being from earlier is trying to attack both of them at once. Oh, it’s a Centess.Kyungsoo sidesteps away from the Centess as she focuses her attacks on him and he flicks his gaze up momentarily to see Jongdae still trying to bargain with the stall owner to try and lower their price even more. Really now? he asks, pushing the question into Jongdae’s mind and receiving a physical dismissive wave of the hand in return. Nobody else in the market moves or even acknowledges the new brawl and Kyungsoo sighs, internally, as he dodges another swipe of the creature’s blade before crouching and simply tackling her to the ground.It proves effective. His weight cuts off the majority of her movement and with a hand wrapped tight around her neck where her gills are, she struggles to breathe. He stares down at her, notices the spots that dot her eyes and the flatness of her nose, and he wonders if he should put thoughts into her head to mess with her. Before he can decide though, he feels a push to the side of his mind, like the thought is stumbling around trying to find an entrance into his home. He opens his mind up a crack, enough for Jongdae’s voice to slip through in his head. Leave her alive, yeah?Does this mean you wish for me to put a thought into her head or no? Kyungsoo questions back, grunting when she manages to land a kick to the back of his head.No, she isn’t worth it.Kyungsoo grunts inwardly in response, easily releasing her before getting off. He watches as she scrambles to get up before trying to attack him again, but all he does is exude his aura, intensify his presence and the dangers he’s capable of, and she stumbles back just as quickly.“Do you really think you can handle one of us? Let alone two?” Jongdae voices out, as he pays the vendor for their items. He leaves the bags on the counter before turning to face her, the slits of his eyes narrowing and a feline, predatory grin taking its place on his lips. “You should leave before you see the extent of our abilities.”Nobody moves but Kyungsoo extends his aura to the entire inner market. He feels Jongdae trying to blend in his own as well, their species’ histories allowing for a harmonious, strange mixture between the two, and he tilts his head to the side when the female looks back at him with wide eyes. It’s a simple gesture, but one knows to be of either curiosity or mockery. Kyungsoo smirks when he sees the anger flare all over her. Mocking.She speaks in a language Kyungsoo can’t care to translate. She gestures towards them, pitch increasing in volume until it’s a shrill, deafening sound, and then she’s stomping off. Kyungsoo has no idea what that was about, but he cracks a smile and laughs when he sees Jongdae whining and rubbing at his ears. If he still retained his tail, it would’ve probably been wrapped around his waist, defensive.“How did that not bother you at all?” Jongdae whines, still rubbing at his left ear, even as he grabs one of the bags from the counter.Kyungsoo shrugs, walking back over to grab four of the heaviest, before walking away from his comrade. He doesn’t bother formulating an answer or pushing it into Jongdae’s head, but he does bother looking over his shoulder every few minutes, making sure he doesn’t lose Jongdae in the crowd and nobody tries to steal their items and money. He should know. He’s always been able to control his sense of hearing anyways.Oh, Kyungsoo mumbles, minutes later, as they form a two-man line between the thinning crowds. How much did all of this cost?“A hundred runes flat,” Jongdae chirps, and Kyungsoo laughs, easily envisioning his friend’s bright smile in his head.Unbelievable. The docks are considerably less crowded. Mechanics walk between all the parked ships, inspecting them for damages and jotting down the costs of it all, and Kyungsoo weaves his way between two of them as he hears Jongdae grunt behind him. He must’ve knocked into the one with tentacles.Baekhyun? Kyungsoo calls when he’s approaching their ship. It’s a small thing, easy to evade squadrons and their attacks, but nobody would guess by how filthy it looks. The normally sleek obsidian walls are patchy, but the name Shining Diamond still shines through the dirt. Others would assume they got hit on the daily, which–in Kyungsoo’s mind–could be true depending on how active and quick their assignments take to complete.Silence greets them as Jongdae struggles to keep his bags held up high off the ground. Kyungsoo frowns at the lack of response, kicking what he can of the side of the ship. He searches for Baekhyun’s consciousness once more, finds it somewhere near the opposite side of them at the far end of the ship, and shouts, Baekhyun! He can feel a startle before a scream is heard throughout their empty home.“I’m coming!”They can hear dull thuds resonate throughout the ship with each step Baekhyun takes. It’s not forced or heavy in a way he’s upset or angry but rather a little panicked with trying to reach them as quickly as possible. They don’t have the extra hands to open up the latch to open the door and Baekhyun knows it.I bet he was sleeping, Kyungsoo murmurs quietly, hearing Jongdae chuckle in response.The side door to the ship opens within minutes. Baekhyun immediately throws a glare in their direction and Kyungsoo can’t help eyeing Baekhyun’s current form. He appears as a complete human with warm, tanned skin, hazel eyes, and black hair. It shouldn’t be anyone’s first choice to transform into one, considering how much they’ve destroyed their own planet even though they’re ‘fragile,’ but Baekhyun had always said humans had their own attractive quality within them.“You don’t have to be so loud, Soo,” Baekhyun grumbles, reaching up to ruffle his own hair in annoyance before stepping aside to let them in. There’s a push to the side of his mind and Kyungsoo opens up to hear Jongdae mentally whimper in response. “Why do you have so many bags?” he asks, automatically reaching out to grab one of Jongdae’s bags. “I thought you’d be dragging a crate back.”Kyungsoo eyes them, watching as Jongdae walks ahead of them with his lighter load, and he wonders if Jongdae had always had a sway to his hips. He wonders if Baekhyun knows he’s not even looking at him anymore even though he’s holding out an arm towards him too, waiting for Kyungsoo to give him a bag. Are you always this distracted with Jongdae’s hips? he pushes into Baekhyun’s mind, watching as his skin practically glows golden at the accusation. Kyungsoo smiles at him, amused. No, Jongdae can’t hear this.Then Baekhyun frowns, reaching out to snatch two of his bags in one hand. “Oh, shut up,” he grumbles, walking away though his skin still glows the slightest bit. The ship is oddly quiet. The only sounds they hear are their feet shuffling along the ground–Baekhyun stumbling over the edge of the rug by the sink, Kyungsoo knocking his hip into the corner of the island counter, Jongdae humming trying to bring life back into the monotony of putting up supplies. It’s entrancing, in a way, without Chanyeol back. Though, it feels like something is missing. Chanyeol hasn’t come back yet, Kyungoso murmurs, even though it’s obvious by now. He looks over his shoulder, sees Jongdae hand something to Baekhyun to put in the cabinet in front of them.“No, he hasn’t,” Baekhyun agrees, not even bothering to look over at either of them. He’s stacking cans before Jongdae’s moving away to place their perishable goods in the fridge. “He contacted and informed me that he is passing by some bar. He wants to try and gather more information for our upcoming assignment.”“I thought our assignment is near Pluto,” Jongdae murmurs, upper half of his body bent over and practically hidden by the refrigerator’s door. “Do those from Pluto visit Titan as well?”Baekhyun shrugs. “Not very long I assume. They’d go to the other station nearest to them.”Jongdae hums, straightening to give him and Baekhyun a look. “Well, he can handle himself,” he reasons, looking back towards the living room where the small foyer leading to the main door is located. “When will he be back?”“In an hour.”Mm, Kyungsoo hums. He pulls away from their minds, lets them have a moment of peace from his incessant pushes. They’ve told him plenty of times before that they don’t mind, that they like to hear his voice in their heads, but he still feels guilty constantly pestering them when they have their own thoughts to think up and attend to. Plus, it doesn’t take as much energy from him to do it unlike them. Sometimes, it feels like he’s rubbing his ability in their faces, but then he can’t shift. He can’t hiss and instill fear with a few choice words. He can’t even adapt to his surroundings as well without help from his friends.“We’ve all got something that’s important to each other,” Baekhyun suddenly says. His words pull Kyungsoo out from his thoughts, making him look over at the other with wide eyes because he was sure he wasn’t pushing his thoughts anywhere except in his own mind. He watches as Baekhyun looks over his shoulder to give him a small smile. “I’ve been trying,” he explains, always trying to expand his new abilities to the best he can. “And you tend to think loud when you’re upset.”Next to him, Jongdae looks confused. His eyebrows are furrowed together, staring at Baekhyun a good two minutes before looking over to him, and then he frowns. “Why are you upset, Soo?”Baekhyun doesn’t give an answer. Kyungsoo isn’t sure how much he’s even heard.“Kyungsoo?” Jongdae tries again, after a few minutes. He’s folding the last of their bags away, hoping to use it for something else in the future, and then he’s walking over. He walks past their small kitchen table, past the island counter that separates the kitchen from the living room, and he keeps walking until he’s standing right in front of Kyungsoo.They don’t do anything but stand there. Kyungsoo tries and silences his own mind, becomes hyper-aware of it, but then he flinches when Jongdae raises his hands up. He reaches for him, cradles his head between his palms, and Kyungsoo sighs softly, audibly, when he feels Jongdae’s cooler hands thread fingers into his hair. Before he knows it, Jongdae is guiding him until their foreheads are gently touching.Jongdae does this when he wants to feel close. He does this to try and hear his thoughts louder, clearer, and Kyungsoo closes his eyes to feel the chill of Jongdae’s body rush through him at the touch.“Is it about Chanyeol?” Jongdae asks, quietly, still trying to search. “Or is this about your ability? You sound oddly quiet.” Which in reality, is an odd thing to say considering Kyungsoo doesn’t even make very many sounds. He doesn’t have the vocal ability to do it. “Or is it us? Baekhyun?”“Hey, I could only tell he was upset. His words were murmurs in my mind but scattered.”Jongdae hums and Kyungsoo can feel it resonate within him. “We love to hear your words, Kyungsoo,” he says after a few moments. “They’re so very important to us.”Kyungsoo grunts, an awkward sound to make in a conversation like this, but sometimes he has no control over what sounds he’s actually capable of making. Stop being sentimental, he mutters anyways, causing both Jongdae and Baekhyun to laugh. Kyungsoo can feel the puffs of air on his face before Jongdae pulls away and he can open his eyes to see the other still smiling brightly at him.“There’s our Kyungsoo,” he murmurs. He sounds so proud. Kyungsoo flushes a deeper rose-color before he turns and leaves the area.I’m going to my room, he announces, frowning when he can hear Jongdae’s chuckles and Baekhyun’s resonating laughter behind him. Baekhyun’s laughter is absolutely beautiful. It’s joy and sunshine packed together on a planet that isn’t Earth and Jongdae can’t help but gravitate towards the sound. His ears twitch and he swears he feels the phantom flick of his tail behind him. When he looks over at the other, it’s to see Baekhyun’s fond smile directed at him. Before he can say anything, try and come up with something to say, Baekhyun beats him to it.“Did you want to rest?” he asks. He doesn’t move closer, but Jongdae wants him to.“No,” Jongdae answers, though he sighs and collapses on the couch next to him. He knows he tends to take plenty of naps, but he doesn’t want to take one when he woke up only a few hours ago. He looks up when he sees Baekhyun peering down at him curiously. “Come here.”This time, Baekhyun’s laughter is soft as he sits on the coffee table. He reaches out to grab onto Jongdae’s hand and Jongdae hums, pleased, when he sees his touch makes Baekhyun glow the slightest bit. And then Baekhyun smirks.“How much did you get all that for?”Jongdae laughs, “One hundred runes flat.”Nothing is said, but Jongdae can read Baekhyun’s expression of That’s my Jongdae on his face. He can also read I adore you so much in his eyes. Kyungsoo doesn’t know how long he stays in his room. He simply sits there, listening to old Earthen music through some device Chanyeol found in a Mars thrift shop, and he thinks he actually drifts off to sleep in the middle of some song titled “Love Yourself.” He remembers leaning back against the wall while sitting on his bed, reading the English lyrics on the device’s screen, but when he blinks his eyes open again, he’s lying on his side with his hand stuffed underneath his pillow.He groans, trying to blink the world back into focus, and he frowns when he sees his silver plated desk right in front of him. There are a stack of papers he doesn’t really want to review, half of them in another language he’s still trying to learn, but he told Baekhyun that he would get it done in time before their next assignment in the upcoming weeks.He hears the beginning notes of “Love Yourself” again before he pushes himself to sit up. The bluetooth headset falls with his movement and he takes a moment to stare down at the fading red color. He still doesn’t know why the thing is called ‘bluetooth’ when it’s not blue nor a tooth. Chanyeol tried explaining it to him–Jongdae understands and even walks around with it to sing along to the songs playing–but Baekhyun is still as confused as Kyungsoo is about it. Well, last they talked about it months ago anyways.There isn’t any sounds coming from beyond his door. He can’t hear any footsteps or singing bouncing off the walls of their ship. He can only feel the soft thrum of something underneath his feet and he takes that as his cue to search the ship for his friends’ consciousnesses. He easily finds Chanyeol near the kitchen, Jongdae too, but he can’t find Baekhyun’s and it makes him frown.Hey, he calls, feeling Chanyeol jerk in surprise in his mind and Jongdae hum in response. Where’s Baekhyun?“He went to the weapons dealer over in the next space station,” Jongdae hollers back, causing Kyungsoo to wince at the loud volume. He sounds like he’s right next to him. “He’ll be back!”You don’t have to scream your vocal cords out, Kyungsoo deadpans, easily hearing Chanyeol’s laughter and Jongdae’s whine echo throughout the ship.Kyungsoo pulls out then. He’s still sitting on the edge of his bed, staring down at the steel floors, and he watches as he wiggles his toes against them. They look like little fingers, only a bit chunkier and shorter, and he bites the inside of his lip as he makes each one of them follow a beat they can’t hear.He’d rather do so many other things than review the paperwork on his desk.I’m going to the observatory, he suddenly announces, getting up immediately. He slips his feet into the sippers by the edge of his bed, feeling them instantly warm his feet, and he barely hears the responding grunts bouncing off of the walls when the door to his room slides open with the push of a button. He can clearly hear the sizzling of something cooking and Jongdae’s singing but he turns away from them and to the other end of the hallway instead.The observatory isn’t a big space. It’s enough to fit one swivel chair in the front center of the room and enough space behind it to be able to pace back and forth comfortably, but Kyungsoo ignores that in favor of grabbing a blanket on the ledge in the side of the room and plopping down in the solo chair. There’s nothing much to see when they’re docked at this station, but the mechanics, pilots, and crews walking about give him enough of a distraction for his mind to wander back to past memories and future assignments he knows they’re going to inevitably have.The one assignment they’re completing in the upcoming weeks has to do with assassinating some low-profile politician in a quadrant near Neptune. It isn’t anything difficult, not nearly as complicating as the assassination assignment of the pirate lord of quadrant CX-553 of the next galaxy over, but they have all been questioning why Baekhyun accepted something as easy as this. Sure, Kyungsoo heard that there were quality prizes as reward for completing this, but they’re all qualified to take on much more difficult cases. The added symbols and details to the marks on their necks is clear indication of so.Kyungsoo watches as one mechanic starts trying to clean persistent grease off of the floor near the ship docked three spots down. He seems to be struggling, arm working harder to remove the stains, but he isn’t having very much success in his mission. It distracts Kyungsoo, the constant sizzling of whatever Chanyeol is cooking lulling him into a daze, and Kyungsoo doesn’t realize he’s falling asleep until he hears someone walking towards him. The steps don’t sound particularly heavy–like Chanyeol’s–but they don’t sound particularly light–like Jongdae’s. The steps sound somewhere in the middle with a steady gait and Kyungsoo tries to look over his shoulder to see Baekhyun walking towards him. He blinks, confused, because he thought Baekhyun wasn’t going to be back until the middle of the night at least.Jongdae said you went to the next station over, he tries to push out, watching as Baekhyun smiles softly at him. It appears as fond as the one he gives Jongdae and now Kyungsoo is doubly confused, glancing down to see a pile of blankets in Baekhyun’s arms.“And Jongdae said you’ve been sitting there for the past five hours,” Baekhyun retorts, laughing, as he finally makes his way to him. He stops just short of standing next to Kyungsoo, instead turning and dumping all the blankets on the floor next to him, and Kyungsoo blinks as Baekhyun makes another makeshift bed, one made of old blankets where some are fraying at its edges. “You even missed dinner,” he mentions, though it doesn’t do much. He and Kyungsoo don’t require as much physical nourishment as Jongdae and Chanyeol do. They can skip meals for at least three days before they start becoming actually hungry. They just need fluids to survive.Kyungsoo simply watches his friend, as he hums an unrecognizable tune and basically ‘nests’ as Jongdae calls it, and he blinks up at him again when he turns to him with a proud smile on his face. “Give me a minute,” Baekhyun mumbles, before he’s running off again, only to return with a couple of pillows from their living room.Baekhyun, Kyungsoo groans, hearing Baekhyun hum in response. What are you doing? When Kyungsoo turns to look back out the large window, he realizes the sky is truly dark, with one of Saturn’s rings moving into their vision above them. He grunts when he suddenly feels Baekhyun tug on his arm, making him stand almost immediately by the force of his pull. Baekhyun.“Come on,” Baekhyun simply says, tugging and pulling and pushing until Kyungsoo is lying down on the makeshift bed next to the chair. The blankets are soft underneath him, the pillows even softer, and Kyungsoo swears he hasn’t had this much rest in a long time. He stares up at Baekhyun then, watching as he settles in next to him, and Kyungsoo sighs vocally when he feels Baekhyun come in close enough for Kyungsoo to settle his head in the crook of Baekhyun’s neck and shoulder. “You should sleep in a reasonable bed,” Baekhyun murmurs and, like this, they can both see the stars and ring in the sky above them.Space has always been a beautiful sight. It’s the reason why they do what they do and Kyungsoo sighs again when he feels Baekhyun gently place a hand on his thigh. If he listens carefully enough, he can hear Chanyeol making music in his room and Jongdae singing along. And you think sleeping on a pile of blankets is a ‘reasonable’ bed? he deadpans belatedly, hearing Baekhyun’s soft chuckles. Even if Baekhyun appears as a human, he still sounds and appears beautiful.“It’s better than sleeping in a chair,” Baekhyun reasons.Space is endless. It’s enchanting and wonderful. Kyungsoo stares as he traces out the constellations with his eyes and feels Baekhyun’s thumb rubbing back and forth on his thigh. It’s simple, something that actually happens more often than not, and Kyungsoo sighs again when he feels Baekhyun’s heartbeat resonate throughout his own body with how close they are.“Three audible sighs?” Baekhyun quietly asks, sounding pleased, in disbelief. “You must either be tired or content to be near me.”Neither, Kyungsoo answers quickly, defensively, but he knows it’s a lost cause when Baekhyun laughs softly again right next to him. Shut up.“I won’t.”Kyungsoo grumbles inside their heads, but he can feel Baekhyun’s smug smile in the way he says his words. I still haven’t done any of those paperwork, Kyungsoo confesses, hearing Baekhyun hum in response.“I didn’t expect you to.”Kyungsoo can feel Baekhyun shift against him but the hand on his thigh and Kyungsoo’s body leaning against his doesn’t change. He can still hear Chanyeol and Jongdae and, with their ship docked like this, it almost feels like home.There’s a soft sigh, minutes later, and Kyungsoo mimics it, moves so he’s closer to Baekhyun and his broad shoulders and gentle touches that feel like home. He barely hears Baekhyun’s words, already drifting off to sleep, but he winces when he hears a chord strung wrong and Jongdae’s yelp in the other room.“You feel like home, too.” When Kyungsoo wakes up the next morning, the sky is bright and a soft shade of orange. He can hear Baekhyun’s soft snores next to him, realizing he can’t feel his physical warmth anymore, and Kyungsoo turns over to see Baekhyun sprawled out on his back. His left foot is sticking out of the blankets and Kyungsoo wants to chuckle at how the ends of Baekhyun’s hair has tinted a faint rose color in his sleep.“You two look cozy” comes a new voice and Kyungsoo looks up to see Jongdae smiling down at them. It’s all toothy and entirely too happy for the first thing to see in the morning, but then it softens when Jongdae focuses his stare on Baekhyun instead. “Chanyeol and I are going out. We’ll be back in a few hours.”Kyungsoo nods, wincing as he pushes himself to sit up. Despite Baekhyun’s belief this was a comfortable alternative to the chair and their own beds, hard metal isn’t very forgiving for his lower back. Where are you going?“Back to the market to get some other stuff Chanyeol wants to cook,” Jongdae answers easily enough. Kyungsoo watches as Jongdae lifts a foot to kick Baekhyun’s own. “Hey, hot stuff. You’re drooling.”Kyungsoo doesn’t think Baekhyun is drooling, but the gesture makes him wake up enough to groan, kick Jongdae right back, and turn over to throw arms around Kyungsoo’s waist and cuddle in close to him. He grimaces when he feels something wet the side of his shirt. Baekhyun, he calls, You’re drooling.“I’m a drooler,” Baekhyun grumbles in response, hearing Jongdae’s responding laugh. “Let me go back to sleep. I have a mission later.”That stills both Kyungsoo and Jongdae. They stare at Baekhyun at a loss before Kyungsoo looks to Jongdae who stares back at him a moment longer before he’s running out. His steps sound erratic, all over the place, and by the time he’s dragging Chanyeol back into the room with him, Baekhyun is fast asleep clinging onto Kyungsoo’s waist. Judging by the look on Chanyeol’s face though, none of them knew about Baekhyun’s extra assignment.“He hasn’t told me anything about it” is the first thing that comes out of Chanyeol’s mouth. His oversized shirt is partially hanging off of one shoulder and his hair is a complete mess. He tries to fix himself, straightening enough to rearrange his shirt correctly and run fingers through his hair, but he coughs when Jongdae punches him in the side instead. “I really don’t know about it!”“I know that,” Jongdae hisses before he’s kicking out and hitting Baekhyun’s leg. “I didn’t know about it either– Hey, you ass, wake up!”Baekhyun groans. “In any form I take, my ass is great,” he grumbles in response, shifting closer to hide his face in Kyungsoo’s side completely. “Let me sleep.”“Kyungsoo,” Jongdae hisses and Kyungsoo immediately shakes his head. He glares up at the other, trying to get his point across, because he doesn’t disturb someone who is clearly asleep or verging into the realm of dreams. He doesn’t know what he’ll find if that person’s consciousness is eerily still. “Chanyeol!”“What?” Chanyeol whines, pouting, as he moves to sit in the lone chair and spin to face them. He eyes each of them before settling his gaze on Baekhyun dozing off while remaining attached to Kyungsoo, and sighs. “Hey, Baekhyun,” he calls out. He doesn’t reach out to touch him, only run fingers through his own hair again. “Baekhyun, why didn’t you tell us you accepted a solo assignment?”Kyungsoo can feel Baekhyun’s mouth moving against his waist, the way Baekhyun’s fingers tighten and relax along his shirt, and he guesses Chanyeol’s question alone woke Baekhyun back up easily enough. He reaches out a hand to card through Baekhyun’s hair. The strands feel soft underneath his fingertips, coarse near the ends where the rose color takes place, and feels Baekhyun shift until he can blink blearily at each one of them. He guesses it’s safe to push now. Baekhyun.“It was last minute,” Baekhyun explains with a yawn, Kyungsoo watching and feeling as the rose color fades back to black underneath his fingertips.But you never left my side, Kyungsoo murmurs, seeing Baekhyun blink up at him in response.“Okay, so, not really last minute,” he mumbles, before he’s shifting to rest his head on Kyungsoo’s thigh instead to look at Jongdae and Chanyeol. “While I was out at the next station, someone came up to me asking for a personal job. They recognized the mark on my neck and said they’d pay me three thousand runes to get rid of some bounty hunter lurking around here or Jupiter.”Chanyeol frowns, straightening up in his seat. “Was the person talking to you a bounty? Or another bounty hunter?”Baekhyun shrugs, the movement nudging against Kyungsoo’s thigh. “Don’t care, but I found out the bounty hunter they wanted me to get rid of is someone famous in the Andromeda Galaxy. I told them that it needed to be five thousand runes, at least, for me to take them out.”“And?” Jongdae asks. His eyebrow is raised as he leans against the wall and he sounds annoyed. “Baekhyun, why did you accept this alone? We could easily catch this guy together.”Baekhyun shrugs again, trying to give him a placating smile. “It won’t take very long. I know my way around Saturn and Jupiter. There hasn’t been any news of any stray asteroids or anything.” Kyungsoo can feel Baekhyun’s fingertips tapping along his knee underneath the blanket. “They’re wiring the money to the account today, the one we set up when we landed. Once they do, I’ll leave, take care of it, then come back before you even know I’m gone.”There’s an expression in Jongdae’s eyes Kyungsoo has seen before. It’s a mixture of worry and fondness. It’s strange to see a combination like that, but Kyungsoo assumes it’s warranted when they deal with Baekhyun. “Then why not take one of us with you? Double the coverage. Your baby can hold two people max.”“Because I want all of you preparing for our other assignment coming up soon,” Baekhyun says, stifling a yawn. “We’re gonna be gone from this galaxy for a while and we need to stock up as much as we can before we make it to our next base.”“Jongdae and I can take care of things here,” Chanyeol reasons, glancing over to the other who simply nods in turn. When he looks back, he stares at each of them. “Take Kyungsoo with you. You two work wonderfully together in foreign territory.”Baekhyun scoffs. “What’s foreign about my home planet?” he mutters, pushing off of the ground to sit next to Kyungsoo, “Saturn is easy to navigate.” The warmth he left behind is fading quickly and Kyungsoo stares down at his thigh before looking over to Baekhyun.It’s still dangerous.“We aren’t even bounty hunters,” Jongdae continues on. “We’re mercenaries. We fight and protect our own. We’re safer together.”“It’s not that big of a deal!” Baekhyun exclaims, startling Jongdae into backing down. The slits of his eyes soften and they all realize what they’re doing before Baekhyun is standing and stretching. Suddenly, the tattoos on all of their necks stand out like a bright neon sign to Kyungsoo. “Let’s go eat, yeah? Then I’ll get ready.” He walks out of the room before any of them can get a word in.Sitting there, silent, Kyungsoo eyes both Jongdae and Chanyeol. They’re both worried, rightfully so, but they’ve all completed a solo assignment a few times in their careers. This one shouldn’t be any different. They all know Baekhyun’s capabilities and he’s the best one to go solo besides him. He shares a look with each of his friends before looking down at himself, still partially covered by the blankets surrounding him. He hears Baekhyun taking out pots and pans in the kitchen and he doesn’t hesitate to stand up and follow after him as well. He’ll be fine, he tells Jongdae and Chanyeol as he passes by them, hearing Chanyeol get out of his seat before trailing after him.“He better be,” Jongdae mutters, hissing when Chanyeol punches him in the arm.“Baekhyun!” Chanyeol suddenly calls, causing Jongdae to whine and Kyungsoo to grunt at the loud volume. “Don’t touch the oven!”“I’m not going to burn myself!” Breakfast goes on as normal. Baekhyun and Kyungsoo snack on seared fish while Jongdae and Chanyeol eat eggs and meat and Kyungsoo watches as Jongdae turns in his seat enough to prop his legs on Baekhyun’s lap. He’s touchier than normal, but he shouldn’t be worried if Baekhyun’s going to be gone for only a couple of days.“No, really, I went to that bar yesterday and a Plutonian woman tried to make the moves on me,” Chanyeol says around a mouthful of food. He’s too engrossed in telling his story, hair flopping in his eyes every time he looks to each of them, and Kyungsoo sighs internally as he reaches out to try and keep it from obscuring his friend’s vision. “She pretty much pushed herself up on me.”Baekhyun laughs, reaching out and lightly kicking Chanyeol’s shin under the table. “You forget that’s how they feel most comfortable talking to others.”“And then she kissed me before leaving,” Chanyeol continues on anyways, trying to kick Baekhyun back, only to accidentally hit Jongdae instead. “Sorry, Dae.”“I’m pretty sure that’s their custom,” Jongdae answers, waving a hand at Chanyeol dismissively. “My people kiss each other on the cheek all the time. It’s normal for us.”Kyungsoo smiles when he sees Chanyeol’s cheeks tint pink at the information. I think Chanyeol is remembering the time you kissed him on the cheek, Jongdae, he mentions, mouth opening up into a silent laugh when Chanyeol ducks his head down in embarrassment and stuffs more food into his mouth.“I know,” Jongdae laughs, audibly. He reaches out to pinch Chanyeol’s cheek. “Humans are adorable.”“Hey, you’re human too,” Chanyeol mutters, slapping his friend’s hand away.Jongdae shrugs, still smiling. “Yeah, partially,” he concedes. He leans back against his chair, getting comfortable again, and he hums before looking to Baekhyun. “I still don’t know very many customs about Baekhyun’s race though. There are so few in existence like Kyungsoo’s.”There’s a soft humming sound and it takes Kyungsoo a minute to realize it’s a sound everyone can hear and not just in his head. “It’s hard for an Alau to show themselves,” Baekhyun reasons, drinking more water. “We’ve adapted to every other culture we’ve come in contact with, so it’s going to be hard to remember what’s truly our own in the first place.”Chanyeol hums, earlier embarrassment forgotten. “So, you don’t remember any customs of your own?”“Kyungsoo’s is all about privacy, which leads to his curiosity,” Jongdae adds on, looking to him. Kyungsoo only shrugs in response.Usually, minimal touching, Kyungsoo says.The rest hum in agreement. Kyungsoo stares at each one of them, surprised, because he didn’t think they’d agree so easily. He’s been touchy with all of them recently, but he’s adapted it from Jongdae. Most of them have adopted and adapted something from the other, but he doesn’t think he’s gotten anything from Baekhyun. So, he stares at him longer than the rest. He watches as Baekhyun continues to nibble at his food and listens as Chanyeol and Jongdae have tried to move on with a different conversation topic. Their voices are softer than it was before, but it makes it easier to listen when Baekhyun finally speaks up.Well, he doesn’t exactly speak.Instead, Baekhyun reaches out with the hand not holding his fork. He tilts his body towards Jongdae and they all watch as the hybrid stills in his seat. “I don’t remember much,” Baekhyun murmurs in warning, but then he leans over far enough to place his palm against Jongdae’s chest. His hand glows a faint golden color and Kyungsoo and Chanyeol watch as Jongdae gasps immediately afterward. “But I know this is one of our customs.”It only looks like how Baekhyun looked yesterday morning when Jongdae touched him. His hand is glowing a soft golden color and Kyungsoo stares at its placement over Jongdae’s heart. He’s confused. What– he starts, but then a faint glow encompasses Jongdae’s entire body from Baekhyun’s hand and he’s staring at Baekhyun with wide eyes before it disappears just as quickly.There’s a moment of silence between all of them, where Chanyeol and Kyungsoo are staring at Jongdae and Baekhyun confused. “Well?” Chanyeol asks, breaking the silence. His eyebrows are furrowed together in concentration. “What happened?”“You,” Jongdae mumbles, trailing off, before he finally blinks. Baekhyun pulls his hand away, offers him a small smile, and Jongdae’s mouth opens and closes as he figures out what to say. “He,” he mumbles, looking over to Chanyeol and then to Kyungsoo, but all Kyungsoo does is shake his head. He keeps himself out of their heads because whatever happened is clearly private between them.“Hey,” Chanyeol calls out, trying to get their attentions again. “Guys, what happened?”“In a way,” Baekhyun quickly says, offering them a lopsided smile. “I’m just like Kyungsoo. The only difference is I can push my feelings and empathy into others. My people had a hard time verbalizing their intimacy with everyone around them, so they were able to come up with the ability to push what they’re feeling into whoever they come into physical contact with. It won’t force the other person to feel anything, but they become aware of the original owner’s feelings and emotional thoughts. It doesn’t have to be through the chest either, but the closer it is to the brain or heart, the more powerful it is.”“Oh,” Chanyeol mumbles, eyes wide with shock. He stares at Baekhyun before staring at Jongdae, and Kyungsoo can’t blame him. He didn’t think his and Baekhyun’s species were similar in the slightest except for the power they hold within their bodies. “So,” Chanyeol says, obviously trying to wrap his head around it. “Jongdae,” he calls, watching as Jongdae turns to him again. “What did you… feel?”When Jongdae opens his mouth again, Kyungsoo catches the way he glances over at Baekhyun briefly before he closes his mouth and stays silent. It’s interesting, to say the least, but then Jongdae is pulling his legs away from Baekhyun, grabbing his empty dishes, and cleaning them quickly in the sink. He doesn’t say anything, and neither do the rest of them, but before Jongdae leaves, he stops by Baekhyun. He leans down, comes close enough to kiss Baekhyun’s cheek right at the corner of his lips, and says, “You’ve always been beautiful silver.”It confuses them, Kyungsoo and Chanyeol, but then Jongdae is walking away. His footsteps are light against their floor and they can hear it when his bedroom door shuts behind him. Kyungsoo doesn’t remove his gaze from Baekhyun, but when Chanyeol looks back to him, he’s still as confused as he was minutes ago.“Baekhyun,” he mutters, reaching out with a hand to poke his forehead. “You’re glowing.”Baekhyun scoffs and slaps his hand away. “How can I not?” he asks back, grabbing his own plate and bringing it to the sink to wash. He remains carefully silent and Kyungsoo doesn’t understand.All Kyungsoo does is sit there and watch as Chanyeol gets up to follow their friend. He stands next to him, drying the dishes Baekhyun is handing off, but then he catches sight of it. When Baekhyun finishes and dries his hands off, he reaches out with a hand and threads fingers through Chanyeol’s hair. It looks comforting, like a normal gesture they all do for each other, but Baekhyun’s hand stills as he cups the back of Chanyeol’s head.His hand starts to glow, much like it did with Jongdae earlier, and Kyungsoo watches as Chanyeol freezes, much like how Jongdae did earlier. Chanyeol’s staring wide-eyed at Baekhyun who’s simply staring at him back and Kyungsoo purses his lips as he sees Chanyeol’s entire body start to glow before it disappears again. When Baekhyun pulls his hand away, Chanyeol stumbles back with a gasp.“You adore me?” he mumbles, clutching at his chest with a hand. He’s staring at Baekhyun like he has two heads but in all honesty, that’s not very strange to begin with. “But you–Baekhyun–”“I’ve never indicated that,” Baekhyun agrees with a shrug, before he’s turning to leave the kitchen. He places a hand on Kyungsoo’s shoulder in passing, but it isn’t on him long enough to do anything but provide a sense of presence for him. “It’s not a custom or gesture I do often. Think of it as my own protection.”And that, Kyungsoo understands.When he looks back over to Chanyeol, he still looks confused. He’s staring off in the direction Baekhyun walked off in and Kyungsoo guesses he can’t blame him. What else did you feel? he asks, watching as Chanyeol jolts in his spot before looking to him. Is it really that surprising he adores you? We all adore you.“Yeah, but,” Chanyeol sputters, trying to straighten up and regain his sanity. “I never actually hear it, let alone feel it.”Chanyeol’s distress shouldn’t make Kyungsoo feel so giddy, but it does. It makes him laugh, the same one that they all say is melodious and pretty, and he clutches at his stomach as he doubles over the slightest bit. Like this, he can’t even push his thoughts. His focus is scattered and he feels happiness bloom in him when he hears Chanyeol’s resulting chuckles too.“You’re so pretty,” Chanyeol whispers out. It sounds like it’s not meant for Kyungsoo to hear, when he opens an eye and sees the fondness flowing out of Chanyeol’s gaze, so he tries to keep laughing for a moment longer, smiling when his laughter runs out because he doesn’t quite understand the comment. “I’ll clean the table,” Chanyeol says, louder, like it’s meant for him to hear this time. “Maybe you can go check to see if the money has been wired to our temporary account already.”Kyungsoo stares at him a moment longer before looking to the mess on their table. It isn’t really a mess, more like a few scattered bowls around, but it should still be cleaned up. If the money has been wired already, we need to withdraw it and close that account. He stands, grabbing some of the bowls to wrap up and put in the fridge. We need you to close it.“Yeah, I know,” Chanyeol says, moving aside when Kyungsoo comes close to put some empty dishes in the sink. He waits until Kyungsoo moves away to start cleaning them. “There won’t be any traces left behind.”We don’t have any doubt, Kyungsoo answers him for the rest of the group. He can hear a soft thud coming from somewhere else in the ship, before a soft hiss and curse, and Kyungsoo looks over his shoulder in the direction of all their rooms. There are only three, with Baekhyun sleeping out in the living room instead, but he’s pretty sure the sound is coming from Jongdae’s bedroom.“What are you looking at?” Chanyeol asks, drawing his attention away from his friends. He’s staring at him confused so Kyungsoo simply shakes his head, hears another soft thud. It takes a moment but when he hears a soft moan, he instantly know what’s going on, only because mating is something humans like to do apparently. Some other creatures do it too, but Kyungsoo doesn’t see the appeal in it.“Anyways,” Chanyeol continues, gently bumping his hip with Kyungsoo’s, just because he wants to and he can. “What do you and Baekhyun want for lunch? I figured it’s time for both of you to eat a decent meal before he ventures off for his solo mission.”Kyungsoo takes a moment to think it over. He wants something with some type of Mercurian meat in it, but Baekhyun always opts for Neptunian foods instead. He should probably ask Baekhyun but when he searches for his consciousness, to see how easily he can be let in this time, he finds thoughts of Jongdae at the very front of Baekhyun’s mind. He grimaces. Let’s go for some old classic Earthen food, he says, Something that is considered absolutely delicious on your planet.Chanyeol perks up at that, looking up to the ceiling and biting his lip in thought. “Something absolutely delicious on my planet?” he echoes, listening for Kyungsoo’s affirming hum in his head. “Then I definitely need to go to the market after we get the money and before Baekhyun leaves.”Really? Kyungsoo asks, watching as Chanyeol nods before giving him a bright smile.“And about four hours in-between.” By the time the first of Saturn’s rings makes its way across the sky, the money is transferred to their account. There’s a total of six thousand runes and Chanyeol whistles, impressed, over Kyungsoo’s shoulder. Baekhyun is sitting next to them on the couch and, not so surprisingly, Jongdae is sitting on his lap and leaning over so he’s draped around Kyungsoo’s shoulders from the side.“You know,” Baekhyun mumbles, leaning back against the couch, Jongdae shifting with him. He stares up at the ceiling. “I’m still surprised how much money people are willing to pay us to do something as simple as this.”Kyungsoo can practically hear Jongdae’s quiet purrs. Why are you two so clingy all of a sudden? he asks, looking over his shoulder to the two of them. He shifts the computer over to Chanyeol on his other side as he lets the other schedule an in-person withdrawal. It doesn’t help that Jongdae freezes, going still on top of Baekhyun’s lap, but Kyungsoo catches sight of Baekhyun’s hand slipping to the side to gently hold onto Jongdae’s waist. Were you mating earlier?“Excuse me?!” Chanyeol suddenly shouts, causing Jongdae to hiss and Kyungsoo to growl at the loud volume. When they look over to him, Chanyeol appears sheepish but bewildered. “You two were… mating?” he finishes off with a whisper, staring at them with wide eyes.Baekhyun shrugs though he starts to shimmer the slightest bit. He doesn’t say anything though and Jongdae is the one to frown at them instead. “Let’s get the money then go to the market,” he mutters, standing from his seat and looking pointedly at Chanyeol. “Since we got the money, Baekhyun has to leave soon to keep up his end of the deal.”Baekhyun scoffs, though the shimmer doesn’t dim. In fact, it brightens when Jongdae turns to stare down at him. “They should know we keep up our end of the deal.” He squeaks, quite literally, when Jongdae suddenly leans over to kiss him soundly on the lips. It’s fascinating to see him transform into a Neptunian Kuanos so quickly. “Jongdae!”All he receives is a content curl of the lips from Jongdae before he’s walking away to leave the ship. With the door left open behind him, all Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, and Chanyeol can do is stare at it with their mouths wide open in shock. Kyungsoo can’t even form a coherent sentence. Anything that intimate in front of him is shocking yet not all that interesting to him in the first place.It’s Chanyeol who breaks the silence, when they hear Jongdae whining for him to hurry up. “Uh,” he mumbles, looking to the door before looking to them, and Kyungsoo can’t blame him for that either. “I’ll just,” he mumbles again, staring at Baekhyun as he tries to shift back into his human form. “You look nice in blue?” he offers before he’s getting up and running for the open door. They all hear the resounding thud of Baekhyun throwing the pillow at the wall nearest the latch.“Cred,” Baekhyun curses, slumping back and running fingers through his hair. It’s a language Kyungsoo doesn’t understand completely yet, but he knows enough to know when Baekhyun is cursing in his native language. It also helps that Baekhyun’s starting to return to his human form, an appearance Kyungsoo is comfortable with. Kyungsoo doesn’t even need to say anything for Baekhyun to blurt out, “Jongdae is going to be the death of me.”Kyungsoo smiles, amused. Do I even want to know? he asks, laughing silently when Baekhyun only groans and slumps further into the couch. How are you going to complete this assignment if something as simple as Jongdae’s lip contact is reducing you to a mess?“Hey, I’m not into this physical contact thing as much as you’d think,” Baekhyun grumbles, though his cheeks are strangely turning as pink as Chanyeol’s does when embarrassed.Do you mean the intimate mating physical contact or the intimate innocent physical contact? Kyungsoo outright laughs when Baekhyun sputters nonsense.“Vilg,” he curses. “Jongdae is bendy.”Kyungsoo immediately stops laughing to stare at his friend. I don’t need to know that.“It’s hard to deny him when he sets his mind and mouth to something?” Baekhyun offers, groaning before he’s standing up. He still looks normally human but Kyungsoo flinches when Baekhyun reaches out with a hand to cup the base of his neck. He leans in close, enough to gently place his forehead on Kyungsoo’s, and Kyungsoo can’t help but stare at his friend wide-eyed, wondering what he’s doing. “Since I’ve already done this to everyone else,” he reasons quietly, closing his eyes.Slowly, Kyungsoo can see the glow of Baekhyun’s body emanating brighter, as if he were orbiting the sun itself. He can see Baekhyun’s affection for Jongdae on the surface, threading itself through Baekhyun’s entire being, but then he can see his adoration for Chanyeol. He can feel everything Baekhyun is feeling towards them, warming him up like he’s never felt before, and then his mouth falls open when he sees Baekhyun’s admiration for him. His pride for all of them.Baekhyun is showing him what he felt when he met each one of them–the fear, the comfort, the awe. He can feel some intimate emotion for all of them, but his for Jongdae stands out above the rest. It’s so foreign. Kyungsoo doesn’t understand even as Baekhyun starts to pull away from him, even as he watches as his own body glow briefly before it disappears.You– Kyungsoo says, much in the same way Jongdae did earlier. He’s staring at his friend with wide eyes, wondering why he feels so warm. When he looks down, even his skin is tinged darker than normal. Baekhyun–“What I feel for Jongdae is a little different than for you and Chanyeol,” Baekhyun begins softly, sighing as he straightens up and opens his eyes. They’re his normal golden color, before he changes that back into his standard human hazel eyes. “He knows now. Chanyeol probably knows by now, too.” Baekhyun shrugs then before he’s walking away and stopping just outside of Jongdae’s room to look over at him. “You’re the closest thing I have to taking down that bounty hunter. Come help me warm up before Chanyeol finishes cooking whatever he’s cooking.”Kyungsoo feels his lips downturn into a frown at that. ’Thing?’ he echoes, though he gets up to follow Baekhyun anyways. He watches as Baekhyun enters Jongdae’s room, can hear him grabbing a variety of items, before he’s coming back out to help Kyungsoo move the furniture around the room. I’m a Dretteite. Excuse you, Alau.Baekhyun snickers. “Oh, you’re excused,” he mutters back, putting on his jewelry again. He usually doesn’t wear his accessories, the chains and piercings making it too easy to use against him, but if he’s going against a bounty hunter, he’s going to have to utilize everything he’s capable of using. He’s even emptying his gun, depositing the bullets on the coffee table Kyungsoo’s pushed to the side, and testing his knives to make sure they don’t get caught in their sheaths. He’s always had an affinity for sharp objects and–Oh, Kyungsoo mumbles, surprised. Is that why you like Jongdae so much? Because of his fangs?It shouldn’t be possible, but Baekhyun trips over thin air trying to grab one of Chanyeol’s guns from a nearby shelf. “What are you talking about?” he asks, huffing, as he grabs Chanyeol’s standard weapon and takes the bullets out of it too.Sharp things, Kyungsoo explains, like it’s obvious. You like knives. Knives are sharp. Jongdae’s fangs are sharp. You like Jongdae.“Is that supposed to be some equivalent to the transitive math property?” Baekhyun asks, raising an eyebrow at him.Kyungsoo frowns. Why do you have to bring up something so trivial?Baekhyun shrugs as he gets into position, ensuring everything is secured on him like normal and rearranging the chains attached to his piercings. He looks everything dangerous from the neck up, with dark hair and shifting dark eyes. The added accessories make him seem more intimidating than normal, but it doesn’t help that he’s wearing Jongdae’s pastel-colored sweater and his standard loose pants–‘sweatpants’ Chanyeol called them once. “I like to keep my brain moving” is his answer before he tilts his head and offers him a lopsided smile. “Ready?”There’s enough space in the living room for a decent training area, if all the furniture is pushed off to the side. It’s a thirteen by thirteen meter space, at least, and Kyungsoo tries to calculate how much space he can maximize to take Baekhyun down. What weapons do bounty hunters typically use? he asks, falling into a position ready to attack. Primarily guns, right?“Guns, arrows, spears,” Baekhyun easily lists off, keeping his eyes carefully on his own. “Anything long distance basically.”Kyungsoo feels the corners of his lips lift up, smirking at him. Let’s see what happens then. They’re busy dodging and fighting each other by the time Chanyeol and Jongdae come home. They both ignore them in favor of imitating a real fight and Kyungsoo grunts as he gets kicked in the chest before being punched in the stomach. He drops down to the ground, avoiding another kick, and springs up to tackle Baekhyun backwards. It’s enough for them to lose their balance and they don’t notice Jongdae is watching them while Chanyeol finishes cooking until they smell the aroma of something sweet and sour in the air.They both pause, with Baekhyun’s hand tightened around Kyungsoo’s neck and Kyungsoo’s legs positioned in a way to kick Baekhyun off, and they take the moment to tentatively sniff the air around them. They don’t even realize they’re sweating profusely, Kyungsoo’s skin pinker than normal, until they both look over to see Jongdae already eating his own plate of food, on the couch, watching them like some broadcast program. It’s amazing how quickly Baekhyun’s posture loosens and he pouts at the other.“You’re already eating without us?” he looks over his shoulder to see Chanyeol making their plates for them. “You didn’t even tell us.”Kyungsoo rolls his eyes, kicking his friend off of him and taking great satisfaction in his pained grunt. Why would you get distracted with food all of a sudden? We don’t even need to eat as much as them.“I would gladly eat your portions,” Jongdae calls out, standing to get another plate.“Hey, wait,” Baekhyun calls after, scrambling to get up, but then Kyungsoo lunges for him. He grabs onto his shirt and tugs him back, staring him hard in the eyes.Kyungsoo can see the glee and happiness fade from Baekhyun’s expression, leaving behind concern and strength. They can’t hear me, Kyungsoo warns, watching as Baekhyun tilts his head further down in acknowledgment. You didn’t even pull out your knives on me, nor your guns. For someone to cost six thousand runes, this bounty hunter is on the higher end of our spectrum. Kyungsoo watches then, as Baekhyun relaxes in his hold. We need you to pull out everything you have and come back before our next assignment.The expression changes in Baekhyun’s eyes, to something more reassuring, confidence, and Kyungsoo finds himself breathing a little easier. Unexpectedly, he feels Baekhyun trying to push his own thoughts into his head.When you’re scheduled to leave, you three leave.Jongdae will be expecting you to follow to the Andromeda galaxy, Kyungsoo reminds, finally letting go of Baekhyun when he can hear their other two friends calling their names despite being mere meters away from each other.And I will follow, Baekhyun pushes and Kyungsoo can tell it’s taking more effort than necessary to communicate like this for him. You know I will use every weapon in my arsenal to get rid of this hunter and come back.“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol calls, louder than normal. It breaks their concentration, Baekhyun shivering when Jongdae comes up to poke him in the temple, and Kyungsoo looks over to see their human friend holding two full plates of food for them. He can’t recognize what that is on there, but he guesses it’s good because Jongdae is holding his second plate of food.“You’re even bringing out the chain to your lip,” Jongdae muses, using a finger to trace it from Baekhyun’s ear to his bottom lip. “Go eat and take a nap before you leave.”The small smile on Baekhyun’s lips is nothing compared to the look shared between him and Jongdae. “You’ll all keep your eyes and ears on the news, yeah?” he says instead, turning to grab both plates from Chanyeol before giving one to Kyungsoo. “I’m sure this bounty hunter’s death will be all over the news by tomorrow.”“The least you could do is take care of my weapon and load it up before you leave,” Chanyeol scolds, eyeing Baekhyun’s back where his weapon lays when he turns to head for the couch.“Yeah, yeah,” Baekhyun waves off. He places his plate on the empty spot next to him before taking the time to remove all the weapons from his body. There are two guns, four knives, a couple of old rings, and all the chains and earrings from his face. When he’s done, he looks like the human man Kyungsoo first stumbled upon here on Titan years ago.Kyungsoo rolls his eyes. If not, then he’ll buy you two new weapons of your choosing.“Really?!”Baekhyun chokes.
Yeah, why not?
“For your information, I’m only buying two new guns of your choice if I, so happen, damage yours,” Baekhyun reminds, eyeing the tallest out of all of them. He’s already sitting in his smaller, personal ship with the hood popped open to talk to them. It’s attached to the upper deck of the ship where Jongdae’s and Kyungsoo’s are docked on the tail end and other side.“I’ll send you pictures,” Chanyeol says with a grin. “It’ll help keep you company as you try and find this dude.”Baekhyun laughs, “Yeah, well, I’m counting on you to search him out for me.” He winks at Jongdae then. “You too.”It’s endearing to watch his friends interact with each other. It makes his heart warm seeing how Chanyeol has an arm slung around Jongdae’s shoulders while it’s clear as Saturn’s rings that Jongdae wants to join Baekhyun in his ship. It really shouldn’t, but, well–Come on, you guys, Kyungsoo says, rolling his eyes as he walks up to them and places a hand on Jongdae’s head. He gives his friend an exasperated stare before looking to their friend up on higher ground. You all act like this is the last time we’ll see each other.This time, Chanyeol punches him in the shoulder. Kyungsoo grunts. “We always act like this before we have a solo assignment.”“Even so, can I kiss you one more time?” Jongdae blurts out.Chanyeol and Kyungsoo immediately groan, audibly and mentally, and they both let go of Jongdae so he can climb up the ship to reach Baekhyun. They both cover their ears the moment they hear Baekhyun’s surprised gasp and they don’t even look in their direction until they feel Jongdae poking them each in the shoulder. Really, they shouldn’t be surprised to see his hair fluffed up all over the place and Baekhyun’s body shimmering.“Anyways,” Jongdae pipes up, appearing mighty pleased with himself as he licks his lips. “Baekhyun’s good to go.”“Baekhyun’s not good to go,” Baekhyun mutters back, giving him a half-hearted glare. They share another look and Kyungsoo isn’t sure, but he feels his stomach contents rolling uncomfortably within him. “Anyways,” Baekhyun echoes, before giving each of them a wave or nod. “Keep an eye out for the hunter.” He immediately shuts the top half of his ship as he hunches over the slightest for his steering console before he disengages it from their home.His ship hovers over his place on the deck for a few minutes before Baekhyun carefully guides her out past the short barriers of his larger ship. When he’s simply hovering there, the wind pushing past them and making them squint their eyes, Kyungsoo can’t help but smile when Baekhyun winks at them again before making a kissy face. He assumes that last one was for Jongdae, but it makes him happy to see it before Baekhyun is turning his ship around and flying off.They stand there, staring after their friend, and when Baekhyun disappears along other ships and the clouds in the sky, Kyungsoo is the first one to turn around and head back towards the bridge. Kyungsoo is in the middle of one of the inner markets with Chanyeol when they hear the whispers of a bounty hunter falling from grace in the quadrant between Jupiter and Saturn. They hear whispers it’s the cause of one of the Shining Diamond’s own, leaving marks of a flower cut into the hunter’s side to leave as a signature mark. And then they hear rumors that the entire area is unsafe, with fluctuating pressures and stray asteroids falling into their orbits. That isn’t unusual in itself, but when Chanyeol nudges him in the side, maybe it’s something to think about a minute more.The merchant is busy packing up their items when Kyungsoo turns around. Chanyeol is carefully eyeing how the seller treats everything, making sure it’s in peak condition to bring back to their ship, and Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow when Chanyeol glances at him long enough to give him admission into his mind. What is it, Chanyeol? he asks, before he’s glancing over to the others in the market with them. They’re all keeping to themselves, buying what they need before leaving, and Kyungsoo feels the slight push in his head before searching Chanyeol’s mind for the answer.I have a bad feeling is all he gets before Chanyeol is suddenly cut off. He hears him speaking seconds afterwards and he can’t help but glance back over at his friend briefly, wondering why he has a bad feeling. He appears in good condition to him.It isn’t until Chanyeol is walking away with a fifteen rune discount that Kyungsoo speaks up. Jongdae was able to get a twenty rune discount, at least, he murmurs, smirking when he sees Chanyeol glare at him in return. Step it up, human.“First of all, rude,” Chanyeol retorts, stepping in close to him to bypass another creature walking towards them, before stepping away again. “Second of all, I bet you didn’t even understand what I said earlier.”Kyungsoo purses his lips. You forget, he says, hearing Chanyeol’s embarrassed chuckle as answer. Chanyeol always forgets he doesn’t know the same terms and phrases that he does, despite how long they’ve known each other. You don’t appear to be feeling ill.Chanyeol laughs this time, loud and bright, and Kyungsoo glances up at him to see clean, white teeth displayed in a wide smile. Even Chanyeol’s eye is scrunched up a bit more than the other. “I really shouldn’t be laughing at a time like this,” he ends up saying, calming down minutes later. Only a small smile remains on his lips, looking almost reminiscent, maybe sullen. “But my gut feeling,” he explains quietly, making sure to keep close to Kyungsoo, so Kyungsoo makes sure his presence in this entire area is known. It will keep unwanted ears away, though everyone now stares at them. “It’s telling me something bad happened out there.”Kyungsoo frowns. And how reliable is this ‘gut feeling?’“It got us out of that pirate raid a few months ago,” Chanyeol mutters and, oh, he has a point.Let’s check in with Jongdae then, Kyungsoo suggests, turning to walk down another pathway to their ship. He’s trying to keep watch over there anyways. He won’t leave his seat.“He won’t even stop talking to him until Hyun literally had to disconnect to get the job done.”Kyungsoo snorts with Chanyeol at that. For the entire past few days, Jongdae hadn’t left the living room in favor of leaving their telecom on and simply cleaning and singing around to keep Baekhyun company. The whole… intimate… relation thing is so strange, Kyungsoo confesses, remembering hearing Baekhyun laughing and Jongdae whining throughout the ship. I know Jongdae is naturally clingy, but I feel like this is too much. Oh.When they reach the docks, Kyungsoo stills in his spot the moment his eyes land on their ship. He shifts the bags in his arms, surveying the situation, and he takes a step to the side to prevent Chanyeol from accidentally walking past him. He feels Chanyeol bump into him before freezing, probably taking note of the situation in front of them too.Jongdae is crouched down into a defensive stance next to their ship. He looks like he’s in the middle of fighting someone and when Kyungsoo stares long enough, he can’t recognize this other creature at all. Its body is larger than all of theirs, with four arms instead of two, and Kyungsoo frowns when he can hear Jongdae growling even from this distance.Jongdae, he calls out, watching as Jongdae’s ear twitches in response. Who is this guy?Kyungsoo doesn’t receive any response. If anything, he can see the other guy starting to cower under Jongdae’s stare. You, he calls out, directing his attention to the foreigner. He can see the other guy flinch at hearing his voice suddenly and Kyungsoo raises a brow when the other guy looks over to him. What business do you have here?“I had promise the mercenary that I would deposit another five hundred runes if he was successful within five days,” the other says, before he’s slowly reaching into his back pouch. They can all hear Jongdae hiss once more before he straightens, though he’s still staring at the other like he’s doing something wrong. “His account was closed, but he’s well-known. I searched for his ship when your friend assumed I was a threat.”And are you not? Kyungsoo asks, allowing Chanyeol to walk around him to go straight up the stairs and to the entrance of their ship. The other guy doesn’t move from his spot, doesn’t even look in Chanyeol’s direction, but he does pull his hand back to show a stack of money in his grasp.“How can I compete with three well-known mercenaries?” the other questions, laughing. He doesn’t appear menacing, but Kyungsoo can’t understand why.
Why did you want this bounty hunter taken care of? What is your ranking within the bounty community?
The other gives them a toothy grin, one that makes Jongdae snarl. “Actually, pretty high. The only one who had a chance of taking me into the higher-ups in this sector of the universe was the one your friend killed earlier today.” He lets out a loose laugh then, almost in amazement. “Honestly, that hunter was one of the toughest this year. Your co-worker is something else.”Kyungsoo frowns at the response, eyeing this creature, before walking over and standing between him and Jongdae. He’s much shorter than him, but he can see the flicker of fear in the other guy’s eyes when he reaches out to grab the money. You may leave, he allows, watching as anger flares up in the other’s expression, before they hear Jongdae hiss and the other is taking a step back.“If he can take out your hunter,” Jongdae calls out, voice low, threatening. “That means we can take out you. Any one of us, at any time.”It takes a few minutes, but the other frowns. “Understood,” he mutters quietly, before he’s quickly walking away. He’s easily seen through the moving crowds with his height, but they keep watch until he’s gone completely. The only evidence he was here at all is through the money that now sits in Kyungsoo’s hand.Jongdae, Kyungsoo calls minutes later, finally turning to face him. He stares him in the eyes, sees a mixture of emotions he hasn’t necessarily seen together all at once before, and it concerns him. You’ve never acted like that before.There’s a flash of anger, sadness, and something else Kyungsoo can’t read before Jongdae is taking one of his bags and leading his way back up to the ship. “We’ve never lost contact for over two days with each other either,” he murmurs, barely audible even to Kyungsoo’s straining ears.It takes a while. Kyungsoo follows Jongdae to their ship, making sure nobody is watching them before he closes the door, and he mimics his friends’ movements in putting away their newly bought items. He watches each of his friends’ expressions carefully, seeing the way Chanyeol’s shoulders are tense and Jongdae remains quiet, and he knows they know something is terribly wrong.So, he stops what he’s doing and slams a can down on the counter. Neither of them jump, but all he needs is their attention.What happened to Baekhyun? is the first thing that pops into his head and he pushes into theirs. It’s the only thing he can think of that’ll make them act this differently. There’s barely any change in his friends’ actions, but he can see the tension bleed from Chanyeol’s shoulders.“I have no idea,” Chanyeol answers, looking over his shoulder and offering a lopsided grin. “I just keep having that bad feeling in my gut, unless I ate something bad.”The attempt to make the situation lighter makes Kyungsoo frown, deciding to focus all his attention on Jongdae instead. Jongdae, he calls, watching as Jongdae looks away from him and grabs one of his knives from a nearby shelf. He immediately unsheathes it, looking aggravated and upset, before he tosses it onto the large corkboard nearest the door. It lands with a thud, sticking to it, and they watch as he walks over to retrieve it before going back to the opposite side of the room.“I lost contact with Baekhyun when he had to disconnect to focus,” Jongdae mutters, tossing the knife again stronger, making it hit harder. “We always lose contact with each other when we’re out on assignments, but tomorrow will be the fifth day I haven’t been able to contact him and vice versa.”“We’ve always found alternatives to get our messages across,” Chanyeol murmurs, trying to be reasonable. “We’ve always come back to each other anyways when it’s all over.”Jongdae’s posture doesn’t change. He still looks rigid, like he’s about to snap at any given moment, and Kyungsoo frowns as he eyes the knife Jongdae keeps messing with.“We’re leaving in two days,” Jongdae reminds, stopping to look over at each of them. “We’re leaving.”It’s said as a statement, but Kyungsoo can hear the question behind it. So, he answers. He knows where to find us if we’re not here.There’s a moment where Jongdae stares at each of them, the conflict visible in his eyes, and Kyungsoo watches as Jongdae looks away from him and to Chanyeol behind him. Kyungsoo still has trouble understanding that expression, but Chanyeol seems to understand it easily enough.“I’ll try our old methods to get in contact with him and I’ll leave a message somewhere on Titan for him to find.”Neither of them hear it, but Kyungsoo can understand the gratefulness that appears in Jongdae’s eyes at the words.He throws the knife and it sticks.That’s Baekhyun’s favorite knife. Leaving Titan is always the same. There’s the entire day before departure. Chanyeol ensures the engine and machinery are all functioning appropriately and they have enough fuel to last months, in case. Jongdae ensures their coordinates are correct and keeps his eyes and ears open for any radio broadcasting station. Kyungsoo ensures their clientele are legitimate consumers and that they aren’t falling into any traps or scams. And, well, Baekhyun would be scouting out their targets, researching and surveying from a distance even from another planet, because he’s the most capable to do it.It wouldn’t be a problem–shouldn’t be a problem–because this type of situation has happened before. They’ve all created a system where Jongdae becomes the pilot if Baekhyun is incapacitated, Chanyeol ensures their clientele are legitimate, Kyungsoo ensures the machinery is working, and Baekhyun reads over all the coordinates ten times over. They’ve figured out who is good elsewhere and where they aren’t, so this shouldn’t be a problem if one of them is gone for another assignment.But it is.Chanyeol is ensuring their engines and machinery are in top working conditions but also researching into their clientele to make sure they are legitimate. He’s doing so much, his singing voice heard throughout the ship from the basement floor and upwards, that Kyungsoo finds solace in it as he attempts to scout out their targets, tries to survey everything from a distance on the bridge. They’re both doing what’s required, but it doesn’t help that there’s a constant hissing sound within the bridge itself. Kyungsoo growls.Jongdae, I swear to your Neptunian gods if you don’t stop hissing every three seconds I will throttle you into the next universe.Next to him, Jongdae hisses once more before stopping. There’s a moment of silence where Kyungsoo can’t hear anything from his friend, but then Jongdae is mimicking his growl. “Nothing is going right,” he mutters, kicking the pilot’s console in front of him before slumping back against the pilot’s seat. He breathes in deep, so Kyungsoo takes it upon himself to count to ten in their heads, before Jongdae releases all the air in his lungs.Why are you so worked up? Kyungsoo asks, glancing over his shoulder once, before returning to his own job before they take off. You’ve been our captain before. You know Baekhyun’s ship the best out of all of us.“More like I’m the only one he trusts to run it,” Jongdae murmurs, kicking the console again. They both jump when they hear Chanyeol’s reprimanding shout from elsewhere in the ship. “Honestly, Chanyeol is the better pilot out of all of us.”Yeah, Kyungsoo muses, But we won’t go against Baekhyun’s wishes when it comes to his ship.“And I don’t think Chanyeol even wants to pilot a spacecraft of all things.”Kyungsoo hums his agreement, remembering the one time Chanyeol drove Baekhyun’s ship. They barely made it out alive with heavy damage to their home. Well, he did get us out of that pirate raid, Kyungsoo tries to reason, hearing Jongdae’s snort in response.“Yeah,” Jongdae mumbles, sounding distracted. “We’re alive and kicking.”There’s a moment where the bridge falls silent, where they can hear Chanyeol continue singing somewhere else in the ship, and Kyungsoo takes the chance to focus on his job. He makes sure everything is going according to plan before he turns to leave. He should go walk around Titan some more, keep his ears and eyes open for any useful information, and relish in the different air than what’s inside the ship. He makes it to the door of the bridge before he frowns, feeling a push to the side of his head. It’s abnormally strong, something Kyungsoo isn’t used to, and he looks over his shoulder to stare at Jongdae’s hunched over form. He can still hear Chanyeol singing elsewhere and he doesn’t think Chanyeol is capable of doing that and pushing in his mind all at once.Jongdae? he asks, watching and waiting for some indication his friend is the one pushing in his mind. He can see Jongdae wiggle a bit in his seat, probably forgetting he doesn’t have a tail anymore, and he pushes again to get his attention. Jongdae, did you push?Jongdae hums, “Yeah,” but he doesn’t stop what he’s doing. He keeps messing with the console, kicking it when he gets frustrated, and Kyungsoo watches as information suddenly pops up on the large screen to their right. They both stare at it, Kyungsoo recognizing Baekhyun’s native language displayed next to them, and then Jongdae is speaking up again as he automatically has the language translated into something they can all easily understand. “I’m not being overly sensitive about this Baekhyun thing, right?” His voice sounds so small, so unsure, it makes Kyungsoo automatically frown before walking over to him.I don’t know much about intimate emotions and actions, Kyungsoo starts off, waiting until he’s standing right next to Jongdae. He can see Jongdae fidgeting with a buckle strap hanging off of his pants. Kyungsoo thought Jongdae was messing with one of the levers of the console. But I don’t think you’re being extremely overly sensitive, he offers, reaching out to grab a hold of Jongdae’s hands. Almost immediately, Jongdae stops fidgeting.“So, you do think I’m being overly sensitive,” Jongdae chokes out and Kyungsoo starts to panic. He doesn’t do well with tears.Jongdae, Kyungsoo calls. When Jongdae doesn’t look up at him, he reaches forward to gently tilt his head towards him with a finger underneath his chin instead. Some humans cry so easily, but Kyungsoo is always amazed to see small blue crystals forming at the corners of Jongdae’s eyes instead. I honestly don’t know if how you’re acting is ‘overly sensitive.’ Simply smiling as much as Chanyeol does on the daily is considered overly sensitive for me. He cracks a smile when Jongdae does. It appears as if you adore Baekhyun in a much different manner than we all adore Chanyeol. Mating is still a foreign concept for me, but I have learned that those who mate have a bond unlike any other. If Baekhyun being gone so long and away from you is affecting you in any way, you should release your feelings and actions as how you see fit. Who am I to judge someone I admire?At that, Kyungsoo watches as one of Jongdae’s crystal tears falls into his lap. He reaches out to gently close Jongdae’s eyes, lets the crystals get reabsorbed back into his tear ducts, and leans over to gently bump his forehead with Jongdae’s. We’ll all be with each other again soon enough and you and Baekhyun can continue to make those weird noises you do while Chanyeol tries to play music and I question what those weird noises are. He gently knocks heads with Jongdae again when he releases a startled burst of laughter. This also means, ‘please don’t tell me, I don’t want to know.’“Yeah,” Jongdae breathes out and Kyungsoo can hear the smile in his voice. “So, as I understand it, I’m being overly sensitive for you but it’s normal and I should continue to be overly sensitive until Baekhyun returns.”Kyungsoo releases his own laughter at that logic, pulling away to see Jongdae’s pretty smile up close. Yeah, he answers, shaking his head at him in disbelief. Pretty much.Kyungsoo is still holding onto Jongdae’s hands, but then Jongdae turns his over within his grasp to be able to hold onto Kyungsoo’s as well. “Give me another minute,” Jongdae requests, before looking over Kyungsoo’s shoulder to the large screen where Baekhyun’s language has finished translating into something they can all understand much better. “And then go finish your job. Check on Chanyeol too, while you’re at it.”The orders make Kyungsoo smile, despite the fact he knows what he needs to do and doesn’t need reminders for it. Aye, captain, he answers, smiling wider when Jongdae laughs.“Go, you jerk.”Kyungsoo shakes his head at him, laughing when Jongdae reaches out to pinch his hip, before he leaves the room. Flying through the barriers of a planet or moon’s atmosphere varies depending on where they’re going or leaving. Titan’s has always been much friendlier, only needing the ship’s internal gravity to counteract the pulls and pushes, but others around Saturn have been tougher, feeling a slight jolt in their bodies or the temporary pressure in their lungs before they’ve landed or taken off.Kyungsoo watches as Jongdae takes his time setting everything up on autopilot once they’ve officially left Titan. There are clicks and snaps to go with low hums and the feeling of the engine rumbling underneath their feet. There’s Jongdae making sure everything is still functioning well because it’s never a fun time when the engine suddenly cuts off due to a pressure fluctuation or something smashes into the side of their ship. It’s all routine, so Kyungsoo turns away and leaves his place by the pilot’s chair to stand next to Chanyeol further back by the doorway. He’s observing everything from afar with arms crossed over his chest and Kyungsoo stares up at him curiously, wondering what exactly he’s searching for in the bridge.“So, I took the liberty to help research our target too,” Chanyeol murmurs, trying to keep quiet enough so only he can hear. He’s staring at Jongdae now, probably keeping an eye on his ears and making sure they aren’t twitching when he speaks. “She’s been lingering in Neptune’s orbit.”I know, Kyungsoo murmurs back, returning to stare down the hallway behind Chanyeol. There’s a conference in the seventh sector of Neptune. She is to attend the event and leave about two days after.“Yeah,” Chanyeol cuts off, before he’s looking away from Jongdae and to him. Kyungsoo can hear the concern in his voice. “But she’s been lingering in the fifth sector instead of where she’s supposed to be.”Kyungsoo scowls, looking back up at him. Everyone likes to travel and move around nowadays. She shouldn’t be any different.“The fifth sector is tough if she’s still there and we need to take her out,” Chanyeol reasons and Kyungsoo guesses Chanyeol has a right to be worried. It’s his turn to take out their target if it’s in the lower half of their monetary spectrum. Neptune hasn’t been entirely difficult but for a human navigating through one of the worst places on the planet, it’s going to be difficult for him. If it was in the seventh sector where there are more tourists, more distractions, it shouldn’t be a problem.Why don’t you let Jongdae do it then? Kyungsoo asks, looking over his shoulder to see Jongdae still maintaining their flight steady. He’s the most familiar with his own planet. Simply switch turns.This time, Chanyeol whispers. He leans down and makes sure he’s right next to Kyungsoo’s ear when he says, “Because Jongdae has been moody since Baekhyun left and– fuck!”Kyungsoo watches as Chanyeol immediately leans away from him and dodges a pen being thrown at his head. Kyungsoo doesn’t even move, completely caught off-guard by Chanyeol’s quick reaction, before he’s looking over to see Jongdae baring his teeth at them. “I am not moody!” he shouts.“Well, you seem like it to me!” Chanyeol shouts back, yelping when he drops to the ground to avoid a cup being thrown at him. “Jongdae!”“I’m being healthily emotional!” Jongdae retorts, before he’s huffing and sitting back in his chair. Kyungsoo simply rolls his eyes at his friends, staring at each of them briefly, before he’s walking out of the bridge entirely. He doesn’t get very far until he hears more bickering and stuff being thrown around. He ignores them and pushes one last message to each of their minds before making it down the small ramp to the main floor.Just make sure we don’t crash, you two.The resounding thuds he hears in reply is a little worrisome, but they’re all evenly matched with each other in terms of surviving life. Kyungsoo shrugs. They should be fine. Kyungsoo is in the middle of eating a home-cooked meal when he feels the ship actually tilt left and right in its travel. He watches as an empty can falls out of the trash bin to roll across the floor before he looks up to see if anyone is in the living room next to him in the kitchen. He would usually call for Baekhyun, where he would be napping on the couch, but no one’s there instead and he reaches out for Chanyeol first. Have we reached Neptune?The sudden ringing of a phone sounds and Kyungsoo jumps in his seat. He looks around, trying to locate the source, and finds one of their telecoms half hidden under the loaf of bread on the counter. Kyungsoo looks to his food, sighing mentally when he realizes he isn’t eating a sandwich this time. He doesn’t even understand why anyone would call when they know he can’t verbalize his words, but he gets up to grab the telecom anyways and answers it.Chanyeol, using this is useless with me.“On the contrary, my dear assassin, it’s useless when I need to talk to you and I personally don’t want to go find you” is Chanyeol’s response. Kyungsoo rolls his eyes. “Anyways, yeah, we’re reaching Neptune soon. Jongdae had to take the ship off of autopilot because the rings are twisted again around it and it looks super windy.”Ah, Kyungsoo says, returning to eating his meal and putting the telecom on speaker mode. Unfavorable conditions.“I really don’t want to do this,” Chanyeol mutters minutes later, almost whining. “I can see Neptune up close right now and I think I’m going to die if I even step foot out of the ship right now.”Kyungsoo snorts. Puny human.“At this point, I’m just gonna agree with you.”Jongdae, Kyungsoo calls, hearing the other grunt in response. You go complete this assignment while Chanyeol and I keep watch.“Yeah, only if I can get onto this sector’s station safely,” Jongdae growls out. It’s that moment where Kyungsoo feels another shift on the ship, watching as the empty can rolls back the other way across the floor and towards the garbage bin.If the winds are that strong, you should wear your mask too, Kyungsoo suggests. He grabs his cup to drink more water. I can go, but I’ll look heavily out of place with my appearance.“We don’t need you causing more attention than necessary,” Jongdae agrees. “Shit.”There’s another shift, a sharper turn than the last, and Kyungsoo holds onto his glass to make sure it doesn’t topple over.“I can’t handle Neptune,” Chanyeol wheezes out. “Fuck, I can’t even handle getting close to Mercury. Why are the outermost and innermost planets insane?”“Excuse you, Pluto is offended.”“Pluto should be blessed!” Chanyeol shouts, causing Kyungsoo to frown into his glass at the volume. “Pluto is nice and small and pretty. It’s not trying to kill me the second I get near it’s stratosphere.”“It’s not our fault you were born human,” Jongdae scoffs.Kyungsoo sighs mentally.“You’re born half-human!”“Half the fault.”Kyungsoo can practically see Jongdae shrug right in front of him. Guys.“I would still prefer to die over someone shooting me in the chest rather than some planet’s natural occurrences. I don’t want my tombstone to read ‘death by Neptune’s winds at 1,500 mph, why was a human out there in the first place without proper gear?’ I’d look like an idiot!”Jongdae scoffs. “Aren’t you one already?”Kyungsoo groans when he feels the ship turn again. What in the universe are you doing to the ship, Jongdae? His plate is empty, but he doesn’t want to get up and feel the need to balance himself when the ship isn’t stable.“I’m trying to get us to the station safely,” Jongdae murmurs, before he grunts. “I heard that the winds would be moving fast today, but I didn’t expect the actual maximum. We’re almost there.”Kyungsoo can feel the ship starting to turn. The empty can is still rolling around but Kyungsoo takes a quick glance around the entire area he’s in to see if there’s anything new they have that’s breakable. There usually isn’t, but Kyungsoo gets up anyways and puts his things in the sink before securing everything that can fall over.He easily balances himself as the ship tilts a heavy left, grunting as he catches the couch and waits for the ship to stabilize before leaving it and to their bookshelf off to the side. He pulls it out, makes sure their weapons are still in there, before he tilts it back to lay flat on the ground with the open spaces up. When the ship turns again, he goes to the area between the coffee table and the couch, pushing against the table and pulling on the couch to keep them in place.Further up, he can hear thuds and crashes and he snorts when he hears Chanyeol curse loud and clear. He’s still in the bridge with Jongdae, keeping him company, which Kyungsoo doesn’t understand sometimes because they’re always bickering if someone else isn’t in the room with them. “Fuck, Jongdae!” Chanyeol shouts when Kyungsoo feels a sudden sharp turn and he crouches down low to avoid toppling over like Chanyeol probably just did.“Baekhyun already did, now shut up!” Jongdae shouts back.Kyungsoo frowns. He really didn’t need to imagine what mating is like between those two.“I really didn’t need to know that!”Agreed, Kyungsoo pushes.“Eh, now you know,” Jongdae says, yelping before there’s another sharp turn and then it’s eerily quiet and stable. Kyungsoo can’t hear either of his friends bickering or talking, but he does hear something topple over in the kitchen. It sounds like something metal falling and hitting the floor and Kyungsoo gets up to see another can rolling along on the floor with the first one. He frowns. They really do eat a lot of canned goods. “We’re arriving to the station,” Jongdae suddenly calls out. It’s enough to ring throughout the ship and Kyungsoo slaps his hand along one of the walls to let them know he understood.There’s no longer any excitement about landing at stations, new and old. It’s almost an every day thing despite them being out in space more than parking their ship and walking around on new planet surfaces and this time is no different.Kyungsoo makes his way to the bridge to see if Neptune has changed at all, but all he sees is blue everywhere. It encompasses the whole planet and Kyungsoo can see the intensity of the winds blowing around the large barriers the planet’s government had installed to provide safe landing for each ship passing through.They fly through an inspection section, Chanyeol walking over closer to the large window to hold up their verification card, and Kyungsoo watches as a flash emanates from the large cameras they pass by to capture the image of their card. If it proves illegitimate, they supposedly get billed within a month.The atmosphere of Neptune is different than Titan. The artificial gravity and air of this specific sector still isn’t too friendly for all humans and Kyungsoo waits by the doors as Chanyeol puts on his mask. It appears skin tight, covering the lower half of his face from his nose to his mouth, and Kyungsoo frowns as he searches Chanyeol’s body before leaving and going to his room. He grabs Chanyeol’s eye gear from his bedside table before returning and handing it to his friend. Make sure you cover your neck too, he reminds, noticing belatedly that Chanyeol is wearing the outfit that provides a high collar to hide his tattoo.“I got it,” Chanyeol murmurs, voice sounding slightly muffled behind the mask.Kyungsoo listens as Chanyeol zips up his jacket before looking over his shoulder and seeing Jongdae coming up to them too, securing his own mask on his face. You good too? he asks, hearing Jongdae hum in turn. He doesn’t need much more than that, his half-blood qualities allowing him to walk freely on his own home planet without any modifications if necessary.“Once Chanyeol is walking around, I’ll leave with my ship to find this woman and end her,” Jongdae murmurs.Kyungsoo nods, looking to Chanyeol when he hears him grunt. Whenever you’re ready, he says to both of them. Make it back, he adds as an afterthought. Use everything in your arsenal to make it back.Both of them scoff but Kyungsoo can see the momentary concern that flashes in Chanyeol’s eyes and hear how weak Jongdae’s sounded.Go. I’ll be here. It’s a successful assignment. Jongdae returns with his hair fluffed out of place and breathing like he hasn’t had air in his lungs for years. He has the widest smile on his face when he removes his mask and there are specks of blood along his left arm and neck. Kyungsoo rolls his eyes when he first catches sight of him entering their ship, Chanyeol whistling next to him on the couch when he looks over his shoulder as well, and Kyungsoo takes it upon himself to get up and grab a wet cloth to clean up their friend.“You look like a murderous cat,” Chanyeol calls, “With scales. Who looks entirely too happy. Like the cat that got the cream!”What in the world does that mean? Kyungsoo asks, completely bewildered. It stills him momentarily from entering the kitchen to stare at his friend with wide eyes. What cream?At that, Jongdae laughs, running his clean hand through his hair to try and tame it, “I might’ve gotten carried away this time.”“That fun?” Chanyeol asks with a laugh, turning when Jongdae tries to toss his mask at him. It misses and lands on the couch next to him. “How’d you do it this time?”“Just stalked her like prey and went in for the kill,” Jongdae answers easily enough, licking his right fang for emphasis. It only makes Kyungsoo roll his eyes as he walks up to him and smacks him in the head with the wet towel. “Ow!”I thought we all agreed you would stop biting your targets like you’re trying to eat them, Kyungsoo chastises, snorting when he grabs Jongdae’s dirtied arm and starts wiping away the leftover blood.“She just looked so tasty,” Jongdae whines, though he stills enough for Kyungsoo to clean him. “She looked like a fish.”Chanyeol raises an eyebrow. “So, are you a cannibal? We never got a definitive answer on that.”Jongdae shrugs, Kyungsoo grunting when it makes Jongdae move away from him for a moment. “I don’t know? I’ll bite people, but I’ve never actually eaten anyone, you know?”“No, we don’t know,” Chanyeol says as Kyungsoo mentally deadpans it. It only makes Jongdae shrug again, Kyungsoo reaching up to pinch his cheek. “Anyways, I got the money. We can leave at any time.”Kyungsoo listens as Jongdae hums, sounding thoughtful for a moment. He’s finished wiping down Jongdae’s neck when he feels and hears him speak, his voice quiet and sounding uncertain. “Any word yet, Yeol?” Kyungsoo can’t find it in himself to look at either of his friends, too preoccupied with gently wiping the nonexistent blood off of Jongdae’s jaw clean.And it takes several minutes, where Chanyeol glances back at the computer screen in front of him where they were both monitoring it for any news, but then when he and Jongdae catch each others’ gazes, Kyungsoo can feel the shift in the air around them.“Okay,” Jongdae murmurs, waiting until Kyungsoo is done, before he goes to his room. “I know I’m supposed to be quiet,” Chanyeol whispers, and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes in response. “But I know you’re going to be hungry later. I’m about to go out and get supplies. What do you want?”Kyungsoo takes a glance around his surroundings: tall bushes full of thorns, taller leafy trees, and a faint brown mist that makes it harder to see than it were if the air was clear. He can hear a soft puff of air coming through his earpiece–Jongdae’s signal for ‘I’m listening’–and he hopes Chanyeol heard that too. Uh, Kyungsoo mumbles, focusing again and crouching lower. Their target for this assignment required both him and Jongdae to be out in the field, trying to blend in with the crowds of the research team in the area, but then their target had fled into the surrounding forests while Chanyeol stayed behind on the neighboring station hovering above them in the clouds. Kyungsoo hates it when they run. There was that one dish from that one planet–“We have been to many planets, Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol cuts in.Shut up, Kyungsoo fires back. He hears rustling to his left yet he doesn’t still. He continues walking as if he’s hunting, searching for their target, because they all know their client is waiting for this alien’s death to be confirmed before paying them. He needs to make sure he can lure this being in so they can kill him flawlessly. There was that one dish from that one planet, he repeats, practically seeing Chanyeol trying to snicker behind his hand in front of him. Aven, about forty astronomical units away from here. We had it a few years ago. I’m not sure you remember.Chanyeol hums and Kyungsoo can hear the rustling again. “Describe it to me. It was at that restaurant, right? I tried all of our foods.”“It’s a good thing you aren’t allergic to anything yet,” Jongdae whispers.Kyungsoo scowls. You’re supposed to stay quiet, Jongdae.“They’re not in my area,” Jongdae whispers back. “There’s nobody around me within a twenty meter radius.”You’re in the trees again, Kyungsoo deadpans, hearing a soft puff of air as confirmation. Stay up there. Make sure they aren’t aerial.“Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol whines, “Describe the food to me. I’m leaving the ship now to buy stuff.”There’s the rustling again, louder, and Kyungsoo ignores Chanyeol in favor of finding the alien’s consciousness. It doesn’t take long to find something foreign and alive–existing–near him. He waits, continuing to walk, appear as if he hasn’t noticed anything different, before he pushes himself into the alien’s mind. Still.“Hey,” Chanyeol calls.Kyungsoo can feel the alien obey his command. It’s to his right now, at five o’clock. Jongdae, he calls, hearing a small hum in return. Locate me. Five o’clock.“Oh,” Chanyeol responds for him, falling silent after.Kyungsoo can hear the alien trying to move, trying to break the control he has over him, but fear is a powerful emotion. It always has and always will be. He exerts the strength of his presence, inserts words of what he can do to this alien, and that’s when he hears Jongdae’s light footsteps crossing the trees above them.You’re dead, Kyungsoo pushes into the alien’s mind, turning on his heel and sprinting for it the moment Jongdae drops down from the trees to land the final blow.The alien doesn’t have a chance to release a scream before it drops to the forest floor.“I think Kyungsoo is talking about that dish with the green meat-like substance,” Jongdae suddenly says, standing from his crouched position next to the fallen alien. His knife is bloodied and Kyungsoo can feel how gritty this alien’s life force is on his hands. Jongdae licks his lips. “It had a combination of something salty and sweet.”Chanyeol hums. “Kyungsoo does have an affinity for sweet things.”Kyungsoo grunts, looking to the alien in front of them, before wiping his hands on its shirt. It had vegetables too, he mutters. We all practically eat any and everything anyways.“Except,” Jongdae starts before he goes quiet. It’s enough for Kyungsoo to look up at him, confused, but then he sees the frown on Jongdae’s face, the thrill of the kill already gone.“We always picked off the cucumbers,” Chanyeol murmurs quietly.Kyungsoo almost forgot.It’s been four months since they last saw Baekhyun. Kyungsoo flinches when he hears Jongdae scream. It’s not any of his playful yelps or one of surprise. It sounds like a sound made of true pain and that’s what makes Kyungsoo leave his room to check on his friends in the living room. He hears something metal clatter to the floor.The first thing he sees is Jongdae holding onto his stomach, hunched over, and the second thing he sees is Chanyeol standing meters away from him shocked still, both in the middle of a training session. The third thing he smells is the blood permeating the air and his gaze hones in on Jongdae’s hand on his stomach where blood is starting to seep through.Accident? Kyungsoo asks, hopes, as he returns to the bathroom to grab their first aid kit. It’s rather large, needing to cover different species and their unique bodily habits and functions, and he comes back to the living room to see Chanyeol straightening Jongdae up and pushing his hand on top of Jongdae’s to help stop the bleeding. He finally notices the knife on the floor.“I got distracted,” Chanyeol mumbles, wincing when Jongdae does when they move him to lie on the couch. “Jongdae.”Kyungsoo frowns, staring at each of their expressions. About what?“Baekhyun,” Jongdae grunts out, when they remove their hands and they can all see the damage. It’s nothing different than injuries they’ve suffered before, but an injury is still an injury. Jongdae hisses when Kyungsoo unwraps a pair of sterile gloves and puts them on before he gently sticks his finger in the wound to gauge how deep the knife went in. “Cred.”“Stop using his language!” Chanyeol suddenly shouts, startling Kyungsoo. He looks up from Jongdae’s wound to see the regret instantly showing in their friend’s eyes. “I,” he starts, as he stares at each of them, before looking away and gathering the supplies he knows they need to help fix up Jongdae. He doesn’t say anything else and Kyungsoo doesn’t probe him for answers.They all stay there in silence, as Kyungsoo patches Jongdae up with stitches and making sure no vital organs were hit. Jongdae has a scar a few centimeters away from this injury closer to his chest and he survived. They all survived. This isn’t anything new.“It slips out,” Jongdae confesses quietly. He already has his head tilted back, a forearm covering his eyes, and Kyungsoo can smell the blood more than usual with how close he is to him. “It’s been almost a year. Habits die hard.”“Baekhyun wouldn’t die,” Chanyeol replies, but the thoughts don’t connect. Kyungsoo doesn’t lift his eyes off of Jongdae’s abdomen. He doesn’t need to enter Chanyeol’s mind to know he’s hurting mentally and emotionally. “Baekhyun’s too strong to die.”Kyungsoo waits a few minutes. He listens as Chanyeol’s fast breathing slows to its normal pace and the thudding of Jongdae’s heart quiets the littlest bit. Nobody said he died, he eventually says, lifting his eyes once to glance at each of his friends briefly, before returning to his task. We just haven’t heard of anything.“He would’ve said something if he was alive,” Chanyeol mutters, almost pouting, bottom lip quivering. “Baekhyun would’ve found a way.”Sometimes, there’s just no way to make one, Kyungsoo gently says in turn. Distraction isn’t allowed in this field.“Only the thrill of the chase,” Jongdae mumbles after, as if reciting some pledge created long ago.It’s enough to quiet Chanyeol, to reach out with his clean hand and link fingers with Jongdae’s in apology, and Kyungsoo hums in their heads to show his approval. He can see out of the corners of his eyes as Chanyeol leans down to gently touch foreheads with Jongdae’s, upside-down, and it warms Kyungsoo’s chest.“And each other,” Baekhyun–no, Chanyeol–says, murmurs so quietly, it’s barely audible. It almost sounds like he’s on the verge of crying.Kyungsoo doesn’t even realize he’s staring at Chanyeol until Jongdae hisses to get his attention. The Shining Diamond rattles with the explosions its trying to dodge. Jongdae is busy shouting out orders to figure out where the next wormhole is and Kyungsoo is busy ignoring all of his shouting to get to his own ship on top to try and take out the raiders coming after them. It isn’t hard, but it’s difficult to stay attached to the ship with part of the roof blocking his gun’s full range.“Don’t detach, Kyungsoo!” he hears Chanyeol shout into the intercom, but all it does is make him roll his eyes.Would you think I would detach, Chanyeol? he says with a scoff, watching as one of the chasing ships explodes with a few more bullets. It doesn’t deter the second spacecraft though and it’s hovering past Kyungsoo’s range without hitting their own ship in turn.Suddenly, there’s another rattle and Kyungsoo grips hard onto his gear shift and the edge of his seat, trying not to accidentally shoot something of theirs. Another hit and Kyungsoo growls, searches their ship. Baekhyun, he starts to shout, only to stop halfway when he realizes what he’s doing. He can’t find Baekhyun’s consciousness. He knows by now that both Chanyeol and Jongdae simply go silent if Baekhyun is mentioned.There’s another shake.“Kyungsoo, wormhole in five,” Jongdae announces.He hurries to close the top of the ship before he feels the force of the wormhole tugging them through. It feels like Kyungsoo’s insides are mixing together too roughly to be considered comfortable. He doesn’t know where they are after they’re spit out, but the ships chasing them don’t follow.“It’s finally hit you, huh?” Jongdae quietly asks. His voice is soft over the intercom and Kyungsoo can’t find it in himself to leave his own personal ship to join the rest downstairs. “Kyungsoo,” he gently calls.I know, Kyungsoo murmurs back, slamming his fist on the wall of his ship, angry. I’m late by a year. I’ll be down there soon.There’s a moment of silence.“Take your time.” One year, four months. Jongdae wakes up, turns, and reaches out. He sees Baekhyun in his dreams, feels his warmth covering him, reassuring him everything will be fine. This profession is one they signed up for and enjoy. All he sees is an empty space next to him.One year, seven months. Chanyeol sits in the pilot seat, crying. The door to the bridge is shut closed, all the intercoms turned off, and he stares at the open space in front of them. Baekhyun is supposed to be in this seat, admiring the stars.One year, nine months. Kyungsoo misses Baekhyun. He tries not to show it, tries to remain normal, tries to keep hope for Jongdae and Chanyeol. He wakes up one morning in the observatory room, hearing Jongdae and Chanyeol shouting and training in the living room like it’s their last day on this ship. There’s something beautiful about this planet. It’s essentially made of water, where the only landmarks above its surface are the docks and stations built for those traveling by, and Kyungsoo can’t help but stare out the observatory window at it.There are waves crashing, hues of purple and green to create a strange mystifying color, and he watches as hints of blue find its way between them to make its mark. He can see the planet’s natives swimming underneath it all. They almost look like fish, swimming quickly from one end of his vision to the other, but he knows they don’t appear as so up close. In fact, their appearance is eerily similar to Jongdae’s and he raises a brow when he sees Jongdae’s reflection in the glass before him.“Ever since he disappeared, your thoughts have been seeping through,” Jongdae comments and from this distance, Jongdae appears shorter than him, though somehow intimidating. Jongdae shrugs, “I heard you call my name.”Oh, Kyungsoo murmurs, finally looking away from Jongdae’s reflection to stare at the waters before him again. Sorry. He can see more natives swimming around, carrying plant satchels full of items, and others stop to talk to those they recognize. They have ears similar to Jongdae’s, where each one is slightly pointed, but they don’t appear as scaly, as shiny. They also have gills on their necks and tails that are wider and longer and Kyungsoo frowns. He catches Jongdae moving closer to him through the reflection and he stills when he feels arms wrap around his waist from behind, feels Jongdae lean forward until his forehead is resting against the top of Kyungsoo’s left shoulder.“Sometimes, I still get nightmares,” Jongdae whispers, loud enough for only him to hear. If Kyungsoo focuses enough, he can hear Chanyeol strumming his guitar in his room. “I see Baekhyun screaming for me. I see him stuck behind clear glass and calling out for all of us. He’s trapped somewhere and we can’t get to him.” The imagery is so clear. Kyungsoo closes his eyes to try and get rid of it. “Kyungsoo, sometimes, I don’t even know what to do anymore.”Kyungsoo reaches up, gently puts a hand on top of Jongdae’s own on top of his stomach. Jongdae, it’s almost been two years.“It doesn’t make it any less harder.”I know, Kyungsoo murmurs, opening his eyes when he hears footsteps. He can see the faint image of Chanyeol coming up to them in the reflection, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. Chanyeol is here–“I still get nightmares about that war,” Jongdae continues on, interrupting him. It’s only then that Kyungsoo can feel Jongdae shaking against him, and then the sounds of something solid and light hitting the ground behind him. “What if Baekhyun found himself in a war?”“You made it out alive,” Chanyeol reminds, gently removing Jongdae’s arms from around Kyungsoo’s waist. When he finally turns to face them, his chest aches at the sight of Jongdae openly crying, tears of crystal solidifying as they roll down his face and fall to the floor. He can’t help but glance to Jongdae’s waist, reach out and gently run his hand along Jongdae’s lower back, when Chanyeol pulls Jongdae with him to the lone chair in the room.In an instant, Jongdae is cradled in Chanyeol’s lap and Kyungsoo feels his chest ache even more when he reaches over to help close Jongdae’s eyes. They don’t need the crystals. They hate seeing the crystals form from pain and sadness. Kyungsoo can feel more form underneath his palm. If you made it out alive, then Baekhyun will. There’s no reason for you to think he became involved with a war. We haven’t even heard anything about a war anywhere in the galaxies near where we were.“I only made it out alive because I sacrificed my tail,” Jongdae whimpers. Flashes of Jongdae beaten and bruised, bleeding and barely conscious, push its way to the forefront of Kyungsoo’s mind. He tries pushing it away, tries to focus on the here and now, and Kyungsoo gasps when he feels Chanyeol’s warm hand touch his cheek to bring him back.You’ve learned to adapt without it, Kyungsoo murmurs in response, eyes wide as he stares into Chanyeol’s encouraging ones, before looking to Jongdae. His friend’s lips are quivering, trying to stifle his cries, and Kyungsoo wants to do so much more for him. You’ve become stronger.“But what can Baekhyun sacrifice? He’s a treasure in himself any violent group would wish to have,” Jongdae protests, clutching on tight to Chanyeol’s shirt. “They’ll want to keep him and use him to their advantage. They’ll want to–”“We’ll have to forget about him,” Chanyeol interrupts. It catches both of them off-guard, Kyungsoo looking at him with wide eyes. He doesn’t realize Jongdae has removed his hand off of his face. The last few crystals fall into their laps. “Even when he’s not here, he’s still disturbing us,” Chanyeol mutters with a scowl, but Kyungsoo can see the fallen expression in his eyes. “We can’t constantly worry about someone we don’t have any news on.”Chanyeol–“We’re mercenaries, Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol argues, his expression hardening. “We kill others for a living. We do it for the thrill and for each other. There’s no room to worry or overthink. We can’t afford mistakes when we know we have each other to return to. Space is dangerous. Traveling across galaxies is dangerous. Baekhyun may have caught himself up in a spontaneous wormhole, ended up somewhere we don’t even know exists or not, but he is capable of taking care of himself.” He looks away from him to Jongdae, leans forward to gently knock foreheads with him. “You know better than either of us how strong and capable Baekhyun is. You love him for a reason.”Kyungsoo can feel something shift in the air around them. It’s something more powerful, more meaningful, and he looks to Jongdae to see realization set in his eyes. His entire expression changes. It’s like something inside of him finally understands, comprehends the situation they’re in, and it makes something that feels an awful lot like pride settle in Kyungsoo’s chest and grow.They all know Baekhyun and Jongdae found each other first before they all found each other. It was always Baekhyun and Jongdae and then there were Chanyeol and Kyungsoo. They weren’t ever separated and had always worked better together and they all know Baekhyun was the first person Jongdae recognized when he was finally released from his prisoner status. Baekhyun was the one to fool the entire kingdom and demand ‘this rare mercenary’s release.’ It was only Chanyeol and Kyungsoo who managed to take out the entire security team to ensure Jongdae’s return.By default, Kyungsoo murmurs, still lost in his thoughts, the emotions bouncing off of the walls in the observatory. He tries to focus on Jongdae, Chanyeol too. Jongdae, you are captain of this ship. You are our unspoken leader.“Don’t you dare tell me to step up to the plate, because I will,” Jongdae growls, but the spark in his eyes comes back–that hope and happiness that shines the best in his eyes. “We came to this planet for a reason.”Yeah, well, Kyungsoo says with a lopsided grin, sharing a quick look with Chanyeol. Prove it. He half-expects to hear Baekhyun’s loud laughter, but Chanyeol’s softer one helps cover it, gently pushes the faint sound aside into precious memories.Jongdae snorts, though his lips have formed into his pleased grin, as he wiggles more on top of Chanyeol and gets comfortable. “After I take a short nap,” he offers, purring, when he’s found the right spot to settle in, with his head nestled in the crook of Chanyeol’s neck and shoulder. “You know how crying wears me out.”And it eases the tension in Kyungsoo, to see how lighthearted Jongdae is being again. He knows it’ll only be a matter of time before his demeanor changes, to something more fierce, intimidating, but he knows it’s for the best. It’s for their protection and Kyungsoo shifts his gaze from a dozing Jongdae to a thoughtful Chanyeol, the affection and care showing in his eyes. He makes sure Chanyeol is the only one to hear him.Stay behind on the ship, Kyungsoo murmurs, reaching out to card fingers through Jongdae’s hair. This planet’s composition and atmosphere will be too rough on your body. I will barely be able to handle it without my mask.Chanyeol hums, “I know.”Do whatever is necessary to keep this place safe.Chanyeol hums again, smiling softly, “I know.” The pressure inside this planet’s stratosphere is different. It’s stronger, puts more resistance on their lungs, and swimming under these waters proves to be more difficult than it is on Earth. Its composition is similar to that of Neptune’s and Kyungsoo ensures his mask is secured on tight and that the gears of it next to his ears are activated. It provides a thin, invisible shield to shoot out to cover his entire head, the only visible section is the mask covering the lower half of his face, and he relishes in the fact that it helps convert the oxygen in the water to something he can breathe in. It makes it infinitely easier to navigate this planet, although not in the way for Jongdae.For Jongdae, this planet is similar to his home. He swims in this water with ease, even without his tail, and he has to stop and wait every few minutes for Kyungsoo to catch up. It tugs on Kyungsoo’s endurance, his stamina in a foreign place, but he manages to keep up until they make it to the planet’s kingdom under the surface.Its hidden underneath cliffs and plants, where natives swim in and out without sending them a single glance, and Kyungsoo finds himself curious as to why they don’t. None of these creatures seem to notice them at all and Kyungsoo hums inside his head when he realizes there aren’t even any guards to the perimeter at all. In fact, this kingdom seems completely open despite its hidden location and he looks around to take note of where everything is.The market is to the left of the castle while the shopping center branches off and towards the back of the kingdom. Restaurants and what Kyungsoo assumes is the medical facility is off towards the right. The area they are passing through is the town center, with a decorated fountain in its core, and Kyungsoo grunts at the sight of it. Why do they have a fountain if it does not spew liquid?“Do not question it,” Jongdae chastises quietly, slowing down until Kyungsoo is next to him and he can poke him on the forehead. He’s wearing a face mask similar to Kyungsoo’s, one that covers the lower half of his face, but unlike him, Jongdae doesn’t need the extra barrier to cover his eyes. The mask itself converts the oxygen in the water into something he can breathe, but he can see fine without the liquid harming his vision in any way. He smiles then, Kyungsoo can see it in the way his eyes crinkle even more at the edges. “I think it’s just for decoration,” he whispers, voice muffled and sounding distorted. It still makes Kyungsoo laugh anyways.Of course it is.The castle itself isn’t all that extravagant. It’s actually simple compared to other ones he’s seen and he still doesn’t understand the concept of it at all. On his planet, they only had buildings they used as homes. No one was larger or smaller than the rest. The only difference to figure out who would be their leader in case of dangerous situations is the intricate design of a windflower on the building’s door. Other than that, everyone was of equal stature.“Kyungsoo,” Jongdae murmurs, once they’ve reached the entrance. Two natives open the doors for them without question, simply offering them a small wave, and Kyungsoo returns it hoping it’s the correct protocol of politeness on this planet. He hasn’t had enough time to research this planet in its entirety before they arrived.Mm, Kyungsoo hums in response. When he turns back to see ahead of him, he glances off to the side to see Jongdae still leading but at a much slower pace.The grand hall is relatively, well, shiny. Kyungsoo can’t understand how something with a plain exterior can have such a decorative interior, but he guesses it’s possible when he sees jewels of all kinds lining the walls and something similar to metal glowing a faint purple color alongside it. He even starts to forget their purpose on this planet, wonders what else they need besides the shopping from earlier today another town over when he sees colorful plants sprouting from the floors and ceilings, and Kyungsoo grunts when Jongdae makes a sharp turn in front of him.When they finally make it to their destination, it’s to see a larger native sitting on a large throne chair. The native looks positively bored, staring at something as its assistant flips through leather pages, and it takes several minutes for it to realize both he and Jongdae have arrived.“Oh!” it exclaims, voice richer, deeper, than Kyungsoo had expected. “The two foreigners,” it comments, before its smiling wide and showing sharp teeth. It eyes each of them briefly, before it speaks again. “Welcome to my kingdom.”“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” Jongdae calls out with a wave. Kyungsoo follows suit, simply observing the conversation and gestures between them. “We had been summoned for a meeting.”“Ah, yes,” the leader says, though he doesn’t move from his seat. He gestures with a slight wave to someone else next to them before they’re given something to hold. It looks like a sea creature, a sleek animal, and Kyungsoo frowns as he feels his body being weighed down by it. “So you are more comfortable and aren’t constantly exerting your energy,” the native explains.The animal wiggles in Kyungsoo’s arms before it looks up at him with wide eyes. It startles Kyungsoo. It’s cute, he murmurs to Jongdae, only causing him to laugh in return.“My friend appreciates your kind gesture.”“Thank you,” the native says with a laugh. There’s a moment of silence, where it stares at each of them with a look of contemplation, but Kyungsoo can’t find it in himself to look away from the creature in his arms for more than a few minutes. He hopes Jongdae is able to handle this entire conversation by himself. “I’m not entirely sure of what my advisor has informed you but as you could tell swimming through our kingdom, we are a peaceful community.”That, Kyungsoo has clearly observed. There are barely any guards anywhere. Nobody that radiates some sort of strength and power that Kyungsoo can usually detect. It’s like these creatures know they can’t be harmed or if harm ever did come to them, they can guarantee their safety. Kyungsoo eyes their leader. With a native the size of it, Kyungsoo is sure it can put up a good fight.“Those who have an inkling of violence in them are required to attend these seminars and meetings to remind them of who we are as a community. If they are unable to remember, they are forced out unless they prove themselves to us once again.”Kyungsoo hums in his head, feels the creature wiggle in his arms, before he gives it his attention again while keeping his ears wide open.“As my advisor should have informed you, we have a threat upon our community because of this. It’s one of our former citizens. She has gathered a group of various backgrounds to try and dethrone me to take over this city.”Kyungsoo frowns then, looking away from the creature in his arms to stare up at this leader. With his stature, he should be able to put up a good fight, he murmurs to Jongdae.“This may be menial work to you, but I request that you exterminate these threats,” it says before its turning its attention away from them and towards another swimming up to him with files in hand. “My advisor will guide you back to the surface where you will meet another of my companions and go over any necessary information to complete this task.”“If I may,” Jongdae interrupts, allowing the creature to swim out of his arms. It lifts the extra weight off of him, allowing him to float up and be on the same eye-level with this leader, while Kyungsoo simply stays put, eyes their surroundings again. “What will we receive in return if we accept?”The leader laughs, loud and deep, its voice reverberating through the waters. “Ah, I almost forgot. Trusted mercenaries, this is to be your prize,” it informs before it waves its hand and three natives swim out with a large trunk.When they reach them, the creature swims out of Kyungsoo’s arms in fright, the large trunk sinking until it’s before him. He looks up to share a glance with Jongdae. I bet it’s some type of metal or gems like gold and diamond, he says before he reaches forward and opens it up. To his expectations, there are gems inside. There are various colors and sizes, but he doesn’t expect to see unique armor included. It blends in with the water, a deep blue that reflects the purple and green hues, and he hums his approval before looking back to the leader. Jongdae, ask him about the significance of these armored suits.Without pause, Jongdae speaks on his behalf. “My associate and I request to know the significance of these armored suits. Why are they included in this pile of… treasure?” Kyungsoo almost snorts at his word choice.“These gems are amongst the most valuable of our kingdom. They are sought after by collectors of different planets and species,” the leader tilts his head towards the chest. “Those armors are created with a combination of those gems and durable fabrics we have invented over the centuries.” It stands then, its weight great enough for it to stand directly on the sea floor. “The clothes we wear are durable within this type of environment. It can withstand the pressure you must be able to feel in your bodies. On the surface, these clothes are able to adapt to the dryness that inevitably comes with the environment change and withstand the toughest winds and climate.” It points to the chest then, Kyungsoo frowning at the gesture. “With the added materials of the gems, it should prove indestructible.”“And if it’s not?” Jongdae asks, raising an eyebrow in return.“We will send one of our own to you to repair the damaged suits.”Kyungsoo hums again, letting Jongdae hear it in his head, and they take the moment to consider the offer. He opens his mind, allows Jongdae to push his thoughts in, and he frowns once more when he realizes it’s taking too much energy for Jongdae to do this.It doesn’t seem promising, Kyungsoo starts off, watching as Jongdae concentrates his weight enough to lower to Kyungsoo’s level where he hovers in front of the trunk. There are only two suits in here.At that, Jongdae lifts his head again. “If you wish for us to continue, we require two more suits be made.”Kyungsoo looks to him quickly, eyes wide, before he looks to the leader sitting back down in its chair. It’s staring at them confused, contemplating their possible reasons for two more suits, but then he waves someone over and informs them to create two more.“I will have two more be made in your sizes approximately,” it says, before Jongdae shakes his head.“Make one slightly longer,” Jongdae eyes the advisor next. “Approximately in your advisor’s size. The other one should be around our sizes.”The native stares at them curiously once more before he waves his hand to the others in acceptance. “Will you accept the proposition then?”This is still too little for what they are requesting, Kyungsoo murmurs, returning to stare at the treasures in front of them. Why do we need a fourth suit?“We accept,” Jongdae answers without hesitation. It makes Kyungsoo snap, staring at his friend with wide eyes. They haven’t even properly discussed this assignment, let alone test out if these suits are true to their descriptions, but the longer Kyungsoo stares at Jongdae, the more he can see the fire in his eyes, the itch to try something new and dangerous.They’re screwed. What the hell was that? Kyungsoo demands as he swims through plants and rock formations. He’s struggling to keep up with Jongdae, who’s moving as quickly as these natives under the waters, and he glares daggers into his friend’s head until Jongdae has the audacity to look over his shoulder, eyes crinkling at the corners with his wide smile. What the fuck do you think you’re doing? If this assignment primarily takes place underwater, we’re at a severe disadvantage.They’re following the advisor back up to the surface, where there are two more natives trailing behind Kyungsoo and carrying the treasure trunk for them, but Kyungsoo can’t even be bothered with them when the advisor swims off to the side and Jongdae spins to gain momentum out of the water. It takes longer for Kyungsoo to get up there, to catch up, but once he does breach the surface, he’s surprised to find a larger, gloved hand in black stretched out in front of him. When he looks up, he sees Chanyeol in a similar outfit to his, all in black, skintight, with the mask on his face.What are you doing out here? Kyungsoo asks, grabbing Chanyeol’s hand anyways to help lift himself out of the water. He eyes Chanyeol’s chest briefly, making sure he isn’t having any difficulty breathing, but then he remembers who he is, who they are, and he scoffs at himself about it.“I saw we had a visitor approaching,” Chanyeol murmurs, causing Kyungsoo to glance off to the side, past where the two natives are pushing the trunk onto the dock next to their ship before disappearing. Off to the far side, there’s someone else, in a dark blue suit similar to the one Kyungsoo and Jongdae had seen in the trunk, and it looks completely fine standing out of its natural habitat. “So, I decided to entertain her while we waited for you.”Kyungsoo rolls his eyes then, pushes on the button at the side of his mask to make the invisible shield retract. And how did you entertain her, exactly?Chanyeol’s grin is visible even underneath the mask. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”Kyungsoo takes a moment to stare at him, try to read the expression in his eyes as Jongdae lugs the trunk into their ship, and then he rolls his eyes again. You just kept watch over her until we returned, didn’t you? He scoffs when he hears Chanyeol’s nervous chuckles.“Am I that predictable?” Chanyeol asks, following after him when he turns to head towards their ship. The woman stays put next to it, simply observing them, and Kyungsoo scowls as he stays just outside of the ship to stare right back. “Hey,” Chanyeol calls when he walks past him, stilling to look over his shoulder at him.Go inside, Kyungsoo mutters, raising an eyebrow when the woman doesn’t even move, let alone blink.“Hey–“I’m going to test her out for myself, Kyungsoo informs, the corner of his lips lifting up into a smirk. He hums verbally, pleased, when he sees the woman finally blink and he can see the smile in her eyes. Or you can stay and watch. Whatever suits you, he mutters, before he releases his power.The strength of his presence intensifies and expands, covering the entire area of their ship, and he watches as the woman before him shakes with the resistance to kneel to him. The smile in her expression fades into a frown, the softness of her eyes hardening into a glare, and Kyungsoo releases another wave of his power before he hears her grunt. In a second, she’s crouching and moving, lunging forward to attack him, but Kyungsoo easily moves out of the way. He grabs onto her arm and flips her, watching as Chanyeol hurries to the entrance of the ship to stay out of the way and watch, and the woman doesn’t even appear affected as she twists in the air before landing on her feet.Kyungsoo doesn’t have any of his weapons on him, but it shouldn’t matter even as the woman pulls out her own knife to use against him. It’s easy training, compared to his matches with Baekhyun and Jongdae, but it’s that one thought that makes him hesitate, see the fire burning in this woman’s eyes much the same like his two friends, and he grunts as he instantly drops to the floor and knocks her off-balance.Neither of them have said a word to each other, but Kyungsoo commends this woman and her fighting skills. She’s tough, resilient, and Kyungsoo finally understands her presence when he steals her knife from her and attempts to stab her in the stomach.The material of her suit makes its surface slick, causing most things to simply slide across her body with ease, but even with a knife as sharp as this one in his hand, it only proves to make a small scratch against it. It doesn’t cause the suit to tear or become damaged in any way. Kyungsoo somewhat gawks when the woman simply swipes her finger over the scratch mark and it disappears.“I assume those are the suits offered to us in exchange for completing your tasks,” Jongdae calls out in his native language. Kyungsoo scowls at the realization before tossing the knife to the woman and watching as she catches it with ease. “They actually seem pretty useful in combat on the surface.”The woman laughs then, breathy, almost bordering on sounding like Jongdae’s when he laughs. Kyungsoo’s eyes widen in shock. “It works even better in liquid substances,” she answers in Jongdae’s same language. It’s then that Kyungsoo notices the cloth wrapped tight around this woman’s neck, partially covering her ears, and the tail wrapped tight around her waist. He doesn’t know how he missed that detail entirely. “I am here to inform you of anything pertaining to our leader’s request.”Jongdae, Kyungsoo immediately calls, refusing to lift his gaze off of this woman for even a second. Her grin is as feral as Jongdae’s when he’s excited. She’s a half-breed like you.“It explains her adaptability, doesn’t it?” Jongdae questions. It doesn’t help remove the surprise coursing through Kyungsoo’s body, the shock at discovering someone so much like Jongdae yet so different, and it takes Chanyeol walking over to place a hand on Kyungsoo’s shoulder to snap him out of it. “Kyungsoo,” Jongdae calls again, much quieter than before. He sounds concerned, something they shouldn’t be allowed to express out in the open, but then Jongdae pushes until he can get a thought in Kyungsoo’s mind. Kyungsoo, it’ll be fine.Kyungsoo isn’t entirely sure, but he waits until Chanyeol escorts her into their ship. He waits until nobody is left on the docks with him and he waits until he can search the consciousness of those around him. He can see multiple beings and creatures, can see his friends and this unknown women in their ship, and he wishes he can see Baekhyun. Baekhyun has always been level-headed, calm despite his loud behavior, and Kyungsoo lets his thoughts slip into Chanyeol’s mind, because he doesn’t know what would happen if Jongdae heard him right now.Kyungsoo, Chanyeol replies, voice soft, ever kind. It’s been a long time away from home.Kyungsoo wants to scream. It’ll attract too much attention, alert everyone within a one mile radius of his presence in a way he doesn’t want to be known, but he wants to let loose. He scowls, growling, before he turns and runs. He doesn’t jump into the water. He doesn’t even spare it a glance, not to those swimming up to the surface to offer him a nod of respect, and he doesn’t even hear Chanyeol calling out for him until he makes it to the side of some building in the station center and punches the wall out of frustration.It causes thuds to echo around them, a dent to form where his fist landed, and Kyungsoo takes the moment to breathe. He leans in until he can rest his forehead against the metal, let the cold temperature soothe him and help clear his mind. It helps, only hearing a pair of distant Kyungsoo? from Chanyeol and Jongdae, but he hopes they understand. He can’t be around them right now, not when he needs Baekhyun with them to feel completely at home, comfortable. He can’t function on this planet.A hand appears in his peripheral vision when he opens his eyes. It doesn’t do anything but hover next to him, holding a cup within its grasp, and Kyungsoo flicks his gaze up to see another creature with scales all over staring at him with wide eyes. It doesn’t have ears like he does, but its voice is soft and smooth. Its strangely relaxing when it speaks in a foreign language one Kyungsoo still needs more practice in.“This area has regulated air and pressure,” it informs, switching languages before giving him an awkward smile and then looking up to glance around them. “You have no need for your mask here.”Kyungsoo doesn’t believe it. He stays hunched over, still staring up at this creature’s purple eyes, because he doesn’t know its motives, its purpose in talking to him. He can’t even really speak to him. He doesn’t know if this creature even knows he’s a Dretteite. His skin should be a significant hint, but there are creatures who also have a rosy complexion, eyes a similar pale grey in color. He opens his mouth, knowing the other can see its movement, but simply grunts in response. He straightens, pulls his fist from the wall, and stares at the other.“I have no ill intention with you,” the creature says, still offering the drink to him. “I simply saw you were distressed and could use an alcoholic beverage.”Kyungsoo doesn’t drink too often. He prefers not to, knows it messes with his complexion more than he’d like, but he also knows his tolerance is high compared to the others on their ship. He can definitely handle more than one drink and by the faint scent of it, it doesn’t seem that strong.“Go on,” the other coaxes, raising the cup higher towards him. “I doubt any of us would be able to harm you anyways. You’re much too strong based on the power you exerted on the way over here.”The way it speaks makes Kyungsoo finally survey his surroundings. It almost looks like every space station with the markets and pathway leading to the docks, but this one is different solely for the fact the government has created this station on a planet that’s basically filled with water. It has strong foundations to ensure this place doesn’t sink. It has a thriving community to keep the area clean and functioning, despite how small the population is up here.Yet, Kyungsoo can’t figure out why there are so many half-breeds here.There are beings who appear as humans walking about, if it weren’t for the physiological change of their ears or the structure of their legs that appear as stone. There are animals roaming about freely but are able to speak some foreign language. The glass in the corner of Kyungsoo’s vision lowers and he turns to stare up at the stranger.“This is considered one of the safe havens for hybrids who can’t fight for themselves,” the other explains, glancing at those walking past them. “Normally, it isn’t a problem, but this quadrant of the galaxy is known to be dangerous outside of this planet.”Kyungsoo grunts at the information, staring at the drink some more, before he reaches out to grab it himself and sniff it again. It clearly smells fermented, but of what? Kyungsoo has no idea. He glances back up at the stranger again before shrugging. He removes his mask, sucking in the fresh air, and is surprised to find himself breathing easier than he did closer to their ship.“They’ve made sure to regulate it all here,” the stranger reiterates, giving him a toothy smile. “You shouldn’t worry about any of it.” It nods at him then before taking a step back and giving him space. “That drink is covered. If you would like to stay for a few minutes and have another, I’ll be over there at the bar catching some old re-run drama program.” That catches Kyungsoo off-guard too, but not as much as how delicious the drink actually is in his hand. He can barely taste the alcohol. “Enjoy,” the stranger says as a farewell and Kyungsoo watches as it leaves to enter an open building across the way.Nobody pays him any mind. He keeps to himself as he turns and continues to walk around with his drink and he finds that his anger and frustration has all but disappeared by the time he decides to sit on the edge of the platform. It’s a little harder to breathe here, where his legs dangle into the waters below, but it isn’t unbearable. In fact, it’s strangely relaxing.There’s no one here to bother him–it’s only him and the remainder of his drink–and he takes the time to stare out into the colorful sea. It’s mesmerizing watching the waves ebb and flow, some crashing and some brushing gently against each other, and he hums to himself when he sees the colors blend and separate all the same.It reminds him of Jongdae, the way his complexion can change colors based on his environment, and Kyungsoo remembers the time they visited Earth. With their fluorescent lights, Jongdae’s skin had become a softer lavender hue instead of his normal and it made Chanyeol laugh, Baekhyun too. Kyungsoo snorts now, as he did back then, as he recalls the memory. They were visiting what Chanyeol had called ‘a mall,’ but it just looked like a glorified shopping center without the fruit and vegetable stalls inside.Kyungsoo sighs, a clearly audible sound, as he lifts his hand to take a sip of his drink. It refreshes the back of his throat and leaves a sweet aftertaste. He should go get another one.“It’s been a while since I’ve heard you sigh like that,” someone comments. His voice is deep, familiar, and it takes Kyungsoo only a second to recognize it as Chanyeol.Kyungsoo shrugs, takes another sip of his drink. I had no reason to before.“I call bullshit,” Chanyeol protests, though there’s no heat in it. There never really is when it’s between the two of them.Nothing else is said between them. Kyungsoo continues staring out into the ocean, but he can hear Chanyeol coming closer to him. He can feel the weight of his steps behind him until he moves to sit next to him on the platform. And with one glance to the side, Kyungsoo can see Chanyeol has taken off his mask too.You breathing fine? he can’t help but ask. He takes another sip of his drink before holding it out for Chanyeol to his side.Without hesitating, Chanyeol takes the proffered cup, sniffs it, and takes a sip of the drink. He wrinkles his nose. “Yeah,” he answers, breathing in deep. “It’s a little difficult, but it’s good exercise.”Kyungsoo hums in response. He doesn’t know if he made the sound in his head or out loud, but he takes back the cup when Chanyeol hands it to him, takes another sip.On this planet, it’s hard to tell when day turns to night. The sky doesn’t darken much at all, but the people roaming the streets increase the longer they stay there. It should be strange, compared to other planets Kyungsoo has visited, but then again, it isn’t. With the three moons visible in the sky, it’d make sense for life to grow as the day wears on, especially above ground. They don’t need the brightest light to see where they’re going unlike those swimming under the surface and Kyungsoo purses his lips the slightest bit before finishing his drink. He should get another one.“It really hasn’t felt like home in a while,” Chanyeol murmurs quietly. It makes Kyungsoo still, his heart race in an unpleasant way, but then he hears Chanyeol move, trying to reach out for him but stopping halfway. “Kyungsoo.”Baekhyun is home, Kyungsoo blurts out, looking away from the waters and to Chanyeol instead. His vision is getting blurry, his heart still speeding, but it all starts to calm when Chanyeol places a hand on his shoulder before reaching up to gently graze the back of his fingers along his cheek.“I know Baekhyun is home,” Chanyeol whispers. His gaze is soft, sad, empathetic. Kyungsoo doesn’t know what to do. “It’s taken so long for you to react. I was getting worried.”Chanyeol–“Jongdae is finalizing all the details,” Chanyeol informs, moving his hand until he’s cupping Kyungsoo’s cheek. It warms him, much more than the alcohol was attempting to do, and he closes his eyes to soak it all in. “I can tell you the details now, or you can relax a bit longer. Clear your head.”Kyungsoo doesn’t want to think about any assignment. He doesn’t want to think about the tattoos on their necks or the bloods on their hands. He just wants to think about the moment, the warmth against his skin and the water soaking his legs. He wants his mind to be carefully blank, allowing it a true moment of rest, and he audibly gasps when he feels soft lips touch his forehead.“You’re clearing your mind,” Chanyeol informs, when he leans back moments later. There’s a soft smile on his lips when he removes the hand from his face. He doesn’t move from his spot though, simply stays there right next to him. “I can’t hear a single word you could’ve come up with by now.”Kyungsoo should say something in response, some word or phrase to let Chanyeol know that he’s right, but he can’t bring himself to. He suddenly feels so tired, exhausted, all he can do is return to stare out at the ocean, lose himself in the waves. Kyungsoo doesn’t realize he’s moving until the side of his head hits something hard. It makes the object startle, releasing a soft gasp, and Kyungsoo frowns when he realizes he’s hit Chanyeol on the shoulder with his head. Sorry, he murmurs, returning to sit upright. His empty cup sits on his free side, forgotten, and he stares at it long enough to remember, That drink was good.It makes Chanyeol chuckle next to him, reach out to rest a hand on his lower back to support him. “Yeah, I know,” he says, “You’ve been murmuring that for the past few minutes.”Kyungsoo snorts. He doesn’t believe him. I don’t believe you.“Come on,” Chanyeol says anyways, tapping his fingers along his waist. He moves to get up, offers a hand for him to stand as well, and Kyungsoo stares at it blankly before grabbing the cup next to him and taking his offer. “We’ve been out here for hours. We should return that cup and go back to Jongdae.”Right, Jongdae, Kyungsoo mutters, as he grunts in remembrance. He doesn’t even flinch when Chanyeol slings an arm around his shoulders. He feels so sluggish if he doesn’t use his mind for more than a few hours. Chanyeol, he murmurs, trying not to lean into his side. I don’t think I can–“Yeah,” Chanyeol interrupts him. Kyungsoo doesn’t even realize Chanyeol’s holding onto his mask until he has it secured around his face before putting his own on. “I got you. Don’t worry about it.”Kyungsoo sighs. It’s soft, barely audible, but it’s enough to give Chanyeol pause before he starts walking again. He doesn’t say anything and Kyungsoo prefers it that way. He appreciates Chanyeol going into the bar and depositing his cup, talking to the stranger Kyungsoo can clearly hear despite the noise of everything else, and it takes some time, but Kyungsoo feels almost back to normal by the time they reach their ship.He stares up at it, the logo Shining Diamond glinting brilliantly amongst the moon’s beams, and it appears as clean as it had before they left for this planet. He tries not to wonder anymore, of what could’ve been, of how he should’ve acted differently, and he looks over to Chanyeol to find him already staring back at him. He still can’t understand the expression in his eyes, but maybe it doesn’t matter, not all that much.“Ready?” Chanyeol quietly asks and Kyungsoo appreciates that too. He shrugs, lets Chanyeol take the first steps up to the door.Jongdae, Kyungsoo calls, searching for his consciousness. He hums when he finds Jongdae by himself, completely still in the living room. Jongdae, we’re coming in.It’s your house too, you know comes Jongdae’s retort and Kyungsoo scoffs as Chanyeol rolls his eyes at them. Before they can even reach for the security padlock, the door opens and Jongdae is standing there, corner of his lips tilted up in a lopsided, uncertain grin. “Welcome back.”Kyungsoo snorts, but it eases the tension in Jongdae’s shoulders. What are you being sentimental for? He smiles when Jongdae reaches out and punches him in the shoulder.“Hey, you told me being sentimental is a healthy and good thing.”Yeah, but not when it involves me. Kyungsoo laughs when Jongdae punches him again, only moving inside when Chanyeol gently pushes on his back to enter the ship. All the tension he felt earlier, the stress and frustration, has melted away. He feels himself smiling wider with each step he takes into their house, but then he sees the treasure trunk lying at the side of the living room. It’s opened, with its contents displayed, and Kyungsoo takes in a deep breath before looking back to Jongdae who only holds a hand up in front of his face.“Before you even speak, let me say something.”Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow, glances at Chanyeol over Jongdae’s shoulder.“Right, you’re not going to say anything,” Jongdae murmurs, before he speaks louder. “This assignment requires all three of us but because this will partially take place on this planet, we each have to separate to complete our jobs.”The silence that rings after just brings more confusion to Kyungsoo. He grunts in annoyance before reaching out and punching Jongdae in the shoulder, “Ow!”I need more information than that, Jongdae, Kyungsoo says before looking over his shoulder and at all the treasure that’s now theirs. To cost that much… Are those suits similar to the one that woman was wearing?“Yes,” Jongdae answers with a pout, walking around him and to the trunk. He takes out the two suits present in there, made to fit around their size. “She explained that these will automatically shrink to fit our bodies. Chanyeol’s will be done by tomorrow.” Kyungsoo nods, reaching out to take one and hold it in front of himself. Feeling it for the first time, it’s smooth, almost silky in texture, and he holds it out to the side for Chanyeol to feel too. “It’s made out of a combination of various items but most notably one of their rare gems grounded up. It’s great protection in and out of foreign substances but, you know, doesn’t do well against lava… and other stuff like that.”Kyungsoo and Chanyeol roll their eyes at that, “Moving on.”Jongdae laughs then, lightly scratching at his ear. “Yeah, anyways, I don’t even know if Chanyeol needs a suit like this for this assignment, but we should all be prepared.” He jerks his head to the side, causing both Kyungsoo and Chanyeol to look over at the living room table to finally notice all the papers and tablets spread about. “There will be a group of at least five to the most seven targets. The native from this planet has banded together with another banished like her and at least three who thrive better on the surface.”Without any more information, Kyungsoo already knows where this is going. They’ve been in one too many assignments with similar details and he frowns before he can stop himself. Are you sure you can handle this underwater? You still need a mask unlike them.Jongdae shrugs, “Well, I’m the only one who can do it.”“Then what are we doing?” Chanyeol asks, already walking over to read over each one of their targets, memorize their faces. “There’s not much land up here to fight on.”“That’s because they’re taking to the skies,” Jongdae answers, leaving Kyungsoo’s side to join him on the couch. “Since there will be at least three more, we can only assume they’re going to try and attack from inside and out. All we need to do is take them out before anyone else finds themselves in the crossfire.” He looks over back to Kyungsoo, curiosity filling his eyes. “It shouldn’t be that hard, right?”“You’ll be taking care of the two within the water before joining us in the sky,” Chanyeol murmurs in thought, shifting papers around to read it all before looking at the tablets. “We’re going to trust you to take out the ringleader, like we have any doubts though.”Jongdae hums, still staring at Kyungsoo, “Of course.”“We’re giving you three hours to make it up to the sky,” Chanyeol says and Kyungsoo can see him reaching out and placing a hand on Jongdae’s knee. If it’s to gain his attention, Jongdae isn’t giving it completely. “Jongdae, make it to the skies. Bring our house up to the skies.”“If I do that,” Jongdae murmurs, finally turning around to face him. It feels like Kyungsoo can breathe easier when neither of their attentions are on him. “I need one of you to dock and fight from the ship.”Chanyeol will do that, Kyungsoo immediately offers, catching both of their attentions. He walks over then, glancing at all of the faces, names, and information before them. Once you get up there, inform us immediately and I will circle back to you. I’ll join you, if necessary, in the water before taking to the skies.The way Jongdae smiles, soft at first before growing, almost appearing feral if it weren’t for the soft look in his eyes, makes Kyungsoo smirk in return. “Then let’s start planning this shit.” They review and plan this assignment until Chanyeol receives his outfit. It’s only for precautionary measures at this point, but Kyungsoo tries not to stare when Jongdae receives the fourth suit and quickly leaves to toss it into his room. It doesn’t make sense, but he can’t dwell on it anymore, not when they have an assignment that’s going to take all three of them to complete.None of them are entirely sure when this group will attack. They only know it’s going to be within the week, so Jongdae takes the time to leave the ship and survey their surroundings. He wears his earpiece and makes sure to relay notes to Kyungsoo and Chanyeol, trying to figure out significant landmarks and hidden spaces. By the time he’s done on the first day, Kyungsoo has half a notebook full of notes.“It’s been a while,” Jongdae breathes once he takes off his mask, dries off whatever spare water managed to stay on his body. The suit looks good on him, helps him blend even more in the water. “I have to reach my peak stamina again before they make it here.”“Well, you don’t normally swim anymore,” Chanyeol blatantly states, shrugging when Jongdae shoots him a withering look. “I’m just saying.”“Anyways,” Jongdae emphasizes. He takes in another deep breath, slowly exhales it out, before walking past them to stand next to the coffee table and stare at all the notes scattered on it. “I think I only covered about ten percent of this planet’s underwater life.”Yeah, Kyungsoo agrees, walking over to him and tossing a towel on his head. He picks up a tablet where Chanyeol was scribbling notes onto it. You covered about a ten mile radius around here. I don’t think we’re going to be able to recon the whole planet before they arrive.Chanyeol hums as he collapses back onto the couch, grunts when Jongdae immediately falls half into his lap after. “We should only be able to recon the entire area around the kingdom. Find all its nooks and crannies and make sure it’s all covered before spreading out.” Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow when Jongdae wiggles his way onto Chanyeol’s lap completely, only to earn an indifferent shrug from Chanyeol. “It should be easy to track their movements. Just think how they would act in trying to take over a kingdom.”“Yeah, easier said than done,” Jongdae murmurs, reaching out to grab a stack of papers. “I’ve been talking to some of the natives and even they aren’t sure if every passageway into the kingdom is still open and active.” He sighs then, leans back against Chanyeol, before reaching out for Kyungsoo and tugging him down onto the couch with them. It leaves Kyungsoo gasping before he’s frowning at his friend.What do you want?“I need cuddles after a long day doing recon,” Jongdae explains, whining. Kyungsoo is pretty sure he didn’t let out a screech when Jongdae tugs him in closer. By the sound of Chanyeol laughing and wrapping an arm around his waist though, he’s pretty sure he did. “I’ll help Chanyeol cook some food and then I’m going back out there when this planet goes to its darkest.”Kyungsoo grunts when he feels Jongdae wiggle himself half off of Chanyeol’s lap and onto his. You can’t eat too much then or you’ll cramp, he warns, swatting at Jongdae’s hand when it gets too far up his thigh in his movement. What are you even doing?Chanyeol laughs, “Just let him have this, Soo.”“I’m not going to inappropriately touch you,” Jongdae whines, shifting around some more, and this time, Kyungsoo lets him put his hands where it’s necessary until he sighs in relief. “I know you don’t like that. I’m just trying to find a comfortable spot.”Kyungsoo sighs with Jongdae in their minds, finally relaxing back against Chanyeol when Jongdae stills, and he indulges his friend in putting a hand on his hip, makes sure he’s secured on their laps. If you’re going to sit on us like this, how is Chanyeol supposed to feed you?“Well, fuck,” Jongdae mutters, frowning as he shifts entirely onto Kyungsoo’s lap and shoves at Chanyeol until he falls off of the couch. “You’re right.”“And that’s still rude,” Chanyeol groans from his place on the floor. Kyungsoo laughs when Jongdae kicks at Chanyeol’s leg and pulls another groan from him. “Such a beautiful laugh for such a sad moment,” he laments.It makes Kyungsoo roll his eyes, but he relaxes against the couch anyways. He can practically feel Jongdae’s soft purrs against him and he sighs audibly when Jongdae relaxes back into him, when he lifts a hand to card fingers through Jongdae’s hair. He feels Jongdae still on his lap for a moment, almost not even breathing, but then the moment passes as quick as it had come.“It’s been a while since I’ve heard that,” Jongdae murmurs, before Chanyeol rolls and pushes himself off of the ground.Kyungsoo isn’t sure if he was supposed to hear that, but he does anyways. It’s been a while since Kyungsoo cruised through space on his own. He remains just outside of the planet’s orbit, monitoring for any ships and vehicles that appear similar to those they’re trying to exterminate, and he sits back as he searches around for Chanyeol somewhere closer to the surface. Though, it’s a far look away.How’s it going down there, Jongdae? Kyungsoo asks, feeling a slight strain in his mind to reach his friend closer to the planet’s core. He grunts when he reaches up and changes the view on his side panel to see the current stats of his ship. Almost everything that needs refilling is up to its max and he grunts once more when he switches the view to see Chanyeol in person. He rolls his eyes when he sees Chanyeol looking over papers and tablets in his lap. Chanyeol, I don’t think now is a good time to read over those notes one more time.“Then that means it’s the best time to do so,” Chanyeol murmurs. His hair is getting long. His bangs fall into his eyes and his roots are starting to show. “Jongdae, report.”“Nothing down here,” Jongdae whispers, voice muffled by his mask. “What’s your reason?”Kyungsoo is curious too, glancing back out to see nothing has changed since five minutes ago.“That stranger Kyungsoo met,” Chanyeol murmurs, instantly piquing his interest. “It wasn’t a shifter, but it has the same markers as this one right here.” He enlarges the photo on his tablet before showing it to Kyungsoo. “The only difference is that stranger’s left eye and slight bone structure.”The longer Kyungsoo stares at the picture, the longer Kyungsoo can see the resemblance. He usually doesn’t have any difficulty in recognizing others, especially when Baekhyun was with them, but he guess it’s been a while. They were hired by this woman, he concludes, groaning, as he sits back in his chair again and stares out into open space. He can’t believe he missed it. They’re probably a mercenary like us.“Nothing happened to you though, right?” Jongdae asks. He sounds breathless, swimming through something. “I think she’s here.”Nope, Kyungsoo quips, not even moving as he continues to stare at the open space around him. He doesn’t see anything though. He reaches for the controls, actually moving around the planet to find anything that’s different. Plus, Chanyeol talked to them too.“And they’ve been on this planet longer than we thought.”Kyungsoo grunts in response to Chanyeol, looking down and seeing another ship moving quickly underneath him. South side of the planet, Yeol. I think we have company. He watches as the ship slows the closer they get to the surface and he frowns, trying to figure out their movements. They hover there, near the South docks. Chanyeol, I need you to stay next to our ship.“What? Why?”There’s another grunt in their ears, courtesy of Jongdae, and Kyungsoo looks away from the foreign ship long enough to see another one coming straight for him. Cred! he shouts, quickly maneuvering out of the way. He narrowly misses the bullets coming straight at him. The one at the South end looks like they’re searching for something. If it’s our ship, we need to protect it.“Got it,” Chanyeol grunts. Kyungsoo flinches when he feels his ship get hit. “Hold it up, you guys.”Yeah, Kyungsoo mutters, quickly moving around a series of asteroids to try and out-run the ship chasing after him. When he sees an opening, he spins around, openly shooting at the other ship now in front of him.It takes minutes, hours, but then he feels himself get hit somewhere else. Another ship is rounding on him and he curses. I have two on me, he announces, straining to communicate with his friends. He was never one to navigate cleanly through the skies, preferring to combat others physically, and he curses a third time when he finds a third ship on his tail. Three. I have three idiots chasing after me.“It’s not like the one chasing after you on the daily,” Jongdae wheezes out before he grunts.Kyungsoo doesn’t even have the time to understand before they hear from Chanyeol again seconds later.“I’ve already taken out two here,” he breathes, Kyungsoo frowning when he hears something like water rushing through his head. “Knocked me into the waters, but I shot them before they could get near the ship.” He’s panting and Kyungsoo worries for a moment. “I’m docking my ship. Jongdae, get up here as fast as possible. We’re taking to the skies.”I can’t believe there are actually seven of these idiots out here, Kyungsoo screams, suddenly maneuvering around asteroids to avoid getting hit more. I’m moving out further. I can’t guarantee the safety of anyone else on this planet.“Took one down,” Jongdae breathes, before he grunts and screams. “Ah, vilg!”“Can’t you guys just say ‘shit’ and ‘fuck’ like humans?” Chanyeol shouts out and Kyungsoo doesn’t know why until he hears more gunshots in his ears. “If we’re gonna keep using Baekhyun’s language, at least use words that are more appropriate!”Stop shouting and focus on getting up here, Kyungsoo demands. He gasps when he’s hit again. I’m drawing them away. I can’t fight like this.“Wait!” Jongdae shouts, before he screams again. Kyungsoo can’t wait though, not when he has three other mercenaries chasing after him. He strains his mind, his ears, into hearing past the static starting to come in through the earpiece. He hears hits, screams, gasps before Jongdae is breathing rapidly, panting. “Chanyeol, I’m coming up.”“Kyungsoo, turn on your intercom speaker,” Chanyeol orders and Kyungsoo does as told, grunting as a hit to his right forces him to slam left. “GPS coordinates,” he adds on. Kyungsoo’s too far to speak to them. He slams his fist next to the speakers before flipping a set of switches on. “We’re coming for you.”Kyungsoo slams his fist again before focusing on turning the situation around. He maxes out his speed trying to flee and when he comes close to a satellite, he quickly turns around it. He feels his ship drift with the sudden change in speed and angle and he immediately starts shooting at his three targets. He manages to destroy the weapons of one ship before he angles his ship down and forward. He grunts when he’s hit some more and the light in his ship starts to flash red.He pounds his fist against the wall again.“Kyungsoo?” comes Chanyeol’s voice, verging on panic. “We’re almost to you.”Kyungsoo hits his fist again, feeling fear filling his body when he feels another hit to his ship. Chanyeol? he calls out, trying to search for his friend mentally. He’s too far away. Chanyeol! he screams, focusing more, harder. Part of my shield is already down! He hits his fist again before taking another sharp turn.He can see another planet in the distance, one that’s smaller and redder in color, almost the same size as Earth, and he frowns as he presses and swipes on one of his side screens to see the view behind him. The two ships are still tailing him, reserving their weapons for something else, and the blue planet is nowhere to be seen. He didn’t even realize he was getting so far away from where they started before he feels another hit to his side and a warning sign pops up on the screen instead.It’s then that the other two ships open fire.Chanyeol? Kyungsoo asks, feeling panic swell his chest. Jongdae? he continues on, as he moves closer to the foreign planet in front of him. He dodges stray asteroids and floating metals, pounding on the side of his ship again, and he breathes a little easier when he immediately hears Jongdae’s voice.“We see you, Kyungsoo,” he says, sounding breathless, “We took out one of the ships behind you. Chanyeol is working on the other two.”The panic fades the longer he hears Jongdae’s voice. He swipes away the warning on his side screen before pulling up the feed of the action going on behind him. He glances to the other side through the large windows to see the other ship trying to stay level with him and he sucks in a breath, braking quickly to stop his ship. It causes his target to keep going ahead of him and Kyungsoo turns his ship the slightest to follow after it and start shooting at them instead.He can see the ship’s forcefield slowly start to break under his attacks, but he can also feel his ship drift to the left. He frowns, confused, before glancing down to his controls. Nothing has changed, but he knows he can feel an uncontrollable force moving his ship.“Kyungsoo,” Jongdae calls out, warns, “You’re getting too close to that planet.”Kyungsoo frowns, pounds at his wall again, watches as he finally breaks the shield of the other ship. That planet is tens of miles away. I’m not getting close to it. He hears Chanyeol grunt.“Kyungsoo!”What?! he shouts back, severely confused, and when he looks to the other small screen, where it’s split down the middle to show his friends’ face, they look concerned. They’re concentrating hard. What in the world–Suddenly, Kyungsoo can’t turn his ship how he likes. He tries to force his way right, away from the oncoming planet, but it won’t budge. He keeps moving left and he looks around, eyes wide, to see the other mercenary already shot in its ship. It’s floating closer to the planet before it slowly gains speed. Kyungsoo quickly turns to see Chanyeol staring at him with a worried gaze.Chanyeol–“Find a place to land safely,” Chanyeol quickly says, before he’s looking away and over to Jongdae in the main ship hovering past the gravitational field. “I’ll follow after you.”“It’s too strong,” Jongdae murmurs afterwards. And it’s then that Kyungsoo realizes they’ve completed their assignment. “The gravitational field of this planet. I’m researching on it right now.”Kyungsoo can’t move his ship. The thrusters are barely working and he tries to figure out why it’s stalling on him. He looks away from Chanyeol long enough to pull up all the statistics of his ship, all the damage and what’s functioning, and he grimaces when he realizes it’s going to take weeks to fix his ship. Looking back out to his left, he can start to see sections of silver mixed in with the red of the planet. He reaches for his mask beside him and puts it on, just in case.My thrusters won’t work against this gravity, he murmurs, frowning when he realizes the red of the planet is a gaseous mixture surrounding it instead. He glances back over to Chanyeol and Jongdae in the distance in their own ships. I’ll try going in. Keep tracking me.“We’re not losing another one,” Chanyeol declares, hesitating, before following after him. “Jongdae, any information.”Kyungsoo can’t focus on them any longer. He can’t keep looking back at them, so he focuses on the foreign planet. He watches as the red gas diffuses when he feels the gravity increase the longer he drifts closer to it. He frowns, eyes all the strangely familiar buildings, and realizes this planet is starting to look a lot like Earth. I’m going in, he announces, before he kicks the thrusters on full force towards the planet.“This planet is called Talis,” Jongdae informs, voice softening with the pressure surrounding Kyungsoo’s head. “It’s known as one of this quadrant’s bounty hunter sanctuaries. They convene here to relax and research on the newest bounties available. There are normal citizens living on this planet, usually significant others and family members, but others from different quadrants and planets come here for new jobs and experiences.” He hums then, but Kyungsoo can’t focus long enough to listen. He can’t find a space big enough to land. “Oh,” Jongdae murmurs, confused, scared. “Kyungsoo–”Kyungsoo can’t bother to answer, too far away to connect mentally without exerting too much energy. The land is coming up fast and he tries to kick at his gear shift to get his thrusters to turn off. It takes two, three, kicks before they shut off and he screeches when he tries to maneuver his ship into a safe landing. He squeezes his eyes shut when his ship collides with the ground and he can hear something break off of it. He’s amazed his ship even lands upright in the end.When he finally blinks this world into focus, he grimaces at the realization that he’s landed in a place that’s grimy and dark. It looks like he’s in some landfill next to a large bridge, where he can see vehicles traveling across it, and he groans as he tries to move out of his seat. His right side hurts where he ended up hitting his side console and he flinches when he pushes the code at the top of his ship to lift the hatch so he can get out. It causes dirt and dust to fly everywhere and he gasps at the sensation before coughing it out of his lungs.His ship powers down without his command. It leaves it wide open, vulnerable, and Kyungsoo grunts as he manages to climb out of his chair before tumbling to the ground. It’s hard rock, making his injury ache a bit more than normal, and he kicks the side of his ship out of spite, glaring at it hard.Chanyeol? he calls, sighing deeply, before he pushes himself to stand and observes his surroundings. It seems like he doesn’t need his full mask to adapt here, though he can feel the pressure of the planet’s increased gravity pushing on his entire body. Jongdae? Are you here?Kyungsoo searches for their consciousnesses, only to come up with tens of hundreds of unfamiliar ones instead. He grunts in annoyance, looking around him again, and notices strangers walking along under the bridge.There are a group of three coming towards him and Kyungsoo stares each of them down. They’re all obviously bigger than him and of different species. One appears to be made completely of rock while the other two look more human than anything else. Kyungsoo frowns at the sight of them before turning and manually closing his ship to try and preserve what’s left of it.“We saw you had a crash landing,” one of them calls. When Kyungsoo looks over his shoulder, he decides that, yes, this one is definitely human and actually a female. She grins at him. “Not very many come to this planet like that. You lost, Rosey?”Kyungsoo snorts at the nickname, choosing to keep silent even in their minds. He turns back to face them fully, eyeing them even closer, and notices the weapons attached to their waist and sides.“You don’t speak, huh?” the rock being comments, tilting his head to the side. “That’s fine.” He eyes his ship next. “You don’t see a model like that anymore.”Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow, as if to say ‘and your point is?’ but he doesn’t ask, continues to stare at them and wonder if he should release his power, just to see what they would do.“Kyungsoo?” Chanyeol suddenly calls in his earpiece. It makes Kyungsoo’s lips tilt downwards as he waits for a continuation of some sort. “We landed about a mile from you in some field. It’ll help conceal our ship. Can you bring yours to us or do we have to get it from there? Your coordinates got cut off.”His ship is wrecked beyond basic repair. He can’t bring it to them and none of them have the combined strength to lift it to dock the Shining Diamond. But he doesn’t want to leave it here, not when strangers like the ones in front of him are roaming about.“Kyungsoo, we’re coming to you,” Chanyeol decides. “Don’t move.”Kyungsoo doesn’t know if he can obey that order, not when the third party of the group scowls at him. “Are you one of those species who refuse to speak? Or is it an actual inability to?” he asks and Kyungsoo can sense a fight coming on. “I recognize that mark on your neck. You’re a part of the group that killed one of the best bounty hunters in this galaxy.”Those words make Kyungsoo freeze. He refuses to widen his eyes, stare at these three like they’ve grown another body, because those words sound an awful lot like an allusion to Baekhyun from two years ago. He slowly releases a subtle wave of his power, not enough for any of them to feel a difference.“You know there’s a bounty on that one’s head,” the woman informs, lips forming into a smirk. “It’s rumored he’s been on this planet since the news of the hunter’s death came to light. We just haven’t seen any signs of that tattoo until now, though I doubt you were the one to take out one of our best.”Kyungsoo feels like he’s having a hard time breathing. None of their words make any sense. Why would Baekhyun be on this planet? Why wouldn’t he have come home or sent out a message?“That tattoo is a mark of one of the best assassination squads in the universe. There are only four of you that we know of,” the rock being says. He sounds contemplative over everything else. “We’ve only seen a bounty on your human friend’s head, but I wonder if there would be anything for you and your other two friends as well.”That makes Kyungsoo almost snort in confusion. They only know Baekhyun by his human appearance. He can hear running in the distance, see Chanyeol and Jongdae coming for him behind this trio. He guesses that’s all the information he can get for now.The moment he releases his power, all three of them kneel before him. They look surprised, confused, before they become outright angry and the woman is the first to fight against his power. “The Dretteite,” she spits out, struggling to stand. “Always heard about you, first time seeing one up close.”They say Baekhyun is here, Kyungsoo informs Chanyeol and Jongdae, watching as they immediately slow down meters away from them. He can’t decipher the expression in their eyes, but he can see the hardened glare in Jongdae’s eyes. There’s a bounty on his head.“How can there be a bounty on his head when he no longer exists?” Jongdae calls out. It’s funny, Kyungsoo thinks, to see all three before him still immediately at his voice. They can’t turn to face him, so Chanyeol smiles wide underneath his mask.“You must have him confused with someone else.”“We wouldn’t be able to confuse him for anyone else,” the man grunts out. “Not when you have the inscription of death permanently embedded in your skin.” He tries to reach for his weapon, only for Kyungsoo to raise an eyebrow and increase his power, causing the man to scream. “Nobody would intentionally jinx themselves like that.”Can I push? Kyungsoo asks Jongdae and Chanyeol, glancing up at them briefly, before staring the man down again. It’ll be fun.“I suppose,” Jongdae murmurs in thought, coming closer to them. When he reaches the one Kyungsoo has been eyeing, he stares down at him before jerking his head in the direction of the woman. “Take care of her.”Kyungsoo glances up to see a glimmer of pleasure surface in Chanyeol’s eyes at the command. He almost laughs at the excitement flowing off of his friend in waves, but he doesn’t. He only watches as Chanyeol comes around to crouch in front of the woman, pulls his gun out from his back holster. “Hey,” he calls out, tilting his head back to look over his shoulder at Kyungsoo, even as he reaches up to point his gun at the underside of the woman’s chin. “Release her. Maybe this fight will help relieve some stress.”Kyungsoo rolls his eyes in response before releasing his hold on the woman. It makes her breathe easier, panting as she falls to her side. It’s enough to have her comrades glance over to her and Kyungsoo allows them the moment, before he pushes into the human male’s head. Now, let’s see how you react, he murmurs into the man’s head, watching as his eyes widen comically in size. Should I probe around in here?“What,” the man gasps out. His comrades look to him confused, before the woman tackles Chanyeol to the ground.Kyungsoo barely spares them a glance, but he does give Jongdae a look before his friend comes forward, grabs the rock man by the back of his shirt, and starts dragging him away. He hears faint thoughts in the back of his mind, a voice that isn’t his own or his friends, and he raises an eyebrow when he turns back to the man in front of him.They won’t take us alive. They’re mercenaries. They don’t leave messes behind. What are they going to do to him? Cassie can outrun that one, but I can’t.Maybe I should put you out of your misery, Kyungsoo pushes, taking a step closer and watching as the man instantly looks back up at him. He smiles down at him, waiting until he gets close enough, to reach out and grab the man by the neck, choking him, to make him stand. He doesn’t need to lift him off of the ground, doesn’t need to do much, and he grunts when hears a gunshot and pain blossom in his side.He looks down, sees his injury, but doesn’t see any weapon on the man himself. The man appears a mixture of shocked and afraid and he should be. Kyungsoo frowns at him, at Chanyeol and the woman for accidentally hitting him, and finds it a little harder to breathe with his injury. He lets go of him.“What?” the man breathes out, coughing. He stumbles back a few steps before Kyungsoo’s frown fades into a soft grin. “What are you–”Within seconds, Kyungsoo is running forward. He punches the man in the stomach before using an open palm for an uppercut. When the man stumbles back some more, Kyungsoo reaches forward to grab him by his shirt and tug him forward before jabbing him in the neck. He releases the man right after, watches as he falls backwards struggling to breathe, and takes in a deep breath himself. He straightens afterwards, watching as the life leaves the man’s eyes, and grimaces when he can start to feel his injury hurt more the longer he stands there doing nothing.There’s a scream somewhere behind him and another gunshot and Kyungsoo looks over his shoulder to see Chanyeol straightening and the woman falling to the ground lifeless. He’s holding his gun in his hand and Kyungsoo sighs mentally. He doesn’t see anyone else around them and he feels free enough to flinch at his wound when he tries to take one step away from the dead man.“Soo,” Chanyeol murmurs, returning his gun to his holster as he makes his way to him. He’s searching his entire body before reaching out to gently lay fingers next to his wound. From the looks of it, it wasn’t Chanyeol who hit him. Kyungsoo grunts in pain. “We need to find a place to lay low.”I can’t leave my ship here, Kyungsoo mutters, glancing over to his wreck of a vehicle. Somebody could trash it or something.“Or something,” Chanyeol echoes under his breath, scoffing. He moves away from Kyungsoo then. He reaches into the pocket of the side of his pants, where there’s a button clasp to it, and undoes it to grab a small chip. It’s one they don’t have very much of considering it’s price, but Kyungsoo grunts when he sees Chanyeol lift up the hatch of his ship the slightest bit and stick it near the controls. He pushes on it and Kyungsoo watches as his ship disappears from view completely. “There,” Chanyeol mutters, slowly letting down the hatch until they can each hear it click shut. “Nobody will know where it is until we can come back and fix it.” He turns to him then, coming closer until he can crouch down and try to assess his wound. “We need to get somewhere safe so we can treat you. It’s a through-and-through.”Kyungsoo winces when Chanyeol gingerly touches the area. Jongdae, he calls out, searching for his mind. Where are you? Let’s go.“I’ve found a place to take refuge,” Jongdae calls back, sounding awfully pleased with himself. When they look over, Jongdae is all by himself. He’s shaking something from his hair, but Kyungsoo can’t even bother with it.Well, do enlighten us, he comments back, wincing when he turns the wrong way. Shit.Jongdae and Chanyeol frown at his reaction, the former pausing when he gets close enough, and Kyungsoo doesn’t understand until Jongdae is lifting one of Kyungsoo’s arms to loop around his shoulders. “It’s these guys’ place,” he murmurs, walking off in a different direction. “Got the rock guy to tell me.”“Before you killed him?” Chanyeol scoffs back, trailing behind them. He sounds distracted though, probably keeping an eye on their surroundings, because Kyungsoo knows he can’t focus on doing his job properly right now.“Mm,” Jongdae hums and honestly, this isn’t even one of Kyungsoo’s worst injuries. But he can feel the injury pulling inside of him along with the bruises lining his other side from his crash landing.This sucks, he grunts out, causing Jongdae and Chanyeol to laugh at him.“Yeah, well,” Jongdae mumbles, making sure to keep his voice quiet as they make it to a street where cars and motorcycles are speeding past them. They stay on the side of the road, taking everything in. “When we get there, we’re going to search for the source of this bullshit rumor.”Kyungsoo groans with him when he turns to walk down the sidewalk. There are tall buildings and bright lights, creatures of all kinds roaming the streets. He finds it fascinating that not one of them spares any of them a second glance. Though, he makes sure to cover up his tattoo. He doesn’t want unnecessary confrontation so soon again. Cover your marks, he advises to his friends. He doesn’t need to look to see Chanyeol wrapping a piece of cloth around Jongdae’s neck and then zipping up his own shirt to partially cover his tattoo.It takes minutes, hours, but then they’re arriving to a building just outside the center of the city. There are still a lot of people, a lot of businesses open, but they don’t hesitate for more than a minute before entering the facility. They take the elevator to the ninth floor, admiring the classy interior of such a rundown building, and Kyungsoo gapes when he actually sees his reflection again in the glassy walls. He looks disheveled to the highest degree, but so does Jongdae.Jongdae, he calls, frowning, but then they reach their floor and are moving off of the elevator to a room down the hall. If Kyungsoo didn’t know any better, this building was modeled after an Earthen hotel. Where are we going?“Yeol,” Jongdae murmurs, quiet, mindful of the foreign environment they’re in. When they stop in front of a door, he looks around Kyungsoo to their friend. “Get us in.”Chanyeol sighs, exasperated, but digs around in his pack secured around his thigh anyways. He frowns in concentration, trying to find something to pick the locks on this door, and Kyungsoo snorts when Chanyeol pulls out a stylus and a chopstick.You don’t even have the other pair of that thing? he asks, watching as Chanyeol shrugs before kneeling in front of the door to see the lock better.“Hey, anything thin works.”Kyungsoo lightly kicks Chanyeol’s butt out of spite, delighting in the small grunt he gets in return, and they wait a few more seconds before the door in front of them unlocks and opens. From first glance, the foyer doesn’t look like anything special. It’s wood flooring that turns to carpet and Kyungsoo frowns down at the color of it all.“Stop frowning at the interior design,” Jongdae gently chides, leading him over to the couch in the room. It appears leather and Kyungsoo still frowns at it even when Jongdae helps him lie down on it. “Now, stop pouting.”I’m not pouting, Kyungsoo grumbles back, glaring up at him. But when Jongdae takes a step back and turns around to survey the entire room, Kyungsoo finally notices the way he limps too, the wound on the back of his head. Jongdae, he calls out, only to receive a dismissive wave of the hand in return.“Focus on yourself,” Jongdae says, walking away. “Chanyeol already helped treat me. Let him do the same for you.”“Jongdae,” Chanyeol echoes. Kyungsoo watches as their friend stops to look over his shoulder at them, mask still on his face. “Find me a first aid kit, if you can. Bounty hunters should have some of that stuff lying around.”Jongdae smiles, soft around his eyes, soft around his lips too when he removes his mask. “Sure thing.” His relaxed state lures Kyungsoo and Chanyeol to feel the same.Kyungsoo relaxes against the cushions. He closes his eyes, breathes out a soft sigh, and listens to Jongdae rummaging around in the apartment. He can hear objects knocking into each other and Jongdae’s soft voice, but he can also feel Chanyeol hovering over him, staring at him. He only opens an eye when he feels Chanyeol reach over and lift up his shirt. He’s probably staining the couch with his blood. This time, he doesn’t flinch when Chanyeol grazes the pads of his fingers around his wound.“You’ve already started to heal,” Chanyeol murmurs, still sounding amazed even after all these years. His fingers are rough against Kyungsoo’s skin, but they’re soothing. It’s familiar like everyone else’s touch. “I’m still gonna dump alcohol on it or something though.”Kyungsoo immediately jerks away from Chanyeol, accidentally elbowing him in the chest in the process, “Oof.” You are not dumping alcohol in that wound. That hurts like hell.“I thought you didn’t believe in hell,” Chanyeol wheezes out, rubbing at his chest. “You know what I mean though. I gotta clean that up.”But I’m already healing. Why do I need anything else? Kyungsoo protests.A thunk is heard and Chanyeol groans, closing his eyes and leaning forward until he can place his forehead on Kyungsoo’s side. Chanyeol rubs the back of his own head, flinching again. “Why you gotta do that, Jongdae?” he whines and it’s then that Kyungsoo looks over and finds a bottle of antiseptic on the floor next to him.That’s going to hurt like a bitch, Kyungsoo mutters, glaring at it before turning his glare onto his friend standing behind Chanyeol. I don’t need that.“And I don’t need stitches in my head,” Jongdae glowers, lifting up the kit in his hands. “Come on, Yeol. We’re on a time limit with my wounds too.”“Then stop treating me this way,” Chanyeol whines, so Kyungsoo rolls his eyes. He reaches out with a hand and cards fingers through Chanyeol’s hair, immediately feeling the bump form from where he got hit in the head with the plastic bottle.Oh, that’s an actual bruise right there.“Tell me about it.”Kyungsoo sighs then, mentally, as he relaxes back onto the couch. He feels Chanyeol move with him until his forehead is resting on his stomach and he winces when strands of Chanyeol’s hair tickles the area right next to his injury. He looks over to Jongdae who has a fond grin on his face.“Come on, Yeol. The quicker we do this, the quicker we can disprove Baekhyun’s existence on this planet.” There are too many foreigners here. Kyungsoo can see each one’s mind within a ten mile radius, but none of them are Baekhyun. He can’t sense the natural warmth he feels associated with him and he can’t see any traces of him anywhere. When he opens his eyes, it’s to see Chanyeol staring at him intently while Jongdae tosses his knife up and down before throwing it to the far wall.I don’t see any traces of him, he informs, watching as Jongdae walks over to the wall to pluck his knife out of it. There are seven knicks in it already.“Try twenty miles,” Chanyeol suggests. He looks tired, but he should be. It’s well into the early morning hours and he hasn’t slept since the entire assignment hours ago. The telecaster in the flat screen monitor in the room drones on in the background. “Maybe he’s blocking your view.”Kyungsoo frowns because he knows that’s a possibility. If Baekhyun is trying to protect himself on a planet that has a universal bounty on his head, he’d be making sure he stays alive the longest he can. But he never taught any of them how to do it properly for a long period of time. Then go sleep while I do this. It’s going to take energy from me and I’ll be out for hours without protection.“We have you covered,” Jongdae mutters, tossing his dagger in the air again. He’s contemplating something, but Kyungsoo doesn’t know what. “We’ll take turns as usual. Chanyeol, you sleep first. I’ve already checked all the rooms, windows, and doors. There are spare blankets and pillows in the other room if you want to sleep out here instead.”“Yeah,” Chanyeol says around a yawn. He stands then, stretching out his back, and they all listen as they hear the cracks in his body. He sighs, satisfied. “I’ll sleep on the couch if that’s okay with you guys.”Kyungsoo raises his eyebrows then before looking over his shoulder where he’s propped up against the front of the couch on the floor. There is a faint stain of his blood on the cushions, but he guesses Chanyeol doesn’t mind.“Yeah, go ahead,” Jongdae answers for him.When Chanyeol comes back with a few pillows under one arm and a couple of blankets in the other, Kyungsoo makes sure to lean forward the slightest bit so his friend can make his temporary bed as comfortable as possible without him in the way. He waits until Chanyeol is settled before resuming his position on the floor. He stares straight ahead, casting Jongdae a warning glance, before he closes his eyes and focus.He tunes everything out–the sound Chanyeol makes as he gets ready to sleep, Jongdae as he hums and murmurs to himself before tossing the knife, the sounds of the cars and motorcycles honking and speeding outside. He tries to focus on searching every single mind he comes across, tries to find something familiar even after years of being apart, and he groans softly when he sees nothing and tries to go beyond his normal limit. It isn’t hard, but he’s definitely not used to it.He can’t see any traces of Baekhyun. It’s a long shot, Kyungsoo murmurs. They’re in the elevator going down, trying to conduct a physical search instead, and he glances to Jongdae and Chanyeol standing next to him. They’re wearing normal clothes taken from the apartment, not the special aquatic suit Jongdae had been wearing before or their normal skintight black suit that he and Chanyeol had been wearing earlier, and he can’t help but think it’s been a while. They’ve haven’t done reconnaissance on an area as a team in months and he glances at each of them again to make sure they have their tattoos covered.“Yeah,” Chanyeol agrees, frowning, as he puts his hands in his pockets. “But if we hit the bars and popular hotspots, we’re bound to find more information.”Kyungsoo shifts his gaze from Chanyeol to Jongdae, eyeing him carefully, even as they reach the ground floor and the doors open. How about you? he can’t help but ask, watching as Jongdae shrugs before leaving the elevator first.“We’ll find out sooner or later” is the answer he gets, before Jongdae lifts the mask to his face and secures it on. “Let’s go.”It’s still dark outside when they leave the building. There’s a musky scent to the air, as if there isn’t much ventilation in the openness itself, and Kyungsoo frowns as he lifts his own mask to his face too. It helps clear out the smog of the city and he mentally commands Chanyeol to do the same. It leaves them looking slightly out of place but even those who appear human have something covering the lower half of their faces as well.They enter the first bar they see, spreading out once they’ve passed the opened doors, and Kyungsoo takes a cursory glance around the establishment before choosing to stand next to a wall. He can’t do much when it comes to verbal interrogations, but he can help with ensuring his comrades don’t fall into any traps. He keeps a superficial tracker of their minds in his own.Staring into the mass of bodies sharing the floor, Kyungsoo flicks his gaze over back to the entrance. The sign is in a language he can barely understand, but then he notices the translation of it in different languages next to it and scoffs. Of course, he mutters, reaching out to his friends. The first place we stumbled into is a bar and club.I thought you understood that when we heard the loud-ass music leaking the place comes Jongdae’s response and Kyungsoo scoffs again in annoyance. He does a quick search and finds Chanyeol at the bar, talking to someone, as usual.This planet seems like it’s a mixture of Earth and Zenal, he mutters in thought, remembering the latter planet as one that normally doesn’t receive any natural light at all. Their natives were pale, quiet, but it doesn’t seem like the case here where everyone is loud and energetic. Baekhyun would fit in well here, he mumbles, searching the crowd.If there wasn’t a bounty on his head, Chanyeol comments back.Kyungsoo simply shrugs in response, even though he knows they can’t see him. He doesn’t know how long he stays there while they gather information, but he knows it’s been a while when he shifts his weight from one foot to the other and he feels a dull ache in his lower back.Glancing around the area again, he catches a couple pairs of eyes on him. They’re curious gazes more than anything and Kyungsoo breaks eye contact without a second thought. Are we done here? My back is hurting.Says one of the universe’s best assassins, Jongdae snickers. We’re almost done.Kyungsoo frowns in response as he continues to lean against the wall. He doesn’t take any proffered drink and he only nods in greeting to those who pass by him or acknowledges his presence. He isn’t too sure of the customs of this planet, but from what Chanyeol had researched, this seemed to be the basics. It’s hard to think most of these people are bounty hunters. He hums when he sees Chanyeol come up to him out of the corners of his eyes.“You look like the definition of a wallflower,” Chanyeol comments as Kyungsoo pushes himself off of the wall and lets him sling an arm around his shoulders. There’s sweat forming on the sides of his face and his brow. Kyungsoo scowls.I don’t recall the definition of that one. Kyungsoo hums again when he sees Jongdae coming up to them to flank his other side, appearing to be in a similar state as Chanyeol. You two are gross.“At least we have information,” Jongdae murmurs quietly, breathing deeply when they leave the establishment. “That rumor is still a rumor, but they call this mercenary a ghost.” He scoffs then, shakes his head in amusement. “I guess they don’t realize he’s a shifter yet.”“Or they do, and that’s why it’s taken them so long to even try and catch a glimpse of him,” Chanyeol says.Then how do you expect to find a ghost? Kyungsoo asks. A shifter? We can’t exactly announce our presence and I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t willing step forward either, if he’s even still alive.“I doubt he is,” Jongdae mumbles. But when Kyungsoo looks at him, he can see the sadness in his eyes hidden underneath everything else.“The creature I talked to said it was difficult getting out of this planet unless your ship is capable of breaking past the barriers,” Chanyeol explains, sighing. He runs fingers through his hair. He looks around the street they’re walking on. “I’m getting hungry. I need food.”“So, do you want,” Jongdae starts to ask, before he stops himself. It makes Kyungsoo and Chanyeol look over, waiting for something he isn’t going to say, and Kyungsoo frowns as Chanyeol reaches out with the arm already around his shoulders to gently squeeze Jongdae’s closest to them. “Let’s find a place and see if we can take it back to the apartment.”Okay, Kyungsoo murmurs, still eyeing him, before turning back to the street and seeing another person eyeing them curiously. It doesn’t last more than a few seconds before the other turns away and scurries off. An entire two days pass by like that. They spend their time searching for clues, anything that’ll help prove this rumor is false, and Kyungsoo cracks by the time they make it back to their apartment empty handed except for the food Chanyeol is carrying next to them.We should stop focusing on a damn rumor and focus more on getting off of this planet, he shouts, watching as it causes Chanyeol to flinch and Jongdae to frown. I still need to go back and repair my ship and we need to enforce the Shining Diamond’s shields so we can get out of here safely. He punches the wall next to him, creates another hole he should probably worry about but doesn’t. We already accepted the fact Baekhyun is dead!The solemn expressions on Chanyeol and Jongdae’s faces make Kyungsoo quiet down. He scowls, unsure of what to do with the emotion swirling in his chest, and punches the wall once more before storming off into the room he’s taking up for residence. He slams the door behind him, groaning loud to himself, and bangs his head against the door once for good measure. Ever since he made eye contact with the stranger scurrying off away from them on the street, he swears he felt something familiar about it. He doesn’t know what because it wasn’t Baekhyun he was sensing. Baekhyun is warmth and home. Baekhyun isn’t some stranger who runs away from them at first sight.Kyungsoo groans again, leaving his door to fall onto the bed next to him. Baekhyun, he calls out, still searching, never giving his mind rest. Home isn’t home without all four of them here. Where are you? “Kyungsoo has been doing too much,” Chanyeol murmurs, looking over across the room towards Jongdae. His heart aches. “Kyungsoo probably thinks we don’t care enough.”A scoff is heard before another thud echoes in the living room, the dagger sticking in the wall. “Of course we care,” Jongdae whispers, breathing in deep, trying to stop himself from tearing up. “But Chanyeol, I’ve already given up on restoring our home a long time ago.”Chanyeol’s heart hurts. He can feel Kyungsoo’s presence searching for their friend, continuously, never-ending, and he cries. “Jongdae–” He feels like he’s not doing enough.“It’s none of our faults,” Jongdae interrupts, staring at him with hard glare in his eyes. He looks so sad, eyes glazing over with the beginning formations of his crystal tears. “But Kyungsoo has always been more stubborn than us.”“It doesn’t make our lack of effort right.”“Who says we aren’t trying?” Jongdae fights back, blinking, letting a small crystal fall from his left eye. “Chanyeol, there are three of us. We’ve all tried finding him in any way we can. But sometimes, it’s just not worth it. It’s not enough and we can’t keep hoping he’ll spontaneously show up one day like he’s never left.”When Jongdae turns to retrieve the dagger, Chanyeol murmurs, “You still use his weapon.”“And he still has yours,” Jongdae replies easily, not even looking at him as he throws it against the wall again.Chanyeol misses the four of them. He misses Jongdae’s spirit, Baekhyun’s laughter, and Kyungsoo’s smile.Thud. It smells like Earth when Kyungsoo leaves his room. The stove is on, the food in the pan on top of it sizzling, and Kyungsoo pays his stomach no mind when it actually growls. The large monitor is on–the television–and Kyungsoo glances over to see Jongdae already sitting on the couch, eating what looks like eggs and noodles on a plate, watching the news. So far, there hasn’t been anything about them, but maybe it’s because finding dead bodies here is similar to finding the stars in the sky.“Here,” Chanyeol says quietly. When Kyungsoo turns to face him, he’s present with a plate full of food for a Dretteite’s diet, along with the eggs and noodles Jongdae’s eating too. “Managed to scrape something up.”It smells good, Kyungsoo murmurs before he even stares at anything else. The food almost looks like something his family members made on his home planet when he was feeling off, different. It helps center him even though he’s still searching, trying to find a moment when–if–Baekhyun slips up and he can sense his consciousness.The sound of something hitting a cushion reaches Kyungsoo’s ears. When he looks over his shoulder, he can’t help but crack a smile when he notices Jongdae has scooted over on the couch. He’s patting the empty spot next to him silently and Kyungsoo takes the offer.They sit together in silence, watching the news, yet Kyungsoo can’t be bothered with it if it doesn’t pertain to them. The newscaster is talking about some games and recent bounties that have popped up and have been turned in. They talk about the hard-to-catch bounties who are taken in whether dead or alive, but Kyungsoo is too focused on Chanyeol still cooking, on Jongdae placing his empty plate down on the coffee table in front of them. He doesn’t realize the newscaster is talking about something different, something actually worthwhile, until the stove is turned off and Jongdae grunts in response to it.“An inscription was carved into bounty hunter two-seven-seven-one. It appears to be one of the sayings for death. Most popularly, this particular phrase has been known to associate with the legendary mercenary group Xion.”Kyungsoo chokes on his food then, as does Chanyeol, before they look to Jongdae who now has a sheepish smile on his face. What in the world did you do?! Kyungsoo screeches out, before turning his attention back to the television screen.“It has been known for a couple of years that one from this group had landed on this planet, though it had been concluded as a rumor. All those who had mentioned it and brought it to our attention had heard it from a comrade or rival before they had perished. However, it seems as if this rumor is no longer a myth and there is, in fact, one of this legendary group roaming Talis.”“Jongdae,” Chanyeol warns, after downing some water. “You better had not put a death sentence on our heads.”Jongdae shrugs then, “Death sentences are our friends.” He whines, especially when Kyungsoo punches him in the arm. “We always fight death! This way, we can see if Baekhyun is still alive out there!”We already agreed he died, Kyungsoo reasons, frowning at him, even when Chanyeol reaches over to increase the volume of the television.“The bounty for this mercenary still stands,” the telecaster announces. “He is wanted, dead or alive, and the reward has increased to two million runes for his capture.”Chanyeol spits out his food at that. His eyes are wide and Kyungsoo grimaces at the mess on the floor. “Two million runes?!” he screams, before he’s looking to them next. “That can last us years!”“Damn, they really hate us,” Jongdae murmurs. “It’s a good thing they don’t necessarily know our faces.”Yeah, just gotta keep the ink covered up at all times, Kyungsoo spits out, scowling at the television. We shouldn’t have let Baekhyun accept that assignment all those years ago.The unspoken words of ‘he would’ve still been alive then’ hang in the air. They remain silent as the newscaster moves on and switches topics. They talk about something that is far less interesting and Kyungsoo can’t help but sigh mentally in relief. He drops his plate on the coffee table next to Jongdae’s and sits back, closing his eyes to try and clear his head. It doesn’t help–hasn’t since they landed on this planet–but he tries to relax anyways, tries to figure out a way to convince his friends they need to get off of this planet as soon as possible. They don’t need bounties on their heads too.“It’s too late now,” Jongdae murmurs belatedly in response. It takes a moment for Kyungsoo to understand but when he does, he turns to glare at his friend. “It’s all done. If I left that inscription embedded in the rock guy, maybe Baekhyun will see it and know one of us is here.”“You’re calling a ghost back from the grave,” Chanyeol reasons, frowning at him. “For all we know, they could’ve gotten to Baekhyun right when he landed.”Jongdae scoffs, “Then the news would know about it.” He gestures vaguely to the screen in front of them. “Obviously, he hasn’t been captured yet or they wouldn’t have a bounty on his head.”“What if he managed to find his way off?”“Then,” Jongdae starts, before he cuts himself off. He suddenly looks lost, confused, and Kyungsoo’s chest aches at the sight of it. I don’t know, he can hear Jongdae whisper in his mind.Kyungsoo frowns then, reaching out to place a hand on Jongdae’s shoulder. We’ve kept up hope for this long, Jongdae, he says quietly, watching as his friend closes his eyes to hear him. We can’t be clinging to it.“I know,” Jongdae concedes, sighing softly. They hear Chanyeol reaching around to grab the empty plates, refilling their glasses, and cleaning up his mess. They hear Chanyeol moving around, going into one of the bedrooms and coming back out again. “I just still–”“We know,” Chanyeol interrupts, causing both of them to look at him. He has his mask on as well as clothes for going out and Kyungsoo stares at him wide-eyed because–
Chanyeol, what are you doing?
“I’m going to go search some more,” Chanyeol answers, as if it isn’t a big deal. He even shrugs to prove his point. “Give it a week here and we’re leaving,” he finalizes. He doesn’t leave room for argument and Kyungsoo can feel Jongdae accepting the conditions just as easily. An expression of empathy shows itself in Chanyeol’s eyes and Kyungsoo feels it in his chest. “Stay here, Jongdae. Sleep or something. Kyungsoo and I will go out and search.”It’s not surprising to see Jongdae refuse immediately. He shakes his head, standing, before he leaves the living room to change clothes. “I’m not staying here when I could be out there searching for him.” Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a look before the latter shakes his head fondly at Jongdae, holds out a hand for Chanyeol to toss him his mask.Better be active than sitting around and doing nothing, Kyungsoo comments, smiling when Jongdae yells out something neither of them can understand. He sounds happier though, if only the slightest bit. Make sure to cover up your mark, he calls out before he does the same for his own.By the time they leave their apartment, they appear as they did the days before. Nothing about them screams mercenary and Kyungsoo agrees when Chanyeol suggests they split up to try and broaden their search. It leaves him wandering around by himself, making sure to remember where their apartment is and return at the designated time, and he continues to search for Baekhyun in his mind.Nobody pops up. He can see millions of unknowns in his head, Jongdae and Chanyeol wandering around in opposite directions, but he can’t see anyone else that’s worthy of his time. He grunts when he accidentally bumps shoulders with someone, glancing over to see wide eyes, and he doesn’t spare them a second thought before tilting his head down in apology and moving on his way.He can sense something different in the distance. It feels like the crashing wave of something powerful and Kyungsoo gravitates towards it. He dodges creatures and civilians, cars and motorcycles, and he realizes the one with the powerful aura is riding a motorcycle with how fast its moving. It’s coming towards him from behind and Kyungsoo doesn’t have time to react other than throwing an arm out to try and dislodge the driver.It’s useless.The driver dodges as easily as Kyungsoo threw his arm out and he falls into a defensive stance once he realizes he can’t release his power here. Others walking past him only spare him a glance, but he guesses this is something normal for them to see.The rider slows down until it can spin on one wheel. Its wearing a helmet to conceal its face, but Kyungsoo can’t understand the reason behind this encounter. It doesn’t seem like Chanyeol and Jongdae are running into any trouble when he searches for them.Suddenly, something pushes against the side of his mind. It’s clumsy, like how Jongdae used to be when he tried to communicate with him out of his own free will, and Kyungsoo stills when he recognizes why. The rider revs up its engine, the sound as clear as the planet’s artificial lights around them, and Kyungsoo falls into a different stance when the rider speeds its way towards him. When he reaches an arm out, it’s to catch onto the rider’s own outstretched arm. He jumps the moment it passes him before settling in the seat behind him.Kyungsoo isn’t sure, but this motorcycle rider feels an awful lot like Baekhyun. He doesn’t reach into his mind, doesn’t reach into Jongdae’s or Chanyeol’s either, and he watches as the entire city goes by in a blur. He doesn’t recognize the part they’re driving through, but he realizes he doesn’t really need to when they slow down outside of another building, one that’s rundown and looks like it’s barely functioning.When Kyungsoo gets off of the motorcycle, he waits and watches as the rider removes its helmet. It’s a face he doesn’t recognize, of a creature that can seem typical of this planet with pale skin and dark eyes, but Kyungsoo feels the slight push to the side of his head again when the rider gets off of the motorcycle and makes his way to the building. Kyungsoo grimaces when he realizes this person has a mullet with red highlights in it.Neither of them say a word. Silence is their friend as Kyungsoo follows this stranger to the elevator to the twelfth floor. It doesn’t appear as rundown as its exterior, but it’s definitely not as lavish as the apartment he and his friends stole from that bounty hunter crew. Only when the door shuts behind them does Kyungsoo glare at the other. He runs forward to grab the stranger by the arm before spinning and pinning him to the nearest wall. He keeps his forearm on the stranger’s chest, his free hand hovering over his stomach in an attack to claw and attack, and he releases his power.I swear to the heavens, Kyungsoo warns, pushing inside of this guy’s mind. I can end you within five seconds.There’s no verbal response. All Kyungsoo receives is the slight upwards tilt of the lips, a smirk, and he frowns as he watches the colors of this man’s eyes change from black as night to the prettiest hazel browns he’s seen in a long time.“I thought you could kill anyone within three seconds. Don’t tell me you’ve been slacking off since I’ve been gone.”It’s still amazing, even after all these years, to watch Baekhyun shift back into a form that’s comfortable for him. It makes Kyungsoo take a step back, to try and appreciate all the small details. He watches as Baekhyun simply tilts his head to the side, to show the appearance of his tattoo just like theirs, and stares at the opened curtains.“Close that for me?” he asks and Kyungsoo can’t help but do that for him, moving in a trance.He looks around outside, sees the neon lights and dark streets, before he closes it. He doesn’t see anyone who could be looking in, but he wants to protect Baekhyun. He wants to punch him in the face and throw a couch at him, but he wants to protect him and figure out what the hell he’s been doing all these years.“I got stranded,” Baekhyun explains and when Kyungsoo turns back to him, he looks just as he did two years ago with a lopsided smile on his face. “You still think loud.”How can I help it? Kyungsoo argues back, staring at Baekhyun’s hazel eyes, his dark hair, his tan skin. It’s glowing faintly even now, even in the foreign clothes he’s been wearing to stay concealed. We thought you died.It’s easy to see Baekhyun sigh. It’s easy to see the defeat in his eyes and the exhaustion pulling at his shoulders. “I tried getting a message out. I got sucked into a wormhole near where I was chasing that bounty hunter. The other end spit me up out here and I crashed. I couldn’t fix my ship at the time and when I went to buy supplies, they all recognized the mark on my neck and the news of that hunter’s death became something of some great movie.” He walks over to collapse onto the couch then, unzip his jacket to breathe easier. It’s a little surreal, to see Baekhyun so suddenly again. Kyungsoo thinks he’s dreaming. Except, he doesn’t dream.So, you’ve been in hiding ever since, Kyungsoo concludes, staring a little too long at Baekhyun, trying to figure out what’s changed and what hasn’t. If he’s real or if he isn’t. You’re a legend out here. You’re a ghost.“It’s a good thing I’m a shifter then, yeah?” Baekhyun comments back, lopsided smile back on his face. There’s an unspoken question in his eyes, but Kyungsoo can’t decipher what it is. “How did you end up here?”Kyungsoo shrugs, stands by the window and waits. Same as you almost. Took up an assignment, but it was too much for us to handle. I ended up getting sucked into this planet’s gravitational field and basically crashed.“And the others?” Baekhyun asks, and there’s a spark in his eyes. Kyungsoo can’t help but laugh, audible and soft. So far, this seems like the Baekhyun he knows.Why didn’t you go to Jongdae first? he asks, watching as Baekhyun immediately bites the inside of his bottom lip. He changed a bit, after you disappeared.“It was easiest to get to you,” Baekhyun confesses. He stands then, facing him. “I saw you the other day. I was the one who ran off.”Kyungsoo gapes. Then why didn’t you come to us?“Because I don’t want bounties on your heads either.”It’s such a simple answer to a simple question, but Kyungsoo doesn’t like it. He doesn’t like the distance between them. He doesn’t like keeping Jongdae and Chanyeol out of this moment. Baekhyun–“Come here,” Baekhyun requests, reaching out a hand. Kyungsoo stares at it for a moment before looking into his friend’s eyes and he searches his expression. There aren’t very many shifters in existence anymore. This man has to be his friend, the one who disappeared during an assignment two years ago and has been presumed dead. But what if it isn’t?
Are you really Baekhyun? Kyungsoo asks, watching as a fond expression enters this man’s eyes. How can I trust you?It takes a moment, but it surprises Kyungsoo. He watches as his friend reverts back to his original form, pale and grey, right in front of his eyes. It takes minutes, hours, but then he appears as he does when he’s home alone, when he feels free and vulnerable enough to do this.“Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun calls quietly, showing the tattoo still on his neck.With one, two, three steps, Kyungsoo falls forward into Baekhyun’s opened arms. He suddenly feels secure, like he’s home, and he feels himself redden when he hears Baekhyun’s soft chuckles in his ear. He can even see Baekhyun glow beside him, even as he changes forms.“It feels good to see you,” Baekhyun murmurs into his neck. “Now, let’s go find those other two idiots.” Despite how easily they fall back together, Kyungsoo can’t help but find something different in the way Baekhyun moves around his apartment. He doesn’t appear as confident, as sure of himself, and Kyungsoo finds himself frowning when Baekhyun reappears from the bedroom wearing their typical mercenary outfit. It’s sleek, black and form-fitting, and Kyungsoo eyes his friend when Baekhyun slips and secures his own mask on to cover the lower half of his face. There’s even a small expression of uncertainty in his eyes when he makes eye contact with him.“Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun murmurs, head tilting slightly to the side, voice lilting his name into a question.Kyungsoo doesn’t say anything. He tries to find Baekhyun’s consciousness in front of him, tries to find his presence that was so easy to find in the past, and it amazes and hurts him all at once when he can barely find a trace of it.It makes him walk forward, their outfits a complete contrast to each other, and Kyungsoo reaches out when he comes close enough. He watches as Baekhyun instantly leans his face into his hand before he can gently cup his cheek. The way Baekhyun’s eyes close, his skin glow, makes Kyungsoo come closer to lean up and kiss his forehead. He can hear Baekhyun gasp in surprise but it allows him instant access into Baekhyun’s mind, to push his thoughts of security and affection into his friend’s head.I don’t know what happened while you were here, Kyungsoo says quietly, waiting a few seconds for his presence to calm Baekhyun before leaning away again to search his face. But you’re going to tell me so I know what we need to do.That causes a burst of laughter to escape Baekhyun’s lips, to pull away from Kyungsoo completely and shake his head at him. “You have such a way with words,” he comments, sarcasm dripping from his voice, but Kyungsoo can see his eyes smile. “Is that the first kiss you’ve ever given anyone?”Any expression on Kyungsoo’s face drops at the question. What are you talking about?Baekhyun rolls his eyes before going around and grabbing things to put in his backpack. “Never mind,” he mumbles, grabbing water bottles and snacks. “I forgot you don’t really have kisses in your culture.” Though when Kyungsoo walks a few steps, leans over to try and catch a glimpse of Baekhyun’s face, he can tell his friend is smiling.Kyungsoo sighs softly, mentally, at the sight before looking around the apartment again. What are you doing? he asks, snorting when something hits the back of his head. He frowns when he turns around and sees a jacket laying on the ground behind him.“Wear that,” Baekhyun says, not even turning to face him, before he leaves the room again to go back to the bedroom. All Kyungsoo can do is frown down at it before picking it up and putting it on. “There are a specific range of hours where the temperatures drop here,” he explains. “It doesn’t affect me much anymore, but I know it’ll probably affect you and Chanyeol the most.”It’s too much clothing, but Kyungsoo keeps the jacket on. He messes with the leather straps of it, waiting for Baekhyun to re-emerge, and when he does, Kyungsoo looks up to see Baekhyun carrying a small stack of photos in one hand. He can see the top picture from his viewpoint and he gapes the slightest bit when he realizes it’s a photo of all four of them from their vacation on Earth all those years ago.“It’s not like I forgot all of you,” Baekhyun laughs out, walking over to gently clap Kyungsoo’s cheek. It earns him an immediate punch to the gut and Kyungsoo grunts when he feels more muscle than there was before.What in the world? he asks, amazed, as his fingers splay open from his fist to lay flat on Baekhyun’s stomach. It reminds him that it’s been more than a day, week, month since he last saw his friend. It reminds him that Baekhyun had been in hiding, trying to survive every bounty hunter recognizing and trying to capture him. Baekhyun.There’s a soft sigh before Baekhyun takes a step back away from him. “This planet is rough.” There’s that exhaustion in his eyes again before he looks away to put the photos in his backpack. “I’ve had to keep up an appearance for two years. I couldn’t return to my natural form in fear someone would accidentally see and come for me.” He glances at him then, before he walks over to grab the spare coat on the kitchen counter. “Somehow, I got captured by a bounty hunter. It took days of fighting him and trying to escape before I did.”Scars, Kyungsoo suddenly says, trying to search Baekhyun’s entire body even though it’s practically covered from head to toe. Did you kill him?“I have a pretty bad one now,” Baekhyun confesses with a grin. “It goes across my whole back. And yes, I did kill him. It’s the reason why the rumor of my existence has lasted as long as it does now.”The Ghost of Talis, Kyungsoo murmurs, watching as Baekhyun shrugs in return.“That, or the Bounty Hunter Murderer.”Kyungsoo frowns then. They could’ve chosen a different term for us, he mutters, catching his mask when Baekhyun tosses it from the counter to him. Well, that skill hasn’t changed.Baekhyun laughs, “Like assassin?”Assassin is so much better, Kyungsoo agrees as he puts his mask back on. He can smell the difference immediately as his mask filters the oxygen and he looks around curiously before finding a mirror by the door. He walks over to it to stare at himself and he thinks he looks a little funny with his mask and baggy clothes on.“We’re going when you’re ready,” Baekhyun murmurs somewhere behind him.Kyungsoo sighs, softly, audible, before he closes his eyes and searches for Jongdae and Chanyeol. Shouldn’t I be saying that to you? He finds them easily enough, making their way back to the apartment.There’s a shift in the air, one Kyungsoo can easily feel, and he hardens his eyes as he spins on his feet and throws a leg out to kick. He stills when his ankle almost hits the side of Baekhyun’s head and Baekhyun’s hand freezes next to his throat, dagger in hand. They stare at each other for a moment, before they both smile and relax.“I missed my training partner,” Baekhyun confesses with a laugh, sliding his dagger back into its hilt on his back. He looks like he wants to move in for a hug, hovering right in front of Kyungsoo, and Kyungsoo can’t help but roll his eyes, It’s amazing you haven’t been slacking off. He opens his arms and grunts when Baekhyun immediately flings himself into them. “Thank you,” he breathes.Kyungsoo laughs, loud and pretty. Let’s hurry up and find the other two. I can’t handle all this touching with you.“Yeah, if they’ll accept me back as easily as you have,” Baekhyun murmurs, not moving from his spot. It concerns Kyungsoo. But when Baekhyun leans away, he can see him starting to change forms again. His eyes turn green before his skin slowly starts to turn purple where it’s visible outside his outfit. It’s always captivating to Kyungsoo, but he looks away in favor of taking one last glance around the apartment.Anything else you might’ve left here? he asks, only turning back around when he feels a tap on his shoulder.“I’ve already grabbed everything valuable,” Baekhyun answers. His voice has gotten lower in pitch, quieter, and Kyungsoo stares into green eyes, purple skin, and pink freckles. Baekhyun’s hair is silver and Kyungsoo leans over to make sure Baekhyun’s tattoo isn’t visible at all whatsoever. “Let’s go.”Kyungsoo follows without a second thought. The city is still brimming with life of all kinds. The sky is dark, only artificial lights surrounding them from the tallest of buildings, and Kyungsoo waits to search for Jongdae and Chanyeol until they’re in the same area Baekhyun had come to pick him up. He closes his eyes when he does and finds each of them already making their way back in the direction of their apartment.They’re already going back, Kyungsoo quietly informs, hearing Baekhyun grunt at him in response. It makes him curious, searches in the immediate area around them, and finds he can’t sense Baekhyun’s consciousness right in front of him. It feels like there’s a mental block where he can’t see past the wall in Baekhyun’s mind. When had Baekhyun obtain this ability? Baekhyun, he murmurs, confused, before he feels his friend pat his hand on his waist.Suddenly, Kyungsoo understands. He opens his eyes as he immediately closes his own mind, puts up a mental barrier all around him, and observes the area around them. He doesn’t speak, doesn’t push anymore thoughts, and he wonders what happened when Baekhyun got captured by that bounty hunter.Kyungsoo watches as some creatures eye them as they zoom past, watches as a threatening glare catches on them more than once, and he frowns underneath his mask at the sight of it all. They pass by another motorcycle rider who keeps up with them for one street before turning another way and Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow when the rider lifts up the shield of his helmet to give him a curious stare before parting ways.After that, nothing happens. They arrive to the apartment building and Kyungsoo sighs mentally when he finally climbs off of the motorcycle. He stretches his legs before his back and he looks over to see Baekhyun sighing as he takes off his helmet. He still appears different, but it doesn’t stop Kyungsoo from walking forward, ahead of him, to enter the building and go up to their place.When the door opens, he expects a fight. He expects the arm stretched out next to his head to point a gun at Baekhun’s forehead behind him and he expects Chanyeol to have the murderous glint in his eyes, to see Jongdae standing behind him tossing a dagger up and down in the air.“Identification,” Chanyeol demands, voice low. He doesn’t budge, not even when Jongdae catches his dagger and points it at Kyungsoo and Baekhyun.Jongdae simply hums, “Familiar.”He should be, Kyunsoo comments, staring each of his friends in the eye. But they won’t spare him a glance, too focused on staring at the stranger behind him.“Same outfit as ours,” Jongdae mentions, giving the other a once over. Kyungsoo stares at him then, watches as realization dawns on Jongdae’s face, before looking over to Chanyeol who’s eyes are widening by the minute.Within seconds, Kyungsoo is pushing an arm up and out to knock Chanyeol’s outstretched arm towards the ceiling as he pulls on the trigger. A bullet empties in the ceiling above them as Kyungsoo pushes his other hand out and shoves Chanyeol back hard. He spins then, kicking Chanyeol back with a foot in his chest, before dropping to the ground when Jongdae throws his dagger.It all happens in a matter of seconds before they still. They all stare at each other before Kyungsoo looks over his shoulder and sees the stranger holding onto the dagger centimeters from his face. When he speaks, it’s back to his normal voice.“I knew you’d be using it,” Baekhyun quietly says. He lowers the dagger as he starts to shift. His eyes change first and Kyungsoo can feel the tension in the room growing before he looks over to see his friends’ distraught expressions. Before either of them can get up, Kyungsoo is already standing kicking and pushing them back so Baekhyun can enter their apartment.“Who is this guy?!” Chanyeol shouts first, blocking one of Kyungsoo’s kicks before punching him in the face. It makes him stumble back, surprised, and he watches as Jongdae speeds past him to pin Baekhyun to the now closed door like how he did earlier that day. Chanyeol’s gun lays next to them forgotten but it doesn’t matter when Jongdae’s pulling another dagger from the hilt on his thigh to aim it at Baekhyun’s throat.Baekhyun doesn’t stop shifting. He changes in front of them for all to see and Kyungsoo can see Jongdae start to shake when Baekhyun’s face returns to normal how he usually has it, as a human. He still has his mask on, but Jongdae lifts the knife high enough to nudge it off of Baekhyun’s face to fall to the floor. When he does, Kyungsoo can hear Chanyeol gasp behind him.“You’re still so attractive,” Baekhyun confesses quietly. He looks so fond of Jongdae. Kyungsoo wonders if that’s what it means to adore someone so wholeheartedly like on his planet.Nothing else is said, but Kyungsoo can see Jongdae push the blade of the dagger closer to Baekhyun’s neck, enough to leave a superficial cut along his skin. He can’t see the expression in Jongdae’s eyes, can only see his hand shaking, but Baekhyun looks so open, so trusting, Kyungsoo almost pushes a concerning question into Jongdae’s mind.“You were dead,” Jongdae mutters lowly, pushing against Baekhyun once more, before backing off. He takes a few steps back, flicks the blood off of his blade onto the floor below him. “You didn’t contact us for two years!”Baekhyun looks so crestfallen. He doesn’t even say anything. He just lets Jongdae speak.“We tried searching for you. We tried leaving hints to where we would be going if you went back to Titan. We used every trick in the book to find you, but there was nothing! You disappeared from this entire galaxy and we thought you died!”Chanyeol doesn’t even say anything. He simply walks over, leans down to grab his gun, and points it at Baekhyun’s head. It’s a threat and Baekhyun doesn’t even flinch as he slides his gaze over. “You’ve been dead for two years,” Chanyeol quietly says, voice low. “What makes you think we’re ready to accept you with open arms after all this time?”“Because Kyungsoo has” is Baekhyun’s answer. It has Jongdae spinning on his heels to stare at Kyungsoo with wide eyes.“And what makes you think we can trust you? What makes you think we believe you simply because you resemble Baekhyun?”Kyungsoo looks from Jongdae to the back of Chanyeol’s head. Chanyeol doesn’t move but Kyungsoo slides his gaze to stare Baekhyun in the eyes. Because no creature is capable of changing their unique consciousness, he answers. This is Baekhyun.Chanyeol reaches out the littlest bit more, pushes the barrel of his gun against Baekhyun’s forehead. “You can be another shifter,” he murmurs, “Baekhyun wasn’t the only one left in this universe.”There’s a moment of silence where they stare at each other, gauging each other’s actions and reactions, and Kyungsoo freezes when Jongdae tosses his dagger at Baekhyun, embedding it in the door mere centimeters away from his face.“It’s up to you whether to believe me or not,” Baekhyun quietly says in response, returning to stare at Jongdae. There’s an emotion in his eyes Kyungsoo still can’t quite read, but it’s enough to have Jongdae growling, falling into an offensive stance. “And we can fight all day, but it will be a draw. It’s always been a tie between the four of us.”None of them move. Kyungsoo stills watching all of them and he doesn’t realize he’s holding his breath until Chanyeol pushes a bit more with his gun before pulling away. Kyungsoo heaves a deep sigh, one that’s audible, and he catches Baekhyun’s grateful glance in his direction before he reaches out to grab the dagger next to his head and toss it in the air like an old friend.It makes Jongdae growl again in warning.“Jongdae,” Baekhyun calls, catching the dagger in his hand, before falling into his own stance ready to fight. This special dagger is his favorite, with silver designs in black metal, and it’s like a memory coming back full force. He appears as he did two years ago. “You’re going to win. You always do with me.”His statement completely contradicts what he said minutes ago. It confuses Kyungsoo into grunting to show his displeasure, but then he sees the sparkle appear in Baekhyun’s eyes. He looks over to Jongdae quickly before walking forward to see his reaction. He doesn’t get far before Jongdae swings out at him and Kyungsoo has to block to avoid getting hit in the face.“What did you do?” Jongdae growls out. He pauses in his movements before he’s swinging out again. He’s fighting Kyungsoo and Kyungsoo doesn’t know why. He jumps back with every hit Jongdae tries to land on him and he grunts when he trips back into Chanyeol’s opened arm. “Search his mind right now!” Jongdae demands, grabbing tightly onto Kyungsoo’s collar enough to tear through the material.I’ve already did, Kyungsoo answers, glaring at him. He doesn’t move to push him off though. He found me and pushed into my head the same way you do. It was clumsy but strong. He doesn’t mention how Baekhyun’s actually learned to block his mind mentally to the highest degree. He doesn’t even know if Baekhyun wants to tell his story yet. He found me and showed me who he really is. He went natural.Almost immediately, Kyungsoo can feel both Chanyeol and Jongdae look over to Baekhyun. The latter hasn’t moved from his spot, but he’s now relaxed. He’s simply standing and holding the dagger in his hand, waiting for them to finish. But none of them ask Baekhyun to go natural. Even if Chanyeol and Jongdae want to see for themselves, Kyungsoo knows neither will ask that of their friend, if it’s really him.Jongdae snarls, releasing his grip on Kyungsoo’s shirt before pushing him back even further against Chanyeol’s outstretched arm. “He’s under your watch,” he declares to Kyungsoo, glancing at the dagger in Baekhyun’s hand. It feels like Jongdae is bristling in anger and frustration before he’s walking away.Kyungsoo feels a gentle push to his lower back before he’s taking a step forward and looking over his shoulder to Chanyeol. But Chanyeol isn’t even staring at him. He’s staring at Baekhyun instead. “I want to believe you,” Chanyeol murmurs, the doubt so clear in his eyes. “But you’ve been gone too long.” He sighs then before he’s walking away too, probably to where Jongdae is. When they hear a door slam shut, Kyungsoo sighs mentally along with Baekhyun who only groans in response, throwing his dagger to the opposite wall where it makes another knick with all the others Jongdae’s already made.“Of course they wouldn’t believe me,” Baekhyun mutters, partially unzipping the top half of his outfit. He breathes in deep before releasing it as a sigh. “Kyungsoo.”I know, Kyungsoo mumbles. He’s still staring off in the direction of the bedroom where he can hear each of his friends talking. It will take some time, but they will believe you.“How do you know?”Kyungsoo smiles then, shifts his gaze back to Baekhyun who looks so tired, so concerned. It makes his chest ache. He doesn’t push him away when Baekhyun comes to him for a hug. Because this is Chanyeol and Jongdae, he murmurs, hearing Baekhyun whine against him.“They can kill me in an instant.”Exactly, Kyungsoo says, That’s why they will believe you.“Your logic is dumb,” Baekhyun mutters, scoffing afterwards. “Thank you.”So is yours. Kyungsoo sighs, one that’s audible and soft, as he reaches out to place a hand on Baekhyun’s back. It will just take time. Hours pass before either of them see Jongdae and Chanyeol again. It makes Baekhyun worry–constantly pacing around the living room, stilling and tapping his foot, humming softly–and Kyungsoo would tell him to calm down, that everything is fine, but it really isn’t. So many things happened in the past day and Kyungsoo is still trying to understand it all.Looking over to Baekhyun, there’s just one thing Kyungsoo doesn’t understand. Baekhyun, he calls, watching as his friend stills, the television program playing forgotten in the background. How did you learn to effectively create a mental block?Realization dawns on Baekhyun’s face then before he lets out a soft laugh. He looks strangely pained by it though. “The bounty hunter who captured me had the same technique you do when it comes to the mind, except he wasn’t as kind,” he explains with a sigh. He stares at him for a moment before shaking his head and walking over to sit next to him on the couch. “He was able to see into my memories. He could see each and every one of you and used it against me.”Kyungsoo wants to ask how, why, but he knows when it’s too much, when Baekhyun slumps back against the couch and stares up at the ceiling. He looks completely ordinary next to him, no glow found on him at all.“I had to learn how to successfully block him out of my mind. It was either that or endure the torture he was putting into my head.”There’s a moment where Kyungsoo stares at him. He tries to read Baekhyun’s expression, his mannerisms, and he raises an eyebrow when Baekhyun finally tilts his head to the side to stare back at him. I should’ve taught all of you how to create a successful mental block, Kyungsoo says, seeing the pain in Baekhyun’s eyes. Baekhyun–“It’s not your fault,” he quickly interrupts, reaching out to put a hand on his thigh, like all those years ago. It comforts Kyungsoo without him even realizing he was starting to worry. “He was half-Dretteite but didn’t appear it.”How could he be half-Dretteite? Kyungsoo suddenly asks, frowning at him, because as far as he’s concerned, his species didn’t normally mate outside of their own.Baekhyun shrugs, “I don’t know, but he had the same markers as you. He just wasn’t rose-y-skinned.”
What markers?
Suddenly, they hear a door open. They hear soft footsteps and Baekhyun gives him a hint of a smile. “Ask Chanyeol. The markers that bounty hunter had were similar to yours.”The mention of his name stops Chanyeol in his tracks. He stares at them, brows furrowed together, and Kyungsoo can tell he’s on guard. There’s a palpable tension in the room where Jongdae spares them a glance, a moment longer on Baekhyun, before he’s walking over to the kitchen. He’s dismissive, scared, and Kyungsoo’s about to reach out for him when he feels Baekhyun gently squeeze his thigh. It catches Chanyeol’s attention.“What bounty hunter?” slips out of Chanyeol’s mouth before he can stop himself. He’s surprised, as is he and Baekhyun, and Kyungsoo frowns when he sees Jongdae spin on his heels to hiss at Chanyeol in warning. But Baekhyun doesn’t miss his chance.“After I crash landed here, I got captured by this bounty hunter who was half-Dretteite, half-Talisian. He pushed inside my head and inserted thoughts I didn’t want to even imagine as a form of torture,” Baekhyun starts and pauses there, catches his breath. When Kyungsoo looks over, Baekhyun is noticeably going dull. He stops him by placing his own hand on top of Baekhyun’s on his thigh. “The bounty hunter had similar markers to Kyungsoo except for his rosy complexion,” Baekhyun finishes off quietly, looking over to Chanyeol before Jongdae. Kyungsoo can tell he’s pleading them for something he doesn’t know yet.“You mean the grey eyes and inability to verbalize words,” Chanyeol answers for him, voice quiet. “The ability to exert his presence in the area and demand respect.”Baekhyun nods, voice equally as quiet, “Yeah.”Kyungsoo grunts as he looks to each of his friends. He would never use his power against any of them, even when they met. He made sure to politely ask entrance into their minds, only enough to push his thoughts to communicate with them, but then that was it. There was nothing else he would’ve done without any of their permission and it makes him angry to even think someone with his power did that to one of his friends.You killed him? he asks, unsure if he’s only connecting to Baekhyun’s mind or all of them together.When Baekhyun looks over at him, the smile on his lips is faint. “Yeah,” he simply says, a little of his glow returning to his body.Did you figure out how to prolong his death in return? Kyungsoo asks next, watching as the smile slips from Baekhyun’s lips until he frowns instead.“Kyungsoo,” Jongdae calls. He sounds concerned and Kyungsoo guesses he should be when Chanyeol completes Jongdae’s unspoken words.“You don’t do revenge.”I’m well aware, Kyungsoo deadpans. He stares at Baekhyun a moment longer, watches as his expression turns confused, before he looks to Chanyeol and Jongdae too. But if it concerns you, then I will do whatever it takes.“But–” Chanyeol appears flushed. His cheeks are pink and Kyungsoo doesn’t understand until he looks over and sees Jongdae’s fond grin in his direction.“We would do the same for you, Kyungsoo,” Jongdae murmurs quietly, before he glances over at Baekhyun and frowns again. He turns back towards the kitchen, not sparing them a second longer of his attention.It doesn’t help Chanyeol though, who’s still staring at Kyungsoo with wide eyes. It only makes Baekhyun chuckle and that’s enough to snap Chanyeol out of his daze. He glances over to Baekhyun before he’s turning to help Jongdae in the kitchen.They fall silent after that. The only sounds are the clanking of pots and pans before the sizzling of food and Kyungsoo sighs mentally when he feels something push against the side of his mind. He doesn’t know who’s doing it, but then he sees Jongdae’s ear twitch.What happened with the bounty hunter? It’s a simple question, but one none of them have the backstory on except for Baekhyun.I don’t know, Kyungsoo answers before he’s looking over to Baekhyun who gives him a questioning stare. He tries to keep all his conversations personal between each one of them. It helps that Baekhyun’s mind is open right now, like how it was a long time ago. But somehow, it clicks.“I saw Jongdae’s death in my head,” Baekhyun suddenly says, causing Chanyeol to flinch with the knife and Jongdae to freeze in front of the stove. It shocks Kyungsoo to see the images entering his head. “After the war, when I thought I couldn’t get you back.” There’s a troubled expression in Baekhyun’s eyes, but his vision is unfocused. “I saw Chanyeol running from me. I saw you lose your trust in me and I couldn’t help but watch you die because of that, because of me.”Kyungsoo is hyperaware of the hand on his thigh, the way it glows to show him everything Baekhyun has seen from that one monster alone, the one who taints his species.“I saw Kyungsoo turning on me, using your abilities to make me suffer.”It knocks the air out of Kyungsoo’s lungs. He stares wide-eyed at Baekhyun, watches as his friend comes back little by little. He doesn’t know what to say.“Jongdae,” Baekhyun pleads and Kyungsoo can feel the push in his head, can feel Jongdae struggling with him.Is he telling the truth? Jongdae asks. He sounds broken.The scent of burning food fills Kyungsoo’s nostrils. He doesn’t know what expression is on his face, but it’s enough to make Baekhyun tear up. It’s enough for Kyungsoo’s heart to break, his mind, and he feels himself tearing up before looking over his shoulder to their other two friends. Jongdae, Chanyeol, he calls, watching as they possibly tense up even more.“Jongdae, he used images of you to haunt me. I couldn’t handle it,” Baekhyun whispers. His fingers twitch on Kyungsoo’s thigh, but he doesn’t move. He isn’t sure if he can. Kyungsoo isn’t sure Baekhyun can say anything else, anything more, because then it’ll be too intimate.They hear the flick of the switch. Jongdae is moving away from the stove when Chanyeol reaches out for him. It’s a gesture of reassurance, comfort, but Kyungsoo can practically feel Baekhyun’s heart break when they see Jongdae leave their friend’s side to go to his room.I miss him comes Jongdae’s faint words in Kyungsoo’s head. I just need time.Kyungsoo looks over to Chanyeol who’s already giving him a lopsided, heartbroken smile. His eyes are red and his cheeks are wet but when they look over to Baekhyun, they see him the same way. He’s scowling as he tries to stop his tears and Kyungsoo feels the need to push inside his head.Time is all we need. The next few days are spent with Chanyeol constantly staring at Baekhyun. It’s unnerving for Kyungsoo, but he doesn’t know why. They don’t spend their time leaving the apartment searching anymore, not when Baekhyun is actually here, and only Jongdae and Kyungsoo leave to gather more supplies for food.But when they return, when Jongdae clings onto Kyungsoo’s arm because he’s having trouble breathing again, Kyungsoo stops Jongdae right outside of their apartment. He turns to him and blocks the doorway, watches as Jongdae’s chest heaves right in front of him. Why are you breathing strangely? he asks, watching as Jongdae’s eyes glaze over again, panic settling on his face.“We need to leave,” Jongdae whispers, trying to focus his stare on him again, but it’s hard when a thin layer of the crystals start to form over his eyes. “We need to get off this planet. We need–”Jongdae, Kyungsoo cuts off. Worry builds in his gut and oh– He guesses he understands Chanyeol’s meaning now from two years ago. It doesn’t make him worry any less though. Instead, it makes him frown, the feeling growing tenfold within him the longer he stares at Jongdae. We’re going to get off of this planet.“We haven’t even been fixing your ship,” Jongdae murmurs. And now he’s pouting. Kyungsoo doesn’t know what to do with all of this. He still isn’t good with this.Jongdae–“The nightmares keep returning,” he confesses quietly and Kyungsoo hurries to cover his eyes, to ensure the crystals don’t fall from them. “Kyungsoo, they’re returning and it’s getting worse.”Jongdae, we should continue this inside, Kyungsoo quietly says. But before he can even try and turn to open the door with his hands full, it flies open behind him. He doesn’t know who opens it, but he can guess when an arm reaches out beside him to gently touch Jongdae’s cheek and Jongdae gasps in response. Baekhyun–“Come in here,” Baekhyun gently says, tugging on Kyungsoo’s arm instead of Jongdae’s. He manages to get both of them and their items in, but it isn’t until the door is closed after them that Kyungsoo releases his grip on Jongdae and they both turn to face him. What they see makes Jongdae bristle and Kyungsoo gape.Why do you have bruises all over your face? Kyungsoo watches as Baekhyun points a thumb in Chanyeol’s direction on the couch where he’s practically matching him in terms of injuries. Did you two fight?“Chanyeol,” Jongdae instantly warns, pupils becoming slits and the remaining tears turning black as they fall to the floor as crystals. It makes Baekhyun smile though despite everything else.“Training session,” Chanyeol answers with a toothy smile, before he winces. “Might’ve broken my cheekbone though.”Well, fuck, Kyungsoo hisses, looking over and punching Baekhyun in the arm, “Ow! I’m sore!” He needs fucking surgery for that. Is it bad, Yeol?Chanyeol shrugs, “I don’t know.” His grin is lopsided now, tilting his head in the direction of the corner of the living room. It takes a moment for Kyungsoo and Jongdae to look over, wondering what he’s gesturing at, and Kyungsoo scowls when he sees various equipment used for fixing up spacecrafts lying there.You two fucking went out and got attacked, Kyungsoo deadpans, before Jongdae lashes out and kicks Baekhyun in the stomach. That’s not the same as a training session!“Vilg!” Baekhyun curses, out of breath, as he stumbles back and to the floor. He’s staring up at him with wide eyes. “Wait,” he breathes, Jongdae still bristling, now growling at him. “We need to fix our ships. We figured we should go out and get supplies for it before you two came back.”“And risk blowing our safety here?!” Jongdae all but shouts, lunging forward to attack again when Baekhyun simply rolls to the side. Kyungsoo catches his friend wince with the movement.“They only want our equipment! We escaped!”“I don’t need another traumatizing memory burned into my head!”Jongdae’s words still all of them. It suddenly hurts and Kyungsoo doesn’t know what to do. He doesn’t dream like Jongdae, like the rest of them, and he feels helpless when he sees Baekhyun struggle to get up for a moment. He grunts in pain and it’s then that Chanyeol gets up too. They take steps towards Jongdae, but Jongdae is only staring at Baekhyun. He looks angry and hurt and lost.“You left us” is all Jongdae says. It’s a quiet whisper, barely audible, but they can hear it loud and clear. “Baekhyun, you left.”Kyungsoo aches.“Jongdae,” Baekhyun whispers, reaching out for him, but it isn’t enough. Kyungsoo doesn’t know when it will be enough, when it will be okay, and he aches when he sees Baekhyun drop his hand, his gaze, and stares at the floor. He looks so defeated. “I’m sorry.”But it isn’t enough, not for Jongdae who openly cries. He’s staring at Baekhyun helplessly, crystals falling freely to the ground. “Fix it,” he pleads, causing Baekhyun to snap his head up, eyes wide in shock. “Baekhyun, you left. Fix it.” His entire posture is rigid, but Kyungsoo can see the fear in his eyes, the little spark of light that’s only ever been associated with Baekhyun and his presence.“My rib is broken” is what Baekhyun blurts out instead. It causes Jongdae to choke on a sob and Kyungsoo to toss an apple at his head. “Ow! I’m just saying!”The atmosphere suddenly feels lighter after that, despite the injuries, the wounds, the memories. Chanyeol bursts out laughing even as he winces every few minutes and a smile cracks onto Baekhyun’s face at the sound. It makes Kyungsoo smile, seeing the two of them having made up, even if the slightest bit. He even catches Baekhyun’s relieved stare towards him, one that lasts only a moment, but when Kyungsoo watches Baekhyun look to Jongdae next, it’s easy to see a smile crack through Jongdae’s tears.One day, Kyungsoo hears Chanyeol push into his mind. It’s going to be okay.