#do we think hes there for exo cause i think i would cry. manifesting.

[jwooyoung]

GIRIBOY IG UPDATE 220102

[khaosduzart]

Expunged Epilogue

Chao was still frozen solid when the multitudes of ships arrived on the icy moon. Stasis. That is what Elsie said Clovis had named it, a power given by the Darkness and manifested through a subzero crystal. Drake pointed out that it was similar to if a gas skipped the liquid stage and became a solid in an instant. Elsie agreed with his thinking but said it was more than that. And Ken liked the name Stasis because it sounded like "Stay, Sis."

The group of Guardians filed into the laboratory. They all sat down in the chairs that Elsie and Ken were able to find around the lab. Chao was already hooked up to the computer, his helm was removed so they could get one last look at the Exo they once knew. His maroon stripes going down his face, his antenna on either side where his ears would be. Once everyone had sat down Ken went up to the platform in the center of the room.

"Hunters. Warlocks. Titans. Today we say goodbye to a friend. Through some...unknown and unfortunate incident, Chao-5 was stolen from us, he was reset against his will and given the powers of this...Crux behind me." He gestured to the geometric elephant in the room, he could tell Rex was nervous.

"But make no mistake." He continued. "Chao was not corrupted by the Crux. He wielded its powers yes, but that does not mean that they were the catalyst to his rage. Elsie? If you would."

Elsie opened her palm and from it the air froze solid, she made a small crystal of Darkness. The room was dead silent. Then she turned it back to nothingness.

"What you just saw was Stasis. Discovered by the one who built this place, Clovis Bray. This is his daughter Elsie, though I use that term very loosely as he was never a good dad and she's from another timeline." Sounds of utter confusion filled the room and the Guardians began trying to reason how this was possible. "Uh... can- can we have- Shit."

Drake took Ken's place and whisted before speaking. Quiet returned.

"You may ask Elsie all the questions you want about her past in time. But what I want you all to know is that she showed me this tool as well and it saved Kenneth's life." Ken did a wave with two fingers to the crowd.

"It's true. Chase would've been crushed in Chao's palm if not for Drake freezing him in time." Rex stood up.

"And didn't Chao use Stasis to almost crush them?" Ken sighed. Luna was his beet friend but her husband got on his nerves. Luckily Luna stepped in.

"Rex did you not just listen to what he said? Stasis didn't cause him to do this, something or someone reset him. He had no clue what was happening because Chao was already- oh Traveller..." Luna started to tear up and Rex sat down to console her.

"We will figure out what happened that day." Drake insisted. "But today is for celebrating his life and saying hello to his new one." Ken nodded.

"So...who would like to start?"

~

Each one of them said their piece and recounted events of Chao's life, it was a bittersweet ceremony. Eventually the process of the reset begun, Elsie took the stories that each Guardian told and put them into his memory. She hoped that with enough time that he would return to part of his former self but she had no idea. She kept that to herself.

Right as she was finishing up the facility alerted the Guardians that there was someone else at the door. Ken had never seen her before and neither had Drake. Still they told Elsie to let her in. The door turned green and slid open and a cloaked woman walked into the room.

"Hello." Ken greeted her. "I assume you're here for the procession?"

The cloaked woman took off her hood. She was an Awoken, blue hair and even bluer eyes. Her hair was swept to the side and tied up in a ponytail in the back.

"W-Where is he?" She asked trying to hold back tears.

"He's um...over there-" Ken gestured over to the frozen Exo and the woman sped past him and over to Chao, she didn't make it to him though before falling to her knees on the ground and sobbing uncontrollably into her hands. Ken walked over to her and put a hand on this mystery girl's shoulder while Drake handed her a box of tissues. Ken felt her arm now and realized that it was metal.

Once she had stopped crying enough to speak she apologized.

"I'm- I'm sorry for barging in I- I had a Vanguard mission and then I heard the news and I-" She started to cry again.

"Woah woah there, slow down. Hey it's alright, we were just wondering who you were is all." The woman nodded and wiped her eyes.

"My- My name is Allie." She answered.

"Well it's nice to meet you Allie. I'm Kenneth. This is Drake, Luna, Rex, Torra, Hailey, Aleina and...this is everyone else." He said giving up on trying to introduce that many people that fast. "So uh...how did you know Chao?" Allie looked up at Ken then fixed her gaze on the frozen Titan.

"I was his lover." Ken looked down at her shocked. Chao had never mentioned having a lover, he had always said that he had no time for one, or that no one would be able to keep up with his scattered synthetic brain or some other excuse. Yet here she was crying for him and it was probably the hardest for her to bear out of everyone there.

~

Chao passed through the tower and stepped onto the bridge. The wind howled around him, it must have been fifty degrees below. The cold didn't bother him anymore though.

The bridge creaked with every step and blew side to side with the storm. He made it over and to the other side, the fires that once lit the area up were now extinguished. They had not been lit for some time now but this weather would've kept them from burning anyways. He climbed the steps up to the doors of the Iron Temple and tried to open them but they would not budge. Stubborn as the man who once lived here. Chao took a breath in, turned his fist to one of ice and punched open the sealed doors of the temple off their hinges.

"Oops." He said surprised by his own strength and shrugged. Oh well. Not like he couldn't replace them.

He stepped over the engraved doors as the snow began to blow into the temple dusting the statues of the former Iron Lords with the white powder. Saladin may not have been here in a long while but the flame was still burning hotter than ever, even against the icy wind. Chao looked around the temple, at the legends of old, the engravings, the bells that rang Skorri's Iron Song, then stared into it's flame. The Iron Lords were gone, but that did not mean their legacy couldn't continue. Saladin was stuck in his old ways, it held that legacy back. All they needed was a new direction.

Chao extended his palm out to the flame and froze it solid. He heard light footsteps and the sound of a weapon being readied behind him. A female voice spoke.

"Just what do you think you're doing?"

--------------------------------------------

Chao-6 is gone. But so is Chao-5... This has been a long time coming, I've wanted to do more with him but his foundation has always just been "Jock Crucible Titan." As sad as it is to lose him, his character is going to be much more in depth now that he has a better structure. You'll be seeing more of him... and his girlfriend Allie. Who is not mine, credit for her goes to @sibylance. She agreed to their relationship (She's also an amazingly talented artist so definitely check her out like... everywhere) As for Rex, Luna and the female mystery voice at the end, they all belong to the magnificent @scout-fang which if you haven't seen her from looking at my stuff well...what are you waiting for??

[thethirstynoona]

Monster - Chapter 13

That damned tie.  An item reminiscent of your grandmother’s curtains - taupe with cascades of lavender and gold kaleidoscope patterns - was now wrapped around your neck as you struggled for breath while this shadow of a once-charming man rode you into submission.

Category: Drama | Plot Twist | Angst Word Count: 2,930 Group/Members: EXO | Baekhyun A/N: A brief teaser before the next chapter...which won’t be the last. ;)

Chapter 12 | Chapter 14

Five weeks had passed since you’d last heard from him, from her – from anyone remotely connected to your former lover, Baekhyun.  You were sure it was a lost cause, but you decided to dial his number again before Kai woke from his sleep.

“I’m sorry, but the number you dialed is no longer in service.  Please –“

A frustrated sigh managed to escape your lips.  Had it not been for the summer storm, you would have tossed your phone over the balcony of your getaway suite.  Kai had surprised you with a weekend trip to Jeju, and you half-heartedly agreed. This was probably the last weekend you were going to allow him to continue courting you.  Nothing against him as a person, but you had really cozied up to him originally because you needed a replacement for Kay – or at least a way to get back in touch with her.  Once she obtained a job in Hong Kong you knew she was serious about ending the friendship, which put the reality of the situation in front of you.

You loved Baekhyun – not Kai.  You thought back to that day – the one that seemed to go on forever – and wondered where you could have changed things.

(five weeks prior) The interior glow of the coffee shop put a pit in your stomach.  Despite its welcoming light, you knew only heartache was there to greet you. With the dark clouds rolling in, you rubbed your shoulders and headed inside.  There wasn’t a wait in the order line, and the staff didn’t seem to recognize you either – you felt a wave of relief in that fact, since the morning crew had misjudged you so crassly.

“Hi, I’ll take an–“

“Earl Grey,” a seductive voice finished for you.  A meek smile broke your anxious expression when you saw Sehun staring down at you. His gaze gave you confidence that you were going to get the answers you sought.

“Make that three,” Heechul added, poking his head out from behind Sehun.  Upon seeing Baekhyun’s elder brother, the knot in your stomach grew tenfold.  You were surprised at his silence for the short trip to the table.  Heechul seemed the type to be rather gabby.  The stillness between you and the Byun brothers continued until it was broken by the barista bringing the three teas to the table.

“Thank you, miss,” Sehun politely thanked the young girl before redirecting his attention to you, “So, where would you like us to begin?”

You slumped back into your chair and wondered the best way to proceed.  Heechul’s formerly animated and friendly eyes had turned sinister and brooding, which made you wonder what secrets he was dying to divulge.  The shift in his energy made you uncomfortable, and you regretted inviting him to the meeting. 

“Tell me about Baekhyun as a child,” you finally decided, watching closely the reactions of each brother. Heechul seemed perplexed, while Sehun remained stoic.

“Why do you want to know that?” Heechul inquired, attempting to read your next move like a precocious game of chess.

“I want to know if Baekhyun was just as goofy then as he can be now; if he acted super cute or if he was introverted and shy – I just want to know really if his personality changed at all,” you rationalized, truly hoping some light would be shed on this alternate persona he’d manifested.

“Baekhyun has always been Baekhyun, if that’s what you’re asking.  He’s always been a little awkward and cheesy, but to answer your question, Baekhyun has been the same person from childhood until now,” Sehun answered before Heechul could say anything.  That didn’t manage to stop him from adding a comment of his own.

“Well of course he’s still the same – we all are.  I’m surprised he didn’t change when he saw our dear mother fucking the family chef.  Hm, then again, maybe he did…” Heechul trailed off, goading you to respond with the questions he wanted.  As curious as the comment made you, he would have to bait you with more than that to get you to bite.

“Good to know,” you firmly stated, moving away from the mother issue, “How old was he when he started dating?”  Heechul looked quite perturbed, since you weren’t playing his game, and Sehun’s poker face broke only slightly as he smirked at his older brother.

“Baekhyun was a late bloomer, despite his charming nature.  It wasn’t until he got into college and started hanging around Chanyeol that he began his experimentation with women,” Sehun informed, raising an eyebrow when your face winced at the sound of Chanyeol’s name.  

“Oh I heard all about you and Chanyeol,” Heechul dug, hoping then he could finally rile you.  “In fact, everyone in the family has!”  He chuckled to himself and took a sip of his tea. You tried your hardest not to react, but with the offensive way your eyes rolled at him, Heechul knew he was getting to you. 

“Aside from…Taeyeon, had Baekhyun ever loved any of the women he dated?” you continued, stumbling over your adversary’s name.  Both gentlemen noticed the anguish in your body language the moment her name escaped your lips.

“Yes,” they simultaneously responded, though each seemed surprised at the other’s answer.  Sehun paused, allowing his hyung to explain his answer first.

“Her name is Hayeon. She’s Tae—“

“How do you know about Hayeon?!” Sehun interrupted, shouting loud enough for the entire coffeehouse to hear. He instantly stood and apologized for his eruption, sat down, and cleared his throat before continuing. “Hyung, how long have you known about Hayeon?” 

“Who’s Hayeon?” you quietly asked, intrigued to know the other woman whom Baekhyun loved.

“Well that’s a complicated question to answer.  You know Hayeon, too…though you probably know her better as Taeyeon,” Heechul said with a disturbing grin.  “Taeyeon and Hayeon are twin sisters – well, they were.”

“Were?” you gulped, unable to avoid Heechul’s game any longer.

“Taeyeon started dating Baekhyun right as he graduated college.  The two fell head over heels for each other, but little did he know that Hayeon had fallen for him years before – he just never noticed her. Jealousy can be real monster, and Taeyeon was not immune to the depravity of her twin.  Hayeon has been masquerading as Taeyeon for years, warping the mind of your beloved Baekhyun.”

“What happened to the real Taeyeon?”

“No one knows for certain, but rumor has it Hayeon murdered her own sister in cold blood,” he said before pausing.  Heechul scoffed and continued, “And to think, you’re trying to go toe-to-toe with her! What a farce!”  Sehun had his face in his hands as he listened to his elder brother unveil the mystery behind one of the two evils in your life – which turned out to be just one person pulling the strings.

“Does Baekhyun know?” you pondered, praying that he was just as much a victim. 

“He doesn’t,” Sehun quickly interjected, “Y/N, what happened today?  I need to know.”

“So many things…Baekhyun…Taeyeon…” you muttered as you tried to remember the day’s events.  You had finished another round of torture from Baekhyun in the morning, lost your best friend by lunchtime, trudged through the mystifying afternoon tea adventure with Taeyeon, and fooled around with your ex-best friend’s brother.  Thinking back, you were just as mad as Taeyeon – or rather, Hayeon – and Baekhyun.  How were you even still coherent after a day like that? 

“Y/N?  It’s important – for your own safety – did Hayeon say anything about Jeju?” Sehun repeated his queue, waving his hand in front of your face to snap you back to reality. 

“Jeju?” you instinctually responded.  After a moment, you remembered what they’d mentioned at Suho’s birthday – Baekhyun had supposedly killed Taeyeon in Jeju.  Her odd behavior when reliving the experience finally made sense – that was when he ‘snapped’.  “No…she said she made him a monster and said she was trying to save me from him.”

You had the information you needed, despite learning a dark, tragic secret about Baekhyun’s past. Your aim was to save him – the man you loved – from the vile manipulation of the woman he believed he had once loved.  If she had contacted you, you were sure she was already working her way back into Baekhyun’s heart.

“Did she say what she was planning to do?” Sehun pressed, his indifference a distant memory.  It was clear he cared deeply for his brother, though why he hadn’t told Baekhyun the truth was still unknown.  You needed to find a way to end the conversation and get to Baekhyun’s side.

“No, I left before she could say anything.  I’m sure she’ll contact me again, and when she does I’ll let you know,” you hurriedly said as you got up from the table.

“Before you go,” Heechul spoke just before you could turn to leave, “They’re engaged.  Baekhyun and Taeyeon – oh excuse me, Hayeon.  I’d be careful in what you do.”

It was almost as though Heechul had read your mind – your plan fluttered away as the tears welled up in your eyes.  Anxiously pulling at your sleeves to cover your hands, you brought them up to your face to hide your dejection.  You fought with all your might to detain the sounds of agony from your unstoppable sobs. You didn’t want to believe that Baekhyun would simply run back to the imposter woman, but if he’d given her the power to warp his very being, it didn’t seem a far cry from the truth.

“I’m sorry, Y/N.  We should have told you,” Sehun apologized, clutching your shoulder for support.  Abandoning all need to be around the affluent family, you pulled out your phone and called an Uber.  Without a word, you removed yourself from their presence and waited for the cab under the awning of the building outside.  Not a minute before your ride arrived, Kai texted you.

Kai: “Just checking in. Everything okay?”

The black car pulled up and motioned for you to get in.  Upon entering the vehicle, your change in plans finally found an alternate route.

You: “What’s your address?”

Kai sent you his location immediately and without hesitation, you headed to his place.

Thinking about that night made your heart swell with all sorts of emotions.  The last month had been free of any discourse, and your life had seemed to heal and get back to normal.  The last text from Baekhyun haunted your dreams like a plague, and the longer you went without contact, the worse you began to feel.

Unknown: “I’m sorry. For everything.”

You wondered if Baekhyun was happy.  They say ignorance is bliss, and with the amount of secrecy in his family, you wondered if that statement held any truth.  Leaving the hotel room, you wandered the resort and couldn’t help but think about his relationship with Taeyeon and Hayeon – how was he unable to tell the difference between them?  How did a sweet relationship turn into a poisonous one?  What happened between them on this island?  Consumed with the thoughts of the cryptic nature of their relationship, you didn’t realize you’d meandered directly into a private party.

“Excuse me, young miss but this is an exclusive event for invitees only,” a boisterous woman crudely stated, ushering you out of the room with a gesture of her hand. 

“Oh, I’m sorry!  I was lost in thought, my apologies,” you contritely replied, backing out of the conservatory.  Once you looked up, you noticed a substantial amount of prestigious-looking women, all of whom began whispering at the sight of your face. Slowly backing out of the room, you made eye contact with the one who excused you, feeling an odd familiarity. When you made it to the door, you darted away from the judgmental glances.

“Wait!” the same voice called to you.  The pristine woman had followed you out the door and stopped you in the garden, eyeing you up and down in a curious manner.  “Is your name ‘Y/N’?”

“Y-yes…” you meekly replied, wondering just who she was and how she knew you.

“You dated my Baekhyun and broke his heart,” she curtly said, staring you down with a stern vengeance.

“W-what?  What are you talking about?” you blindsidedly refuted as you began to question your consciousness.  Of all places to be, it didn’t seem possible to run into Baekhyun’s mother while on vacation with another man.  You had to be dreaming.

“My dear Baekhyun has been wallowing in a spiral of bourbon and whores since you left him – ignoring his calls like the evil wench you are,” she disparaged, spitting venom at you like a viper.

“I didn’t break his heart – he stopped communication with me!  He blocked me!” you brashly defended, whipping out your phone to show your innocence.

“A likely story – my son was better off when he was betrothed to Taeyeon.  At least then he wouldn’t have muddied the bloodline with some poor beggar girl!” she callously rebuked, swatting your phone out of your hand. The mention of Taeyeon’s name brought back the sour memories of that fateful day once more.  You were done taking abuse from the women of high society.

“Is that all you care about? Reputation and image?  Baekhyun was right about you – it’s not like you ever loved him.  You’re just out to make yourself look good to societal standards,” you begrudged, grabbing your phone and readying yourself to walk away from this pitiful excuse for a mother.  Before you could move an inch, she cornered you against the hedges, leering over you like a cobra ready to strike.

“A mother always loves her child, regardless of how they feel about her.  I’m not the best mother, I’ll admit, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that you have shattered Baekhyun’s heart,” she reproached.

“Like I said, he stopped talking to me – he blocked me!” you yelled back, pushing her away from you.  You unlocked your phone and dialed Baekhyun’s number, putting it on speaker.  The same auto-attendant voice sounded from the device. “See? So unless my phone is broken, then it’s all on him.”

“It has to be your phone,” she bluntly said, flipping her hair over her shoulder and grabbing it from your clutches.  Pulling out her own device, she dialed a number and stared at yours waiting for a ring – nothing.  “Hm.  Just as I thought.” 

“Wait, what are you talking about?  What did you just do?” you stuttered as she tossed the phone back to you.

“Is this not your phone number?” she instigated, holding the screen to your face.  Your number as you knew it was there in black and white. Without hesitating, you grabbed her phone and dialed it again…and again…and again, only to hear the same auto-attendant like you’d heard for months when calling Baekhyun.  It didn’t make sense – how did your phone number not work?  

Baekhyun’s mother’s phone rang with a loud tone, startling you.  It was a number you didn’t recognize, and as you looked up to hand her the phone, you saw her holding yours to her ear, looking at you with a condemnatory expression.  Pieces were starting to come together – your phone number was no longer what you had thought.  Upon seeing your epiphany, Baekhyun’s mother hung up the phone.

“You should really look after your things – especially if you plan to be a part of Baekhyun’s world. Someone changed your phone number without your knowledge, and I’d start the list of suspects with the people who call you,” she monotonously explained, handing you back your phone and taking hers in the process.  “This wasn’t the best first impression, Y/N, but I expect you’ll make up for it the next time we meet!”

Within seconds, Baekhyun’s mother had disappeared back into the conservatory.  You wracked your brain for who could have possibly been the culprit – your phone never left your side. Months had passed since you’d had any contact with Taeyeon/Hayeon or Baekhyun – you’d really only spent time with…

Kai.  Thinking back to the night you first slept with him, your phone had died just after reading Baekhyun’s final text.  Kai only had his laptop available with a USB cord to charge your phone.  You didn’t want to think Kai was capable of doing something like that; he was too pure – he was Kay’s little brother.  The thought of Kai damaging your relationship with Kay filled your head, and your survival instincts began to kick into gear.  You had to get off the island – alone. 

“There you are!” Kai’s cheerful voice sounded from behind you.  His tenor sent chills up your spine, but you knew you had to act normal if you were to find a way back to Baekhyun.

“Hey babe, I’m sorry! I got distracted by the rain and didn’t want to wake you, so I decided to take a walk,” you lied, grinning ear-to-ear as you beamed up at him.  His smile matched yours and offered brunch at your resort, to which you agreed.  Upon reaching the restaurant, your phone buzzed in your back pocket – a sensation you hadn’t felt in too long.

“Grab us a table, I need to use the restroom real quick!” you falsely said as you excused yourself to the nearby ladies room.  Running into the stall, locking it, and pulling out your phone to read the new message happened in one fluid movement.  Seeing the words laid out on your screen, you had never been so happy to have run into such an impolite woman as Baekhyun’s mother.

BaeBae: “Jaaaaagiiiii…I found you. ;)”