Black Equation - The Hunted Ones

TEN

"Who would have thought an empty heart could weigh so much?"

TEN

The moment Ophee lost consciousness, Meric jumped away like he had been bitten by a viper. His body pressed against the wall and he waited to see masked men suddenly appearing by the doorway, aiming guns at him.

Seconds ticked by, but his fear didn't materialize. There was just him and the fainted girl inside the stillness of the room. No one else appeared.

He did not do anything to Ophee--and so, his first thought was that her fainting must be an act or ruse to frame him.

For Meric, there were only two kinds of people. Those who posed danger to him, and those who didn't. Whether they're on the good or bad side, it was a matter of perspective. Subjective. And so, he acted accordingly in response to the level of threat a person was to him.

The dividing line was a clear black and white, no in between. He was wary by nature. And it was this wariness that let him survive for the past eighteen years. That kind of mentality had made him into a breathing block of ice – cold to the point that he was unable to treat people around him with kindness and sincerity. After all, he had long ago relied on logic and practicality to protect himself, with no regard to petty courtesy and shallow emotions. Unlike Kreuz, he no longer viewed the people around him as fellow humans.

It was not an overbearing arrogance. It was simply a way of living. For people like him, ruthlessness and decisiveness spelled the difference between life and death.

Since childhood, he was honed by experience to gauge the threat posed by the people he encountered. It was no innate skill, but a product of countless deadly encounters. 

Since this Family seemed intent on keeping him and Kreuz, them must be scheming against the two of them. And he was sure that this Ophee was part of that scheme.

However, looking at her distressed face, couple with the fact that there seemed to be no cameras monitoring them, that did not seem to be the case. He was at a lost on what to do.

Was her fainting not his fault? Was he in danger? Could it be that Kreuz is the one in danger?

He closed his eyes, and even though his body was tired and battered, he still had enough energy to call Kreuz over with his innate ability. His spirit vibrated, and he knew his friend was on his way.

Out of breath, Kreuz was wide-eyed as he appeared outside Meric's room, but there was no accusation or reprove in his gaze, only concern. His gaze was on the unconscious girl. 

"What did you do?"

Trust Kreuz to be concerned with a stranger. Meric wanted to snort, but on his face, there was only his perpetual frown.

"I didn't do anything," Meric replied. He eyed the pale girl on his bed.

"Don't tell me you kissed her and she swooned?"

Meric leveled a glare at the mischievous face of the brown-haired boy. He was in no mood for this. "Do you want me to butcher you?"

"Kidding." Kreuz made a dismissive gesture, but he immediately crouched before Ophee and checked her vitals. "She seems healthy. Nothing is wrong with her body."

The carefree attitude Kreuz had disappeared, replaced by a vigilance similar to Meric's. He studied the room around them before waving his hands to form a tracing formation with his own innate ability. Similar to Meric, this was the first time he had used his innate ability since he arrived this this so-called Family's territory. A burst of his power immediately surrounded the area. It was a formless, colorless energy ripple that was impossible to detect unless one knew what to look for.

A look of relief spread across Kreuz's face. "There's no one else. She's alone."

Meric only gave a terse nod, but inside he was relieved as well. "She said she wants to help us escape, but we have to bring her out as well. Then, she asked for my hand and when she touched me, she fainted."

Kreuz stood up. "Do you think it has to do with her innate ability? Do you feel strange?"

One couldn't be too careful. Slowly, the two of them stepped away from the girl. Another burst in the air, a thunder with no sound, encompassed the area with Kreuz as its center. If anything went amiss, both he and Meric were prepared to run.

One second passed, two seconds . . .

The place was eerily silent. 

Meric eyed Kreuz as the latter crouched to inspect the unconscious girl once again. "It's freezing here yet she's drenched in sweat. It's like she's been subjected to torture."

"A mental attack?"

Kreuz nodded. "Seems to be the case. I'll look for Jules."

Meric steeled himself and grabbed Kreuz's arm to lift him up. When he exhaled, a mist formed in front of him. "If we call for help, won't this bring us trouble? She seems to be important to the people here. If they find her like this--"

"Don't tell me you plan on leaving her like this?" Kreuz appeared dumbfounded. Meric wanted to snort at the face he was showing. Sometimes, he wondered who was the younger one between them.

"You want to play Samaritan on her? Can we afford it?"

Kreuz glanced again at the unconscious girl. It lingered far too long for Meric's liking. "Don't you think that waiting for her to wake up is more troublesome? Besides, guts told me she sneaked in."

Meric could only sigh. Kreuz made an odd gesture with his index and middle finger and tapped on Ophee's forehead. There was thunder with no sound accompanying the movement of his hand. Several formless energy flew overheard, spreading out in different directions. 

A second later, Kreuz swayed as a trail of blood dripped from his nose. Meric let out a sound of disgust as he supported Kreuz's weakened body. His own knees nearly buckled at the extra weight. Thankfully, Kreuz did not notice. Meric would be damned if he collapsed in front of him.

"Idiot."

"At least like this, she'll wake up now."

Meric could only sigh. "Exhausting yourself for a stranger."

"Bah. You're sticking with me exactly because I'm like this. Don't you bully me." The two of them slowly backed away, one supporting the other. "Besides, she's really pretty. If she wakes up and I'm the first person she sees, do you think she'll be smitten?"

Despite his exhaustion, Meric finally cracked a smile. "Really, you."