#fic: a fronte praecipitium a tergo lupi

[kewltie]

“We’re going to the hanger bay to see if we can lend Hyoyeon a hand in the repairs,” Jessica declares, standing up and taking Jackson with her with a tug of the arm.

Jessica casts a significant glance, the underlying message is right there for Donghae to pick up. The excuse is flimsy at best but he knows what Jessica wants him to do. Get closure. Put an end to this chapter in his life.

“But Donghae,” Jackson protests as Jessica drags him out of the room.  

“I’ll be fine,” Donghae tells him and flashes him a reassuring smile, that feel false and awkward on his face, but Jackson bite down on his lower lip and acquiesce, leaving Donghae and Hyukjae as the only occupants in the room.

It’s the first time they’re alone in what felt like a very long, long time.  There’s an entire conversation thread missing between them since the day Donghae left Hyukjae on Rhohience.

Silent encroaches upon them and Donghae finds his voice lacking despite a hundred well practice speeches running through his head. He has been preparing for this moment but--but even though he hadn’t seen Hyukjae for so long just being in the presence of this man mess him up in so many ways. It’s strange that Donghae had spent more than half of his life being someone’s pet, their trophy, yet it is Hyukjae who completely owns him down to the core of his being. A single touch from Hyukjae carves a deeper than any collar could ever hope to bind him.

But the root of their deep divide has never been that—if only that was the case.  

“You look,” Hyukjae frowns, pink tongue peeking through his lips as he tries to find the next word, “good,” he finishes lamely, wincing.

“Jessica and Jackson have been taking good care of me. I owe everything to them,” Donghae says, his left wing twitches at the uncomfortable atmosphere settles in the air. It’s awkward and new like they are a pair strangers all over again, standing on uneven ground. “And I see you been... busy these past quarters.”

Separated by thousands of light years of space between them, Hyukjae had managed to tangled himself and the AA in three different conflicts, started a massive intersystem war, saved a planet and its sixty thousands lives, dealt a massive blow to Empire by seizing three of their most productive mining colonies and the bounty on his head had risen to six trillion quill while Donghae tried to carved a quiet life for himself out here in Sector VII of the Outer Rim without Hyukjae there by his side. 

Separated but not wholly disconnected.

Donghae still look for Hyukjae in every sliver of news that made it way to this sparse part of the galaxy. Jessica said it was unhealthy to be so fixated on someone he had willingly walked away from but Jessica doesn’t understand that Donghae has been bound to Hyukjae since the day Donghae had taken Hyukjae’s hand and joins him on his mad crusade; the leash only tightens further with the increasing distance.

But she is right. He can’t be tied down to the memory of a man who offered him and so many others hope and dream of freedom and who is prepared to bleed himself and the entire world to achieve it.

And the thing is, the thing is that Donghae is selfish enough to know that his heart is not big enough to make room for all the lives in this universe, not with Hyukjae taking all the space in it, because in the end it all comes to one simple truth: Hyukjae wants to save the world but all Donghae wants to do is save Hyukjae.

And that has always been the cusp of all their problems.

[kewltie]

In a distance system on the edges of the Commonwealth’s reach, Onichrom V sits as the glittering blue gem among a pile of ice and rocks. The only habitable planet in a solar system of heavy mining deposits, with less than one percent of the system’s population wealth concentrated there and calling it home, Onichrom V stands for everything that Hyukjae hates about the corporate greed Commonwealth.

Lured by the advert of plenty of opportunity and promises of wealth, migrants came in drove only to work and die on asteroid, hundreds of miles underground in harsh working condition, while Onichrom V flourishes as a resort planet under the governor’s hand and the exportation of these natural resources that the workers had mined up, but they are pay in the barest minimum.

“It’s parasitic,” Hyukjae had spit out, face flushed with an angry red and Donghae can’t even offer a consoling reply.

Yet two clicks later, this is how Donghae finds himself in the inner the sanctum of the governor’s mansion, sinking down to his knees at Hyukjae’s feet with a familiar ease.

A bejeweled collar around his neck, a golden chain tether to his wings, and his face painted over with meticulous hands, Donghae is the picture of a pamper pet of a wealthy lord sitting at his master’s feet.

There is a flutter of commotion around their table and Hyukjae’s hand clasps him on the back of his neck, a warm pressure in the that send him tinkling.

Donghae dips his head and lower his lashes, voice dropping to a soft timbre, “Isuel greets you sir and madam,” he says, looking through his lashes at their audience but carefully avoid meeting any of their eyes.  

“Lovely isn’t he?” the governor muses, eyes scanning from across the table toward Donghae like he's a piece of meat and he’s wetting for a bite.  

“And so well train too,” Lady Ha comments above him, tittering with interest, “If only my Hanae has half of the decorum of your Iseul, Lord Jae. Isn’t that right, Hanae?”

“My deepest apologies, master. I’ll do my best to learn from Isuel,” Hanae says gravely, standing behind her master, and doesn’t even flinch at the statement but one of her feline ears twitch slightly and that give away the discomfort of such ill-boding comment that came her way.   

Of all the slaves Donghae had seen in servitude to the governor, none of them are humans and that’s because you don’t keep human as a pet, only animals and in their master’s eyes Donghae and many other animo are but beasts in human skin. Years ago that was the comfortable truth Donghae had accepted, it was the way of the world like the stars in the sky he had believed, but Hyukjae had taught him that nobody should be chained under another.

“Where did you find him? I never seen an animo with wings before,” the governor asks, leaning closer to examine Donghae’s wings, peaking out at his back.

“Here and there,” Hyukjae says casually with smirks, thumb brushing Donghae’s neck in small soothing circle.  “Forgive me lord governor, I got to have my secret.”

The governor laughs as though that was the funniest thing he had ever heard but then he quickly sobers up and narrow his eyes.  “Then are you be willing to part from him? Name your price and I’ll pay it! There’s nothing I can’t give you,” he boosts.  

Hyukjae shakes his head, seemingly amused and clutches the left side his chest like he’s in pained. “Iseul is the prize of my collection so think of even letting him go break my heart,” he says forlornly.

“Ahh, that’s disappointing,” the governor says, leaning back into his seat in defeat but he seems perks up seemingly after that, “But I’m sure I can find something to convince you.”

And Hyukjae smiles, pleased and eyes alight with fire but only Donghae knows what that means because Hyukjae got the governor where he wants him. To slip into the governor’s inner circle and privy to his connections and secrets that’s exactly how he wanted this mission to play out.

But it’s not done deal yet.

Donghae turns his focus to the wine on the table in front of them and picks up the glass. He takes a hefty gulp of it into his mouth but he holds the Venetian wine there. He rises up to knees, wings fluttering at his back, and presses close to Hyukjae as Hyukjae’s face slip into a surprised 'o' but he quickly suppresses it and opens his mouth, realizing what Donghae intend to do.

Donghae lean into Hyukjae’s lips and transfer the wine through the open mouth kiss. Hyukjae drinks in the wine until there’s nothing there but the taste of Donghae and aftertaste of heat and throbbing want.  

Donghae slowly pulls away, eyes dazed and soft as Hyukjae licks his lips. “Master,” Donghae murmurs, letting the word roll off his tongue like a benediction and Hyukjae’s eyes flash dark and immeasurable.  

The governor makes an indistinguishable noise at the back of them and Donghae swivels his heas aroubd to see Lady Ha’s eyes widen in shock while the governor looks haggard, eyes blown wide with desire and alight with renewed interest, “If you would like,” he visibly swallows, shifting in his seat and eyes not straying from Donghae one bit, “I have several mines that I believe would peek your interest in and can show you around.”

Hyukjae’s lips stretch into a full blown smile as his hand tangled in Donghae’s in an affirming squeeze. “I would like that very much, lord governor.”

Hyukjae may have dangle a treat to garner the governor’s interest but Donghae sold the governor on it.

Here’s the thing.

Donghae knows power, not in the way people like the governor or his former master, the Viceroy, had understood it, but as someone who had it wield over him and is constantly in threat of being replace and thrown out like next day trash.  

Donghae has nothing to offer, he isn’t smart, can’t wield a gun, and isn’t one of Hyukjae’s competent soldiers but he knows how to say the right words, to put on a show and to destroy a man from the inside out with a curve of his lips.

That’s how Donghae had survive in the Viceroy’s home all those years ago, before Hyukjae had come a long. He had played into the part of the obedient and docile pet with only a pretty face and an empty head, convincing them to keep him around all for nearly a decade when most of his kind only last barely half of those and he does it all very, very well.

“The moment we step off the ship onto Onichrom V, I’ll be Lord Jae and you’ll be my slave,” Hyukjae said grim faced and sounding terribly uncertain about it.

“It’ll be alright,” Donghae offered.

Hyukjae grimaced, face scrunching in displeasure. “I should be the one reassuring you of this not the other way around. Going back there must be a dark time for you but you’re so brave to do this. Thank you.”

The thing is Hyukjae is wrong. Donghae isn’t brave because for him it changes nothing. It isn’t a hardship for him.

How easy is it for Donghae to slip back into his role of the pet, the slave, all over again as though he had never left it. In truth, a year of freedom is nothing to compare to two decades on his knees in front of his masters and dolled up like the prettiest ornament on display.

He had left slave hood behind but a part of him is bound in place.  

Because even if the physical chain and shackle of slavery is no longer there the instinct to serve, to please his master is so ingrained in him that Donghae doesn’t know if he can ever remove that part of himself but even with that being so, this time Donghae got to choose who it is and he’ll only have one master from now on and that’s Hyukjae, whether Hyukjae want it or not.

[kewltie]

Random Useless In-‘verse info #3 - space slave fic

I am extremely nitpicky when it comes to title because for me it has to convey the central theme of the fic or relate to it somehow so “a fronte praecipitium a tergo lupi” is the official title of space slave fic and it’s a latin proverb that translate to precipice in front, wolves behind, basically between a rock and a hard place. This reflects Donghae’s current situation with Hyukjae, the most wanted and dangerous man in the entire galaxy.

The first arc of space slave fic set up Donghae as an animal-human hybrid, part of the genetic modified human (mod), dubbed as “animo” in completely different galaxy than ours. Mods were created as a means of war but what do you do with all these people once the war is over? They get enveloped back into society but society can’t accept them as their equal because they are much too different and dangerous so they reclassified as second class citizen, but the animo–animal-human hybrid– are consider even subhuman by that standard and many of them are made into slave. The governments is able to exert control over the Mods by managing their dependence on the drug, DUST, which is the only thing that keep them alive.

This system is completely abhorrent but it’s the only thing that Donghae had ever known. Compare to most of his kind, Donghae lives a relatively spoiled and privilege within his glass cage because of the rarity of wings that make him extremely desirable. The very thing that make him a subhuman in many people eyes also make him an attractive item for the rich and powerful who wish to add him into their collection. Though his master had never raised a hand against him and he never had to dirty his hands nor worry about getting the wrong side of his master, there’s a reason Donghae, no matter how attractive he is, isn’t use for sex because you don’t have sex with your pet right? So Donghae’s master see that as bestiality in his eyes :/. It say a lot that you can love your pet and treat them well, spoil them in your care, but people don’t often think of their pet as equal terms as themselves because for many they wouldn’t value a dog life as equal as they value their spouse or kid because one is a human and the other is an animal. So while Donghae is quite love and heavily spoiled, he is nothing more but a pretty trinket for his master to show off at parties.

So this is why upon meet Hyukjae–intergalactic terrorist, murderer, wanted criminal, mad man, and countless other monikers–who gave him a choice to come along with him and his crew of wayward criminals or go back to the empire, he is stumped by the choice he is given, the first major decision in a very, very long time. Both, admittedly, are terrible options because if he go back to empire he will be made into a slave again with a different master but if he chose Hyukjae, someone who is a stranger to him and who only heard through rumors and whispers of insurrection and so many deaths, whose know where he’ll end up.

This is where the title comes in because it’s literally between a precipice in front of him and a wolf at his back, but in the end he chose Hyukjae. Which, interestingly enough, by his perspective is not the lesser evil of the two but perhaps the more dangerous option because at least if he had chosen the empire, he’ll end up with in the same situation as before–it’s familiar and comforting even in his cage but with Hyukjae there is so many unknown and he’ll constantly be on the run and hunted across the galaxy and it’s terrifying but rather than falling over the precipice and accepting his fate, he turned around and walked straight in the jaw of the wolf because at least it’ll be his choice.

Choice is a very powerful thing to give to someone who had very little of it in their life, and is it in that way that Donghae chooses to follow Hyukjae, not to save the people or to dismantle the corrupted system, but for his own selfish desire and that’s perhaps the greatest gift Hyukjae had ever given him.

[kewltie]

The Ithaca blazes across the dimly lit sky of Rohience like shooting star, falling with a harrowing speed, as it is being rapidly ripped apart by this planet's gravity.

The several hundreds lives on board disintegrate into atmosphere with each blink of Donghae's eyes as the crew of the Ithaca meets its infernal fate--shot down by the AA's five warhead missiles over the sky of Rohience and all were accompanied by Hyukjae's order. 

Donghae shut his eyes to the horrifying sight because even after all the terrible things he had seen with Hyukjae, he can't bare to witness the death of thousands play out in front of him, but even in the comforting darkness the image of the ship spiraling to its death is sear into the back of his eyelids and he could almost imagine their unjustly scream as the fire engulfs them.

His wings goes still, tight against his back and frozen in place, yet his heart is violently thudding against his chest, desperately wanting to claw itself free to beg for a reason and an answer for--for this madness but the looming quiet is suffocating.

He knows what Hyukjae would say and that's why when Donghae finally open his eyes, he looks up to the sky again and the world is in ashes and cinders and all because of one single man.

i can't get that image out of my eyes the moment when space slave fic!donghae realizes the price of hyukjae's war and which eventually lead to him finding out the bombs hyukjae had planted on empire's space station as their trump card :|||| and him wanting to leave hyukjae afterward b/c he can't no longer support what hyukjae does. it's a terrible realization and utterly heartbreaking to know that the man you love would justified saving the galaxy at the cost of other lives and his own mortal soul :(((((. dubious moral!hyukjae gives me so many conflicting feelings (a savior/hero to 1/2 of humanity but a terror and a villain to the other half) QQ but that's what make him such a captivating char in my eyes.

[kewltie]

so i was watching tv and there was this show about the vacation the rich takes and i'm like, huh, where would an intergalactic terrorist and his beautiful winged companion go for a vacation b/c obviously even leader of a militant extremest group needs vacation from attempting to topple the gov't every now and then right??

my answer: TO A DEAD-END NAMELESS COLONY ON WHERE THEY BECOMES FARMERS FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS b/c hyukjae is a giant weirdo who frowns at any comfort and luxury b/c WHY SHOULD I BE RELAXING AND HAPPY WHEN OTHERS ARE CLEARLY SUFFERING AND LIVING UNDER THE TYRANNY OF THE BOURGEOIS/NOBILITY??

so yea the most wanted man in the galaxy came to some backwater outpost and start growing crops and raising farm animals b/c lol hyukjae would want to be productive even on vacation and donghae comes along b/c he would literally go anywhere for hyukjae while their neighbors are like WHO ARE THESE WEIRDOS THAT LAND ON OUR PLANET and rumors start brewing around them. CLEARLY HYUKJAE IS AN IMPERIAL SOLDIER THAT FELL IN LOVE AN IMPERIAL'S COURTESAN AND THEY RAN OFF TOGETHER TO AVOID CAPTURE or the one where donghae is some noble's son and hyukjae is one of his family's guard and they fell in love and now they are on the run from donghae's family. every one of these speculations are ridiculous but nothing more ridiculous than the truth :DDDD

[kewltie]

There is a gun pointing directly at Donghae's temple and an Imperial soldier has his arm wrapped around Donghae's throat, locking him in place, and Donghae is quiet and resigned as he stares back at Hyukjae.

Hyukjae notices the bruise across Donghae's left cheek and a cut on his lower lip; he looks tired and haggard but wholly alive.

"Drop your gun and put your hands where I can see them," the soldier orders, his gaze falling on Hyukjae, "or I'll shoot him." He casts a quick glance at Donghae and then back to Hyukjae again, tightening his grip on the carbon laser pistol to underline his point as Donghae lets out an audible hitch of his breath.

Four other Imperial soldiers are right beside him, holding up their MP-030 plasma rifle and aiming it right at Hyukjae's head.  

Hyukjae is outnumbered and outgunned but he promptly steps forward anyway with his own CL pistol raised back at them.

"Did you hear me?" the leader barks. "Drop your gun now!"

Donghae continues to stand rigidly in the leader's jhold with the leader's arm pressing against his throat ever tighter now, but his eyes never stray from Hyukjae's face. He looks calm and steady, far too compose for someone who was held captive for 34 hours and is about to have his head blown out, but Hyukjae sees the haunted expression on his face.

Hyukjae knows he has to end this fast. 

"Donghae, close your eyes," Hyukjae instructs instead.

Donghae obediently obeys without any hesitation and the Imperial soldiers shifted nervously among each other. "Stop, what are you--" one of them shouts.

Hyukjae lifts his free hand up in the air, two fingers raise high above his head and holds them there just for a second, then he lowers them into a fist as several buildings that are blocks away from the Imperial Ministry of Kleo explodes in a fiery blaze, startling the Imperial soldiers and catching them off-guard. The courtyard shakes a little and they are stumbling around in shock but just like that--in a rapid succession the four soldiers around the leader goes down from several precision sniper shots.

It all happens in less than a minute, barely giving the soldiers anytime to react just as Hyukjae has planned out. He lowers his arm to his side now and the gun in his other hand is aimed and ready.

The leader frantically glances at the dead bodies of his men and then jerks his head up again, glaring furiously at Hyukjae. "You space junk, die!" the leader snarls, face all twists up in hatred. He turns his gun away from Donghae to Hyukjae and shoves Donghae aside--just like Hyukjae wanted.

Hyukjae fire three quick shots right into the left side of the leader's chest but not before the leader gets off a single shot that pierces Hyukjae's upper right arm as he goes down and Donghae drops to the floor, with his hands over his ears and eyes still shut.

Hyukjae winces as the pain from the wound reverberates throughout his body but he grits his teeth, pressing his hand into the wound to control the bleeding, and drags himself toward Donghae.

"Hey, hey it's okay now," he says, kneeling down in front of Donghae.

Donghae's eyes flies open. "Hyukjae," he says, desperate and aching and Hyukjae hurts all over for him. "Who--how--?" His wings are restless, fluttering wildly behind him, and even the usual white pristine feathers that Hyukjae has comes to adore are stained with dirty brownish pigment.

"I borrowed Krystal from Victoria and had her up at a vantage point with Tiffany so they can snipe while the others plant explosive in several buildings as distraction," he explains. Borrowing Krystal had cost him several armaments and a Raptor but it was worth it in the end.

Donghae stares at Hyukjae, a horrid expression on his face as his eyes are drawn to Hyukjae's bleeding arm. "You're hurt," he says, frantic and worried.

"I'm fine, I'll get it taken care of once we get off this planet," he says dismissively, his hand still tightly pressing into the bullet wound as his eyes scan Donghae for any other possible injury done to him. "But are you alright?"

Donghae nods distantly, eyes still on Hyukjae's wound, then he looks away and down at his shirt, getting a fistful of it in his hand and tears a strip off of his flimsy shirt with his teeth. 

"Donghae," Hyukjae says with a sigh. "I'm okay."

"Be quiet and remove your hand," Donghae says sharply, his brows drawn tight and his wings tensing in respond.

Hyukjae takes his blood soaked hand off of the wound and dropping it to the side, wiping it off with his pants and the other hand is still gripping the gun. He lets Donghae take the strip of fabric and binds Hyukjae's wound, clumsily wraps the fabric around his wounded arm and tightens in it place. Hyukjae cringes slightly at the pain and Donghae mumbles a sorry as he continues to put pressure on it and finally finishes the binding with a knot.

Hyukjae can sees the blood already soaking through Donghae's binding, but the bleeding is slowly dying off and pain subsides little by little.

"Okay, let's go," Hyukjae says, they already wasted enough time already, any longer and more Imperial soldiers could appear.

Hyukjae pulls Donghae up and takes his hand in his free one while his other hand still gripping the pistol. He takes the both of them out of the courtyard and into one of the main Ministry buildings, where they are greeted by several bodies of Imperial soldiers and Ministry workers.

The farther they go into the building, they see more bodies strung all over the floor but Hyukjae barely spares any of them a glance as he navigates through the shifts and turns of Imperial Ministry. They finally made it into foyer, close to the entrance, when Donghae pulls to an abrupt stop. He jerks his hand out of Hyukjae's grip and Hyukjae turns around to demand why he is stopping now but he stops.

Donghae is looking to the side where the body of a dead woman laying on the floor, still clinging to her gun in an almost embrace but that didn't save her from death. "Did you--" Donghae swallows, looking back but didn't meet Hyukjae's eyes. "How many did you kill?"

"Don't ask," Hyukjae says evenly. "You won't like the answer."

Donghae stares at him resolutely. "You didn't have to kill them all," he says, his hands clenching at his side.

"They are Imperial soldiers," Hyukjae retorts. "If we didn't kill them they would have kill us. You know this."

Donghae stills refuse to meet his gaze and continues to look anywhere but Hyukjae.

"The others were collateral damage, I tried to contained it as much as possible," he tells Donghae. He'd tried his best avoid getting the non-combatants out of here but even all his details planning can't be match up against the unpredictability of humanity. "I had Sehun sets off miniature explosions so the workers can evacuate the area but it seems that not all of them choose to do so."

"But it doesn't make it right," he says quietly, lips thinning and his face is drawn tight.

"It's never is," Hyukjae agrees, looking intently at one of the bodies that he doesn't even have a name to connect it to before turning back to Donghae, "but we have to do what is necessary sometimes."

"I don't like the word necessary," he mutters, and finally, finally looking up at Hyukjae. "It sounds like there's no other choice and I don't like that."

"I know," Hyukjae says. He doesn't apologized for it because he would have done it again if given the chance. In Hyukjae's world, he can't afford to second guess himself, to even feel guilty over the deaths on his order--on his hands--not when so many count on him.

He silently offers a hand out to Donghae and Donghae bites his lower lip, staring at it for a brief moment that it takes Hyukjae's breath away--his lungs tighten and it's awful--before taking it.

"Okay," Donghae says, and it means nothing and everything.

Hyukjae knows this conversation will come up again and again between them. They are much too different, growing up in different worlds, and their differences might one day tear them apart.

He tangle their fingers together and Donghae gives him a tentative smile in return as he squeezes Hyukjae's hand. And Hyukjae breathes once again.

He hopes that day may never come.

----

One hundred sixty three days later, over the bloody sky of Rohience and just thirteen hours after the battle for the Furaka System, Donghae looks for Hyukjae on the rooftop of the Chaplain's manor in the capital of Rohience.

He looks shaken and unsure as he faces Hyukjae and Hyukjae knows he must have heard about it.

"Fifty-eight thousands lives, Hyukjae," he says numbly, shaking his head in disbelief. "The nacada bombs on the Q-14k starbase, you had them secretly planted there, didn't you?" 

Hyukjae doesn't say anything, he looks past Donghae's head to the setting suns of Rohience. A sky of twisted red and orange, and the twin suns of Rohience is unforgiving in their beauty.

"You were going to blow it up," Donghae accuses. "All those people on the base and you were going to kill them all."

"I didn't do it though," Hyukjae corrects, looking at Donghae now. "It was fortunate that the Imperial fleet eventually gave up and abandoned the starbase, so I didn't have to do it."

"But you could have," he despairs, his face flushed and he looks at Hyukjae like Hyukjae had betrayed him. 

Hyukjae shut his eyes briefly from scrutiny, his jaw clenching tight and when he opens them he meets the defying and dejected eyes of Donghae. "It was always an option for us," he admits, he wasn't going to lie about that, "but I wouldn't have done it unless it's the last resort."

"Do you even realize how many lives you were going to destroy with your ridiculous plan," Donghae demands, his hands trembling and wings beating violently. "It shouldn't have been an option in the first place!"

"If the Imperial fleet didn't retreat and I didn't use those bombs, the battles would have been prolong even more so and we would have lost, that mean millions will die," Hyukjae snaps, fists tightening up till the knuckles goes white. "Do you think the Empire would have forgave the Furkans for fighting back? They would have stripped the Furkans of their rights and justified that by nothing but the warships hovering in orbit. Nobody--men, women, or child--will be save. The massacre of Arkan will be repeated if I let that happen." 

He shakes his head and thinks of the Arkan System that fell to the Empire, the price they pay for daring to stand against the Empire only to have failed--the colonies and the only habitable planet was reduced to ashes and rubble and thirty-two millions people either died or disperse throughout the galaxy because their home no longer exist. 

"The Empire never show mercy to those that fought back, so do you think they would have shown it to the the Furakans if I didn't aid them in anyway and guarantee our success with the nacada bombs?" he demands.

Donghae stares at Hyukjae in horror. "It still doesn't make it right," he chokes out, stumbling back.

"Donghae." Hyukjae tries to reach out toward Donghae but Donghae shakes him off.

"I can't--" he starts and then drops his gaze to the floor, his wings shaking, "this, this--" he gestures between them, "I can't do it anymore. I can't support this." 

Hyukjae feels like the air is knocked out of him . "No, you can't--" he starts.

"You have to let me go, Hyukjae. I have to go," he says resignedly, giving Hyukjae a bitter smile. "And don't--please don't look for me."

Hyukjae's mouth goes dry. "Donghae," he tries again.

"Please," he begs, and it's aching and raw. Donghae looks so heartbroken and lost and Hyukjae doesn't want to, he just can't but this is what Donghae needs. And Hyukjae can't give Donghae what he wish--he just can't turn his back on the AA, he can't not be Eunhyuk, and he can't give it all up for Donghae--but there's one thing he can do.

Hyukjae shut his eyes and his world goes dark, he's drowning and falling and it did this to himself. "Go then," he says quietly, feeling like he's ten thousands league beneath the water and he can't breath at all.

When he finally opens them again Donghae is gone and he is alone once again on top of the roof, and the soft red sky of Rohience is being swallow up by enclosing darkness.

---

*I AM HAVING A LOT OF ID FEELS rn like throw away all the fluffy feels i been getting from tumblr au and stuff and GIMME ALL THE DESTRUCTIVE UNHEALTHY ANGSTY RELATIONSHIPS THAT WILL RAZED THE WORLD TO THE GROUND.

*space slave fic is basically an idfic let's be real, terrorist!hyukjae trying to bring down several prominent government institutions FOR THE GREATER GOOD but does it in a way that's uhh morally questionable at times and donghae finds it extremely difficult to condone what hyukjae does but he's pretty fucked up too (STOCKHOLM SYNDROME AND MAYBE CODEPENDENCY AND ALL THAT AWFUL SUPER UNHEALTHY JAZZ he has toward hyukjae; look hyukjae just told him to shut his eyes and he doesn't even hesitate to obey and even when he heard all these shots fired he doesn't even open it, that absolute obedience & trust in hyukjae is SUPER SCARY b/c how much power hyukjae has over him).

*SO YEAAAA, the fact that donghae willingly walk out of on hyukjae and the AA is pretty big freaking deal at the end and it took 58 thousands ppl potentially dying to do so :xxx. i could prob go on and on about their terrifyingly obsessive relationship /o\. remind you of any my other 'verses??? CODEPENDENT MUTANT BOYFRIENDS, MAD, and GLASS WINGS maybe?? but honestly this is comparatively mellow to them :P.

*my mind easily swing from fluffy diabetic induced cuteness to dirty wrong no good fucked-upness for eunhae /o\. on another note, i literally had a mid freak out when i was writing the talk of 58k people maybe GONE b/c of hyukjae (& the AA of course) and in the grand scheme of this 'verse that's less than .00000001% of the population (the galaxy is super hugeeee) and they're soldiers BUT STILL IT'S SUPER SKETCHY AND JUST QUESTIONABLE ALL AROUND :(((. so yeaaa, thinking of how donghae react with that news and being so close to hyukjae and ughhh donghae is all 'I'M IN LOVE WITH THIS MAD MAN AND HE'S BREAKING MY HEART' :(((, basically.

*f(x) ARE BASICALLY PIRATES IN THIS 'VERSE and occasionally help hyukjae out for a price ;D.

[kewltie]

They are in some backwater planet of a border solar system that Donghae can’t even pronounce the name of when Hyukjae decided to leave him behind in a brothel so he can go and steal a low orbital ion cannon.

Donghae is off quietly fuming in a corner and cursing Hyukjae’s name with angry fervor because Hyukjae always does this—he would often go off on his own, and just do something incredibly stupid and reckless in the name of Ad Astra, resembling nothing like the calm and compose leader of an underground movement, threatening to topple the government no less, that the media paints him as.

And Donghae is left behind once again, attended by Hyukjae’s nothing less than sleazy acquaintances to entertain him. 

"It’s not every day we get to see a courtesan this far out in Midrow," Snow says, drawing Donghae’s left pant leg up and trying to peek at the tattoo on his thigh.

"Snow!" Donghae yells horrified, and jerking his leg out of her hold as the rest of the girls of the Madame Red’s Brothel House titter amusingly like Donghae is their new shiny toy that they get to play with now.

"Lotus House, huh," Ash says behind him, feeling up his wings. "Not bad, Birdie, for an animo." She softly combs her fingers through them and Donghae’s wings quiver at every touch.

He turns his head around and meets a full head of purple hair. “Please, stop calling me that,” Donghae says, frowning. “I have a name.” He pauses and then pointedly adds, “A real name, unlike you all.”

"What are you saying? Dazzle is a real name thank you, after all I remember receiving that name between the sheets," Dazzle says, winking lasciviously from where she is casually lounging in her seat.

"I’m sure," he says, skeptically, "that you’re all lia—" he jumps when someone tries to fondle his butt.

"Snow!" he shrieks, his wings fluttering violently as the girls around him roar into laughter.

Later, when Donghae finally pulled free of their terrible wandering hands and lying mouths, he crawls to the secret room tucked behind a hidden wall in one of the guestrooms the girls usually entertained their clients.

He is bone deep tired that even his wings are starting to look a little sad, so he collapses on top of the bed with a loud thump, making sure to fall on his stomach instead.

When he was still living in his Master’s palace the mattresses were made from the finesses and softest material, an almost airy and malleable substance that easily molds to his body, that when he sleep on his back, his wings wouldn’t be stiff and aching the next day. But, Donghae no longer have that luxury not when they’re being hunted by the world governments and are hiding away in a safe house run by prostitutes who are apparently supporters of a criminal organization—though Hyukjae would argue that Ad Astra isn’t a criminal organization, but the high death tolls and remnants of Donghae’s Master palace beg to differ.

Since he had been dragged into Hyukjae’s chaotic and often violent world, he has spent more time with planet side prostitutes, illegal arms dealers, and all sort of sordid people that populate the border systems between Midrow and the Outer Rim. It’s a far cry from the senators, nobles, and ministers that he use to entertain when he was in Viceroy’s Yan possession.

He wonders when did this become his life now.

Eunhyuk is a wanted criminal in every part of the galaxy and has more than 200 billion credits bounty to his name, and as the months passed by the amount only increases. Yet, he proceeds to cause a stir wherever he goes, instigating an uprising in Nova Region of the Midrow and blowing up the embassies and military bases of the Concordia—but not without consequences.

They been on the run for two standard months now, hounded by the Concordia and bounty hunters looking for fame and fortune, to be the one to finally put away the infamous leader of Ad Astra. Any members of Ad Astra and her allies are also wanted, so they were forced spread throughout the Midrow as they all try to complete their missions as order by Hyukjae before reuniting back in the Outer Rim where even the reaches of the Concordia’s can’t get at them.

Hyukjae took no one else along with him but Donghae despite protests from his associates, and ever since they had been to Keize and Ihron and Llowe, and many of the other major transportation hub planets that the planets were starting to bleed into one another. Donghae can’t even keep up with the shifting time zones, not when the day and night are becoming all the same for him and his biological clock doesn’t care that Terune has 38 hours to its spin and only six of those hours are actually daylight.

Hyukjae had dragged him to these planets, for one reason or another, that Donghae isn’t privy to but every time an untimely death of a political leader of the Concordia, a bomb of a military facility, stolen secrets documents, or any related crimes Donghae knows it’s members of Ad Astra in the work. He only wonders which one Hyukjae has a direct hand in.

So they keep moving from planet to planet, safe house to safe house because if they can get to Eunhyuk, they could finally dismantle Ad Astra completely because more than anything Eunhyuk is a symbol. He embodies the misery and the plight of the common people, and the will to stands up to fight against the oppression and Ad Astra is his tool.

The Ad Astra represents many thing to many different people.

Rebels, some would say, heroes fighting for freedom and justice and from the tyranny of the Concordia.

Terrorist, others would argue, instigators, murderers, and anarchists trying to bring down the very foundation of our civilizations.

But neither of those feel right to Donghae. For him, the Ad Astra is a group that is made up of misfits and the castoff of society and though their actions are unpredictable and volatile at best, their motives have always been clear—bring down the ruling class and usurp the power from the Concordia.

Perhaps that does make them a criminal organization, but what does it means for him when he’s following them around across the galaxy? He’s neither a member of Ad Astra or truly believe in their cause—violence only begets violence—but Donghae has no other place to return to. If he goes back to the Empire, he would only be sold to another owner and once again become a rare ornament that they can show off and if he goes off alone, he has nothing to his skillset that will keep him alive.

A pretty winged pet to dress up as they please and entertain others, but has no intricate values outside of what people thinks. That was his life before Hyukjae came along, he was showered with wealth and luxury and though he was sheltered and loved by his master he was still consider less than human in everybody’s eyes.

He was a slave to their whims.  

And now, Hyukjae may have broken the shackles of slavery on Donghae but Donghae is bound to him in other ways. When was “rescued” and brought on aboard the Vengeance, he was given accommodations and DUST to stem off from going under, and nobody treated him anything but just another human body living on the ship but he was never kept far away from Hyukjae and the secrets and missions of the AA were never for his ears because he is never a member of their crew but an extension of Hyukjae.

His identity is wrapped up in Hyukjae, because he took Donghae from the Viceroy’s palace and kept him captive on board the ship and given two options: stay with him or be dumped on an outpost colony.

Donghae had liked neither options but if he had chosen freedom he would have been left to fend for himself and with no way to honestly earn the medicine to keep his body from attacking itself, and he know the values of the wings on his back—he’ll only end up being used and abuse.

So he took Hyukjae’s hand.

It’s one set of cage after the next but this time Donghae had chosen his own collar and put it around his ankle. And that’s make all the difference in the world.

So now, he is also a criminal by proxy due to associating with Hyukjae and the Ad Astra, though he never stained his hands like theirs—Hyukjae doesn’t want him to. “You’re like those winged being in the books of the Old Earth, angels they call them,” he had said, touching Donghae’s wings. “I feel like I have committed a sin if I taint you with what we do.”

Which Donghae will always find ironic, because Hyukjae sins are many—tainting Donghae is not one of them.

Thinking about these past five standard months of his life is giving him a headache, and he just wants to sleep now after the exhausting day with the girls of this house—who thought of him as novelty. So, Donghae closes his eyes and hopes for a quiet dream.

It won’t be till later when the rustling of the bed sheets disturbed his sleep. Donghae feels the presence of a body plops down next to him on the bed and hands reaching out and moving his body, till he’s laying half of his body on top of the person’s warm chest.

“Finish?” Donghae murmurs, eyes still close and dazed with sleep but he recognizes that heat and touch anywhere.

“Yea,” Hyukjae yawns, raking a hand through Donghae’s wings, sending a shiver of pleasure throughout Donghae’s body.

He opens his eye and meets the accommodating darkness. “What do you plan to do with it?” he asks quietly.

Hyukjae’s hand stop moving and Donghae is met with a stone wall of silent.

Donghae scoots out of Hyukjae’s embrace and buries his face onto a pillow, he bites back a scream before jerking his head up.

“Am I going to like what you’re planning?” Donghae sighs, this is the question he should have ask first.

Hyukjae huffs, “No.”  He rolls over and buries his face into Donghae’s back—his cheeks and nose brushing Donghae’s wings and his lips lightly kissomg Donghae’s feathers.

Donghae shut his eyes enjoying the touch, but he can’t help thinking of the people that will die and the lives that will be destroy after tonight because even if they were his enemies he can’t think of ever doing what Hyukjae do.

Someday, he doesn’t know if he’s talking to Eunhyuk or Hyukjae because while they are one and the same, Eunhyuk is the one who lead a blood soaked revolution, never once faltering or hesitating, and he certainly doesn’t look back to see the destruction and people he lay waste to but it is Hyukjae who quietly bare his crimes and the cause of AA with an aching hope that in the end it all would be worth it.

Hyukjae is the broken soldier that was used and chewed up by the Tehran Empire that made him this way, and hope festered into his beat up heart—dreaming of a better world. Eunhyuk is incendiary, the one who incites revolution in the common people and wages a calculating war that holds no mercy.

There is one thing that Donghae is clear of though, it doesn’t matter whichever identity Hyukjae lay claims to, he will always be carnage and unforgiving in his righteous fury, and the path he paves with fire and blood is unforgiving to his enemies.

Hyukjae is dangerous and capricious and a paradox wrapped up into one man who’s about to raze this galaxy to the ground and Donghae is in the eye of the storm.

But tonight, the turbulent world is silent and war is stop however momentarily as the most dangerous man in the galaxy is quietly resting beside Donghae.

—-

idkkk i had this image of donghae causally hanging out with a bunch of prostitutes as hyukjae wrecked havoc across the galaxy LOL (b/c hyukjae doesn’t think any place is safer than a house fill w/ a bunch of well armed deadly prostitutes who can kill you w/ their thighs) and then coming back to donghae when he’s exhausted and tire from a hard day of work like stealing SATELLITE WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION and blowing up stuff is just a normal thing for him :PP well in his case it is.

but really, i love how this part turn out b/c it’s highlight a few things: 1) the persona hyukjae presents to the world and the other side of the rebel leader/terrorist that donghae is quickly finding out (space slave fic!hyukjae has a very ‘the end justified the means’ the mentality, so he doesn’t like wut he do but he does thing it’s necessary in order to accomplish his goal; his morality is pretty grey /o\) 2) donghae had spent the majority of his life sheltered and basked in wealth as a pet of the elite and now he’s chilling out w/ outlaws how weird is that??? 3) it focuses on hyukjae a little bit more :DDD, giving us a bit of his motives and backstory!

[kewltie]

"Do you think I'm such a huge threat to you and your people that you would bind me with this?!" Donghae demands, cheeks heated and hands trembling with unfiltered anger. "Don't you dare mock me! I know I'm a slave so stop reminding me that I am helpless and can't do anything." He grips the anklet tightly as if he could tear his binding apart with sheer will.

Eunhyuk rolls his shoulders carelessly and leans in, his face barely inches from Donghae that he could see dark flecks in Eunhyuk's eyes. "History have shown me that empires had crumble because of a pretty face and I don't intend to end up as another black mark in history because I was a fool enough to underestimate you," he murmurs, then he lifts a strand of Donghae's hair and kissing it so gentle and brief that it left Donghae in a dazed.

Eunhyuk continues to be an enigmatic frustrating puzzle.

[kewltie]

[fic] a fronte praecipitium a tergo lupi

title: a fronte praecipitium a tergo lupi

author: kewltie

pairing: hyukjae/donghae

genre: scifi, space opera, action, adventure

contains: slavery (so dubcon all round), wings, bloody revolution war, morally dubious chars (or should i say amoral??), classism, violent (a lot of violent), persecution

summary:The night Lee Eunhyuk came into Donghae's life was the same night the Viceroy's palace was lit up in flames, Donghae had watched in still horror as a bullet goes through his master head, and he was taken from one kind of cage to the next by a madman who wanted to change the world and didn't care how much the world would have to bleed for it.

notes: i written this for trope_bingo for the prompt slavefic and this is where it took me... idek. this is part of the starlight empire 'verse, meaning though this is a one shot it is not completely done (this is basically an introduction into the 'verse). there will be more of it... eventually.

glossary

part one

i do not know how to write simple fics. /shameface