"Any news from Kim?" Seonghwa swung his leg over his bike and pulled his helmet off to put it securely into the back compartment. He made sure to put his keys into his bag before swinging his shotgun over his shoulder and starting his trek through the jungle.

He was in the heart of a tropical forest that was lively with vibrant greens and animals of all kinds. In the distance, he could hear the rushing of a large waterfall. Nature was untouched by civilisation here, and just grew and sprouted however it wanted. There were some old paths that had been stomped into the earth by ancient tribes long forgotten. It was healing to walk through the forest.

"Nothing new, but he's around there somewhere. Left a door open for you according to the drone. Such a gentleman," San giggled into the comm, tapping right away on his keyboard. From the sounds of it, he also had some jelly to munch on. Seonghwa hadn't called him out about Wooyoung yet, but he reminded himself to do it right away once he came home.

Right now, he didn't want to go home. His pack had ganged up against him and was trying to get him into Hongjoong's pants. He certainly didn't need that chaos in his life right now.

Seonghwa regretted wearing his long green pants and combat boots as he ducked under a large leaf and stepped out into a little clearing. He had found the waterfalls that plunged into the large lake below, taking up nearly all of the cliffs. There was some island underneath they largely avoided, probably where the entrance was too.

As Seonghwa pulled out his binoculars, a flock of white birds took off from some tree nearby, reminding him of Peru.

Sweat seeped into his black tank top from how humid the air was as he knelt down to safely overlook the scenery without falling off his cliff.

"If all else fails, I can get into the postcard business." He looked out over the clear blue sky and the tons of water falling down several dozens of meters. He'd have to get down there.

As he swiped the area, he also noticed a hidden black jeep on the cliff opposite of his side of the crater. They had parked behind some trees and were loading boxes down the waterfall. They were probably not Hongjoong's men again and rather annoying in Seonghwa's opinion.

"Oh, now look at the little termites mucking it all up. That won't do at all." Seonghwa zoomed in on them and pursed his lips when he saw them accidentally drop one of the crates they were moving down. The water destroyed it immediately, leaving nothing behind.

"Looks like they didn't get in from this side. Any ideas?"

Seonghwa put his binoculars away with a sigh and stood to his full height. Idly, he slapped at a mosquito on his arm.

"We'll see. I do my best thinking plunging off cliffs."

With that, he ensured that his gun was strapped safely to his body and took a few steps back to gain enough distance to speed up.

San made a choked up noise, scrambling to be busy enough to look away as Seonghwa ran forward.

Seonghwa jumped with perfect form. He stretched out his arms behind him as he was falling through the air that ruffled his hair and made his stomach feel funny. As he descended further down, he pulled those arms forward, diving into the water with his fingertips first and his body following in a straight line.

The water was clear and cool, doing wonders in washing his excess sweat off. He had barely even arrived and was already a mess. Hongjoong probably wasn't wearing his catsuit today either. It was far too hot for black leather. Of course, that didn't disappoint Seonghwa.

Seonghwa swam over to the island with quick and powerful movements, pulling himself on land. Indeed, there was a stone bridge right in front of him, leading into the waterfall. It parted around the dark entrance, falling down left and right of the open gate.

Seonghwa jogged over fearlessly and stepped onto the slippery stone to get inside. He would like to find Hongjoong and the artefact first before having to fight all of those henchmen from the Japanese mafia.

Seonghwa crossed behind the waterfall fearlessly. The rushing noise was deafening and the light considerably dimmed as he stepped further towards the doors.

He was looking over the giant temple that took over literally the mountain and led inside God knows how deep for a moment, noticing the many old pillars and caryatids that were covered by green mosses and the shadow of time.

"Spotted the temple," San commented dryly in his ear, munching away on some snacks immediately after. Seonghwa grinned to himself. He was happy with this new findings, even if he would have preferred exploring it on his own.

"Grand entrances are always impractical. It's what makes them grand." He was just about to step into the welcoming door that reeked of mould and decay when a voice to his right held him back.

"Park! Did you have a nice journey?"

There he was.

Seonghwa immediately whipped his weapon out and pointed it at the red-haired devil, only to falter when he saw him.

He still wore that stupid catsuit. Or rather, a short version of it. The black latex reached until his mid-thigh - glorious thighs and Seonghwa was not staring at all - and hugged his body tightly. It showcased all of his curves and the tattoo on his right forearm as its sleeves were short too.

The worst thing was that it was mostly open at the front. He had zipped it open down until his bellybutton and his defined chest and pecs made an appearance. Seonghwa loathed all of the skin he saw and how the man's weapon's belt framed his crotch and hugged his thighs.

Hongjoong cutely waved a hand at him. He was wearing fingerless gloves today, clearly ready to pull a few triggers on his shiny pistols that hung on his hips.

Seonghwa's weapon had considerably sunken during the time he had been staring, but thankfully he was far enough that it was not too obvious. Stupid Hongjoong and his red hair that stood out like a sore thumb.

Seonghwa played it cool.

"Oh look, it's Kim. Fancy dropping down for a chat, then?"

Hongjoong stood on a platform far away from him and further up in the temple already. He seemed to have waited in a safe distance for Seonghwa to pass through.

"Only if you can shoot this far," Hongjoong smiled broadly as he lifted his empty hands.

So he had probably not found the amulet piece so far. That was good. There was still time.

"You know long-distance relationships inevitably come to an end." Seonghwa put his weapon away again because indeed, he could not shoot that far. Hongjoong had predicted him well again.

Seonghwa pretended his eyes didn't drop when Hongjoong lifted one leg to stem it onto a rock in front. His laughter was gleeful and clearly enthusiastic to see Seonghwa here.

"Right, we just have to close that distance. If you can catch up, of course."

Seonghwa stemmed his hands in his hips, looking up at the man with a patient smirk curling his lips. He was done with Hongjoong playing with him. He would play right back.

"Do I need to do that, though, or will you wait for me anyway because you just can't seem to avoid me? How is it, that after dodging each other for years, suddenly you are so attracted to me?" Seonghwa yelled back, satisfied when Hongjoong laughed again before stepping down.

"Come and find out. I want to fight you today."

Seonghwa rose his brow at him despite knowing he would not be able to see due to the distance.

"Do you, now? Let's battle it out then."

"Come and catch me, Fledgeling." With that, he disappeared between the stone structures and left Seonghwa to it.

Balling his hand into a fist, Seonghwa turned back to doing his work. Hongjoong had used that old nickname again.

He had called Seonghwa that on their first-ever meeting. When Hongjoong took off after laughing to their faces. 'Virgin Fledgling' he had called a very confident (and virgin) Seonghwa and ran.

Seonghwa was still bitter about it because, at that time, it had shattered all of his carefully build confidence. But by now, it was clear that Hongjoong had been none the better at that time. And Seonghwa had sworn to show Hongjoong that he was neither anymore.

"I mean... If you fucked each other he wouldn't call you a virgin for sure," San supplied helpfully while Seonghwa stepped into the temple and down the first flight of asymmetrical stairs.

"If I fuck him he will shut up completely. Now leave me alone."

"I'll only leave you alone when that if turns into a when."

Despite the threat, San became very quiet when Seonghwa warningly hovered his finger over his headset.

Seonghwa finally moved in peacefully.

The narrow halls insides were dripping with water and as it seemed he would have to swim through some flooded parts from time to time. Still, he sometimes took breaks to decipher the ancient writings on the walls or take some pictures with his PDA.

Maybe he stalled meeting Hongjoong just a bit now that he knew the man was waiting for him anyway. What was the use in becoming impatient? Seonghwa didn't want to seem too desperate to meet the other man.

His greatest worry at the moment were the traps inside of the temple. There was anything, from hidden trapdoors, over falling beams, spears that tried to impale him when he stepped on certain spots to a full-blown truck-sized ball that came rolling at him when he innocently tried to walk down a corridor.

It took him hours to get to the spot where Hongjoong had been and by the time he did, he was marred with minor injuries and dirt from his many jumping and rolling adventures.

He took a break outside and looked out over the waterfalls while he snacked his lunch.

These ruins probably dated back to pre-Incan times too, leaving Seonghwa to wonder again about what Terada had said about King Artus. Where was the connection? Seonghwa had no time to take samples of these surroundings, but he was sure it had nothing to do with his ancestors either.

"Get moving. Hongjoong found the amulet piece. He's waiting for you further up. Sneaked past the yakuza successfully."

With a sigh, Seonghwa rose and dusted his pants off. He would deny how excitedly his heart was beating away in his chest at the mention of the other man. Their upcoming fight made a ball of gleeful anticipation curl in Seonghwa's belly that he just knew would morph into lust far too quickly.

But then again, he wouldn't mind it all that much. He kind of saw the point by now, he was just too prideful to admit it. Doing the dirty with Hongjoong would be similar to losing in Seonghwa's eyes. If he succumbed to the appeal of his rival, then the other man won, no matter who had which position or gender.

The only possible way to have this go down in Seonghwa's favour was making sure the omega completely submitted to him. And something told Seonghwathat wouldn't be as easy as he made it sound. Hongjoong had played him like a doll on strings so far, distracting him whenever and pushing Seonghwa's defences down.

He had to formulate a plan. Maybe putting Hongjoong into his place would actually be a good idea. As long as he lost that brattiness, Seonghwa might get over him.

They were weird rivals.

"Did you fall asleep?" San chided him amusedly. Seonghwa wanted to kick the man so bad.

"No, I didn't. Tell me again why I have you as my spokesperson? I want Yunho back."

San giggled gleefully and Seonghwa melted at the imagination of his dimples making an appearance while his eyes formed little crescent moons.

He could forgive the man his cockiness.

"You got me because I just found out that the person I video-fucked yesterday is Hongjoong's brother. And he's very engrossed with me," he sing-songed teasingly. Seonghwa jumped up a boulder, slightly surprised.

"Gross. But good work, actually. Can you get some info out of him?" Seonghwa boldly leapt onto a hanging vine to swing over to the other platform, taking a shortcut.

"I'm on it. Would be easier if I could breed him on the side."

Seonghwa rolled his eyes. It made sense for San to be whipped for Hongjoong's omega brother. That meant that the last man, the one who checked on Hongjoong was the last beta in the pack.

Seonghwa felt a bit more elevated by that news as he resumed his journey.