"Are they torturing him in there?"

Baekhyun looked at Kai with amusement painted over his features, and the small frown that had slowly gathered into existence on his brow eased. "Do you hear any screams?"

"It could be, like, silent torture," Mark said thoughtfully, and next to him, Taeyong rolled his eyes. "Like emotional torture. Or maybe they gagged him."

Ten felt a little sick at the thought. "I think you would still be able to hear sounds. Or is the room soundproof?"

All of them turned to Baekhyun curiously, but he only shrugged. "They're professionals, they know what they're doing," he said dismissively, referring to Taemin and Lucas, who were in the room with the dealer Taeyong and Mark had captured earlier. Though 'capture' was a generous word for it. From what he had heard of their report, it sounded more like a lucky accident to him.

Mark opened his mouth.

"And no, they're not torturing him," Baekhyun said, as he noticed the black-haired boy getting up. "Geronimo is very mellow. I expect it will be pretty easy to make him talk."

Mark closed his mouth.

"Why are we even keeping him?" Ten asked, cocking his head to the side, like a bird. "There's been a lot on the news about that gang—the Forks or something." His voice dropped to a whisper. "I thought they were a rumor at first, with all of that impressive stuff they managed to pull off

Baekhyun's eyes flicked to him, and then away, giving the overall impression of a candle's flame in the wind. "It's just to smoke Gerry's superiors out of hiding," he said softly, but Ten's eyes narrowed at the tone of his voice. "You are progressing to bigger fish, which is great," he said suddenly, touching strands of his orange hair with his fingertips. "This week has been busy, and so far, you're doing an amazing job—" Mark blushed— "but we still have many things to take care of." He tapped a black folder lying on the table next to him. "I have assignments for all of you."

The others groaned, but Ten only pursed his lips. "Will we switch up this week, then?"

He had been partnered with Lucas, which had been a pain. Ten's artistic soul had collided headfirst with Lucas's martial one, and the collision had been quite painful. What was worse was that unlike him, Lucas preferred to keep his feelings to himself, leaving them no choice but to work together in rebellious lack of sync. Ten found it impossible to work in harmony with someone so different from him, which seemed hazardous, especially as partners had to watch out for each other.

Kai had fared much better, being partnered with Baekhyun. Out of the other six, Ten found him the most bearable and sensible. Taeyong was too crabby, Mark was too childish, Kai was too...well, ignorant, maybe. And Taemin—Ten shuddered at the thought of him. He didn't quite know what to make of him. All that he knew was that he was a philanthropist who didn't like to reveal his ways or thoughts. He was a figure shrouded in mystery.

Maybe he shouldn't have joined the project, but then, he kind of enjoyed it. It had been so long since he'd been a part of something that made him feel like someone.

Baekhyun's eyes cut to him, as if he had read his thoughts. "Yes," he said neutrally, in answer to his previous question. "But you shouldn't be too happy about that. The reason all of you were paired off was to build the team spirit—after all, we're all going to be working together, as seven, for later projects." He smiled. "And what better situations for bonding than life-and-death ones?"

"Yeah, it's not that easy," Taeyong muttered, and for once, Ten agreed with him. The blue-haired male was leaning against the wall in a slightly slouched posture, arms crossed over his chest defiantly.

"I never said it was going to be easy," Baekhyun said breezily, picking up the file. "Taeyong, you're with Kai now. Ten, you go with Mark. Lucas will partner with me. He and Taemin should be out soon, and all of you have to go train after this." A collective groan. "All right, now, no complaining. Pick up your assignments on the way out."

Mark smiled brightly, waving at him. Ten pursed his lips, trying not to show his lack of enthusiasm.

At that moment, the noise of a door opening and closing sounded from the hallway. Lucas and Taemin emerged from the mouth of it, looking almost exactly as they had when they had first entered, except now, Taemin had an almost feverish pallor to his face. His eyes shone, but with what, Ten couldn't tell.

"What did you get?" Baekhyun asked, and Ten noticed the almost indiscernible change in his tone. It was more closed-off now, not like a 'team leader' voice, but that of someone talking to their equal. It was businesslike and brisk, leaving no room for hesitation or judgement. It was the voice of someone who had something dangerous to do.

Taemin met his eyes grimly, but didn't reply. Instead, he turned to the rest of them, who all straightened a bit at the mere sight of him. "Change of plans," he announced, voice as honey-sweet as ever, but with a poisonous hint to it. "We'll be acting as a group after this."

"What?" Baekhyun asked sharply, the frown re-establishing its position on his forehead. "But they're not done with their training yet."

"We can't afford to wait," Taemin insisted. "This is our only opening."

"Opening?" Ten questioned, tilting his head to the side. "For what?"

This time, it was Lucas who answered. He smiled when the redhead looked at him, but it was without joy. "We have a lead."

|

"Does this mean we'll get to use our powers?" Ten asked.

Lucas could understand Ten's enthusiasm. In the missions that had been assigned to them over the past couple of weeks, they had been banned from using their powers except in emergencies. Baekhyun had said that this was to 'facilitate' them with 'the power of response and physical prowess', which Lucas respected, but still chafed under.

The others he could understand. They were inexperienced in combat and reflex training, but he had basically grown up in these situations. He had good senses. He had skills. Then why had he been barred from using his powers? If it hadn't been for the ban, the missions could have been completed much quicker. It was better for him, too, as it meant that he wouldn't have to tiptoe around Ten for a longer time.

"Not for large periods of time," Baekhyun said. He still had worry lines creasing his forehead, as if what Taemin had said had really disturbed him. Lucas wasn't sure why—the assignment didn't sound too difficult for him. It was almost too easy, especially since they were acting as a group, which just made them more powerful. If they were allowed to use their superpowers.

They were walking through a long hangar, still shuttered at one side. As they walked from one end to the other, it became progressively darker, but the large fluorescent lights on either wall lit up as they made their way through it. The hangar wasn't especially big, just long, with a high, curved ceiling and tall, metallic walls that loomed on either side of them like beasts.

"Some of you either don't know your powers, or have no idea how to harness them," Baekhyun continued. "We'll keep training for now, though it will be more...specialized."

Taemin had said that he was taking them somewhere special, but he hadn't specified how. Lucas didn't consider himself a fan of surprises, but most of the time, he didn't mind them. Now, he was just excited. Taemin hadn't disappointed yet, with the suits and the weapons for smaller-scale missions. Lucas felt like a collector who had found a rare currency.

A hangar. What did Taemin have in store for them?

The large bifold door at the front of the hangar lifted at an angle, and sunlight trickled in as it opened wider, climbing up the floor. He watched as the doors folded up completely, opening up the hangar to the outdoors, and bathing them in the yellow afternoon light. The view outside was picture-perfect, clean and clear with the rolling grass-scape and cornflower-blue skies, but that wasn't the thing that caught their attention first.

Lucas bit his lip to keep from smiling.

In front of them was a massive fighter jet, a matte black aircraft that seemed to be cut out of obsidian. It was roughly triangular in shape, stretching sleek and beautiful. Its wings spanned about a good thirty feet, turning down sharply at the corners like a sugar glider's wings, complete with claws. The body was thick and sturdy as corded muscle, the cover spreading out from the tail, making it seem as if the metal was reaching out to meet the wings halfway. The upper curve of the nosecone was almost entirely glass, and twin engines at the back bulged like elastic pulled tight.

It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

"What is that?" This was Mark, with awe in his voice, and Taemin looked over at him, smiling. The pride was obvious in his expression, and for a moment, Baekhyun allowed a slow smile to spread over his face.

"That," he said, sounding almost breathless, "is AEOLUS."

||

any guessed at the abbreviation? i'm sorry if the actual one is disappointing lol i suck at this stuff

ALSO YAY WE'RE SLOWLY GETTING INTO THE PLOT !! what do you think everyone's superpower is? who's your favorite character so far? least favorite? why?

so many questions i'm sorry, i'm just trying to pick out the flaws so i can give you guys a better story haha

love,
manx.