LOCATION: SOUTHWESTERN ICE GLACIER, EISMITTE
TIME: 18:23

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THE HUMMING SOUND that accompanies the fog causes an unsettling feeling in the pits of everyone's stomach. nobody moves for a while in anticipation and it is quiet, save for the unwelcome hum.

"are we still not moving?" seokjin finally whispers, feeling highly uncomfortable with the cloudy darkness surrounding him. "i don't advise moving about carelessly." seolhyun answers.

"so we're just going to be sitting ducks in the bloody darkness? what the hell is going on?" yoongi asks in a bored tone. "i'm not really sure. this might be some tactic to buy time or a sneak attack. either way, be on guard." seolhyun blows out a breath. "they can probably see us but we can't see them. six witches and none of you saw this coming?" he replies with incredulity.

"this feels strange." thanda mumbles, eyes narrowing in the darkness. "jeongguk hasn't said some dumb shit yet." she continues. "and taehyung is unusually quiet about how exciting this is."

"you're right. hoseok hasn't said anything either. boys? are you chickening out at the first sign of danger?" seolhyun's voice is low.

"jimin," aaliyah reaches her hand out to confirm he hasn't disappeared. "he's still here." seolhyun reassures her, feeling her magic still at work. "then where in salem are those boys?" thanda scowls.

"it's not just them. nohemi's not here." aaliyah states, hand waving in the air in an attempt to feel the girl's presence. "she was right next to me a minute ago. but i can't feel or sense her anymore." her voice takes on a worried note.

"both kamaria and jasmin's auras seem to have disappeared completely. kamaria isn't really a surprise but jasmin? all that bubbling energy..." there's a slightly panicked tone to thanda's voice. "faex, we need to do something about this bloody fog first." seolhyun sounds frustrated.

"i should be able to handle that. even though it's clearly the work of a spell." thanda mumbles out, concentrating on clearing out the fog. she presses her palms together, the fingers on each hand facing opposite ends. she moves one hand around against the other like a key turning in a lock before suddenly pushing them apart. the fog disappears at the action and everyone breathes a sigh of relief.

looking around, they all frown. "they really aren't here." seokjin is clearly beginning to panic, his breathing becoming slightly more audible. "where did they go?" he turns to thanda who is wiping her glasses.

the girl takes a deep breath. "i don't know." she pulls her bottom lip between her teeth in thought. "whoever we're facing most likely has someone with apportation magic, and a very advanced one too. six people at once? and that fast? and there wasn't any sort of contact, not even eye contact." she goes off on a tangent in zulu.

"what is she saying?" yoongi's brows draw together. "i have no clue." aaliyah stares at the pacing girl. "she's speaking in zulu." she adds after a moment.

"we were ambushed. we can't stay here. what if they come back? not to mention we have to find the others." seokjin rubs his hands over his face, trying to calm down.

"i'm tired, i'm sleepy and hungry. my body clock has not adjusted to this goddamn timezone yet and it's probably well past midnight back home. if they're going to kill us, they might as well. at least that way i get eternal sleep." yoongi mutters, dropping to the ground tiredly.

"don't be like that. get off your ass and let's get going." seolhyun gives him a look. "where? jasmin and kamaria aren't here." seokjin asks with seriousness. "and the human compass is knocked out. not that he knows where they could possibly be. so how do we know where to go, huh, winter?" yoongi glances at her.

"this is an unsavoury situation." she notes with distaste. "can't one of you track one of the other witches or something?" seokjin asks, ruffling the strands of his hair that stick out of the beanie he has on. "that might be a bit difficult." aaliyah replies with a sigh. "why?"

"witches and wizards are trained at a young age to mask their auras and cloak their locations. it's to protect them from being easily detected by enemies." thanda explains, snapping out of her pacing thoughts.

"much good that did you." yoongi remarks with a scoff. seolhyun presses her lips together to avoid making a biting remark that would most likely lead to unnecessary bickering with the man. it also doesn't help that she feels she may be partly at fault as her cloaking skills aren't as great as the other girls.

it is silent for a minute, everyone lost in thought. the girls in particular seem to contemplate how to approach the current situation. "what are we supposed to do now they've split us up?" yoongi pushes his knees up and rests his head on them.

"we have to find the others." aaliyah answers simply, rubbing her temple with her index and middle fingers as though she's fighting a headache. "and we also have to find atro's people before they come back for us." thanda adds, sounding a bit stressed.

"looks like we'll have to switch the order around." seokjin states, a nervous note in his voice. "why?" yoongi looks up at the older man in curiosity. "probably because they found us first." aaliyah responds, her voice tense.

yoongi follows everyone's gaze to find an approaching group of dark silhouettes against the dark blue sky, a definite threatening aura about them. pushing himself up on his feet quickly, he lets out an exasperated sigh. are they ever going to get a break today?