"Watch out!" Taehyung ran with all his might towards Hoseok, ignoring the pain in his left thigh and trying to get there before the bullet hit its target. Hoseok turned at his shout, blood dripping from his eyebrow, he stepped back, trying to protect himself by shooting at regular intervals, but the three running towards him had heavier and faster weapons.

Namjoon got there first, his heavy body knocked Hoseok down and covered him like a shield, several ragged muffled shots rang out, one landed in the eye, the second flew back with a bullet in the forehead, the third froze and panicked, seconds later, he fell to his knees and grabbed his throat, and Jin towered behind him.

"We need to find cover!" Namjoon stood up, helping Hoseok. The two of them looked around in all directions. "If we stay out in the open, we don't stand a chance!" Jungkook leaned his back against Jin. "And our people are pinned down, if we or they retreat it's done for both sides" growled Taehyung, finally reaching the others. "Has anyone seen Yoongi?" Jimin looked around worriedly more for their friend than because they were surrounded and had no way to retreat.

"I think he stayed back" Jin shook his head, reloading his gun as the six, in a circle with their backs to each other, moved slowly for cover. "Alone?!" Najoon almost screamed and shoved Jungkook hard, when a shot rang out, Jungkook quickly regained his balance and the six began shooting their way through.

"If we get away, I'll kill him!" Jin rolled his eyes and started reloading his gun again "You mean 'when'?" Hoseok reloaded his weapon in turn and his gaze fell on the opposite wall. "Over there" he nodded towards the wall and the group started to move towards it. "I said whatever and how I had to say it!" grunted Jin. However, their path was again cut off and they stopped, the situation was more than a stalemate.

And it was supposed to be a simple entry and exit, they only wanted information and nothing more, but after they got the first flash drive, they got a second similar one, thanks to Yoongi and Jimin. Their raids on Kang Lee's bases became more frequent and he began to grow nervous, hiring more men, arming them better, concealing himself more cleverly.

Each subsequent attack became more and more risky and more and more people were waiting for them. Kang was changing the locations of his work meetings at the last minute, so when attacked, they didn't know where he would be, and that's exactly how they found themselves in this situation.

The barricade of people around them became more and more dense, the shooting from both sides stopped, the two camps observed each other silently and appraisingly. Some were waiting for orders, others the opportunity for a successful attack. "Kill them!" the order was issued by a sweaty, slightly chubby man in his fifties, dressed in a custom-made plaid suit, biting into a cigar and reaching into his pockets casually, as if he wasn't in the middle of a firefight.

The weapons were pointed, the living chain around them moved and tightened, there was nowhere for them to run, and even if they tried, they wouldn't make more than a step before someone shot them."Guess that was it" Jin muttered, feeling a shoulder next to his. "You're probably right" Hoseok sighed, smiling slightly. "I wouldn't bet on that" Yoongi's voice sounded in their ears and the circuit was illuminated by bright headlights, making them look in their direction.

The chain moved and with shouts and screams the men ran away, trying to avoid the tires of the burning tanker, which was headed straight for them. The boys immediately took advantage as shots flew through the air and the running men began to fall one by one. The tank crashed right into the wall, cutting off the path of their attackers, the six were saved, at least for now. "Move your fucking asses, motherfucker!" Yoongi yelled into the receiver as the six of them pushed their way through the men who were left on their side of the tank.

"Whoever tries to escape-dies!" came the command of the dispossessed man again. "None of Kang Lu's men are afraid of a little smoke!" he roared and his men froze in place. "Damn it!" Jungkook snorted and turned, starting to shoot in the direction of the still burning tank. A few of Kang's men were already surrounding her, pushed back, and most killed by the blast wave, when the cistern, engulfed in flames, exploded with a deafening rumble. Hoseok, Jimin, and Namjoon also ended up on the ground, stunned by the shock wave. Jungkook, Jin, and Taehyung surrounded them, protecting them from the men coming after the explosion.

Another explosion sounded somewhere to their right. "Yoongi!" Jimin yelled and the earpiece in his ear popped. "We're fine....most of us at least" Yoongi's voice shook and Jimin heard pained moans and screams. "We won't get out if we keep standing in one place" Taehyung looked askance at Jin. "What do you suggest? We're almost out of ammo?" he asked and Jin gritted his teeth. They were never in a more hopeless situation.

"Let them go" a whisper behind Kang Lu's back made him shiver and the muzzle of a gun stuck into his back, but he couldn't mistake that voice. "Persephone..." the name sounded like a lover calling his beloved, quietly, tenderly, almost in disbelief. "Persephone is dead!" Maya hissed confidently and pressed her muzzle to his back some more. "You're alive" he tried to turn to her, but she nudged his shoulder with the gun, signaling him not to move. "No thanks to you, Kang!" Maya huffed and he chuckled.

"Recall your men" she ordered softly and he laughed. "Are you with them now?" he looked over his shoulder. "I should have guessed you were alive and that one day you would turn on me, but with them?" he shook his head. "I didn't expect you to fall so low" this time Maya laughed, actually outright laughed. "Low? There's no place lower than the hole you push people into, Kang!" he shrugged nonchalantly. "I don't hear them complaining" he replied dryly.

"As if they would dare. I said withdraw your dogs, Kang!" her voice turned into an ice arrow and he loudly ordered them to stop firing. "Come with me and they will live" Maya narrowed her eyes. "You don't think I trust you, do you? Even if I come with you, you'll still kill them" she snorted and physically felt Kang Lu smirking evilly. "Do you have any other choice?" he asked, taking a step forward and turning to face Maya.

"I can kill you," she shrugged, pointing the muzzle at his face. "Then they will die for sure" she furrowed her brows, looking him straight in the eyes. No one had ever hated anyone as much as Maya hated Kang Lu, and the fact that he saw her as a cherished possession that he thought was lost made her hate him even more.

"They stopped, why they stopped?" Jimin asked confused, looking around startled, none of the six really knew what to do when their attackers just stopped, pointing guns at them, but no one was moving or firing. "Because they were ordered to" Yoongi whispered into their ears. "What, why?" Namjoon tensed, trying to see what was going on behind the tank and with Kang Lu.

"Choose, Persephone, you or them?" Kang asked calmly and Maya raised an eyebrow. "Neither" replied Maya, shrugging only one shoulder and smiling slightly. "They say don't put the pan down before you've caught the fish, Kang" Maya stepped back slightly and in the silence a rumble sounded, followed by several explosions around them. Kang turned around in surprise, watching his men try to escape the blasts or simply fall like pieces of wood.

"I'm gonna find you!" he hissed and she tilted her head slightly mockingly. "Not if I get to you first Kang" the calmness in her voice made him grit his teeth. "So you won't kill me, despite the perfect opportunity?" his eyebrows shot up and he smirked arrogantly. "Not yet," Maya replied, taking another step back. "What about them?" he nodded back to where his men were slowly melting under the fire element. "Hellhounds die here" Maya replied, lowering her gun but holding it ready to fire. "I don't think so" Maya turned sharply, but before she could see who it was, a dull pain shot through her neck and she lost consciousness.

"I will kill him, if he touches her, I will kill him!" Namjoon and Jungkook locked their heels into the floor, Jimin resting his hands on Taehyung's chest and Hoseok holding his waist as the four of them tried to stop him. The hard blow hit his chin and Taehyung's head snapped back, but he didn't seem to feel it, gritting his teeth, he shook his head and his blazing hellish gaze locked on Jin.

"Maya risked her life to get us out and you're going to just go back there and try to save her so you both die?" Jin roared at him and Taehyung growled stubbornly. "He's going to kill her if we don't get her out!" Taehyung yelled at him. The loading of a gun and the cold metal resting on his forehead made him stop, he turned to meet Su's calm eyes.

"Don't underestimate Persephone" her flat voice and Su's expressionless face strained his nerves even more. "I don't underestimate her" he growled, resuming his struggle. "I want her back!" panting, he managed to free his hands from Namjoon and Jungkook and push Jimin away. "We all want her back,my boy, but if you go there in this state, you'll only make it worse" Taehyung froze in place and looked at Aunt Rin guiltily.

"Think of us Taehyung, I'm sure she's counting on you to protect us right now" he closed his eyes and shook his head."No aunty, I'm not like Maya, I'm not a hero, I just want my girl back!" he muttered and opened his eyes when someone cupped his cheeks. "Listen to me, Taehyung" his gaze turned to Kami, the sweet and always silent Kami whose voice he had never heard before. "If Maya showed herself to Kang, then she's up to something" she stood next to the old woman. "She did it to save us, so I can't leave her there..." Kami shook her head.

"She didn't need to show herself to save you. The commotion from the grenade launcher was enough" Kami replied and Taehyung narrowed his eyes. "Did she do it on purpose?" Kami nodded and he relaxed his shoulders weakly. "Why, what could make her reveal herself and risk her life? To abandon me?" desperation crept into his voice and Kami stepped forward and hugged him.

"I don't know, but whatever it is, it must be very important to her once she does it. Besides, Kang won't kill her" Aunt Rin assured him and he looked at her uncertainly. "Kang Lu loves Maya, in his own twisted and sadistic way, but he loves her. To him, she is a treasure whose loss would be irreparable" she sighed, knowing that even if Kang wouldn't kill her, he would torture Maya and he would make her regret every hundredth of a second he thought she was dead.

"Do you suggest I just sit and wait?" Taehyung looked back at Jin and Namjoon, hoping they would support him. "We suggest we prepare, find her and get her out before it's too late." Yoongi replied, interjecting for the first time since he explained how Maya had shown up and saved them by surrendering. "We've been fighting Kang for years, only Maya's appearance and actions helped us get this far" Taehyung tried to rationally explain to them. "How do you propose we find and rescue her?" he asked, as if any of them were to blame for her decision.

"Like before, with our help" Timo intervened and Taehyung looked at him angrily. "It's not just Maya who knows Kang and she's not the only one who's been helping you. She's our leader as well as a friend, we're not going to let anything happen to her while we sit around whining" he stood in front of Taehyung and looked up at him. "We know what it's like to miss a loved one, but if we act hastily, we will only fail and Maya will be the one to kick our asses in hell" he smiled confidently.