Chapter Text
((We begin at Khun's base, 3 years after the disappearance of Baam))
There were a lot of things Khun didn't know. Was Baam really alive, like he hoped? What would Rachel do next? What really happened to Baam?
The Twenty-Fifth Baam, a boy Khun felt drawn to like a magnet. He was also the only one he'd ever really trusted. His memory of Baam's bright, hazel eyes flooded his memory and he was overcome with a wave of pain.
He tried to think of something else, rubbing his temples. He was hunched over a desk, head in his hands. Next door he heard Rachel dancing and spinning around in her room. Khun was overwhelmed with the same nauseating, exhausting hatred she often brought out in him.
Having not eaten all day, or slept in a few, he decided to just leave for a while. He had a quick bowl of noodles at a stall he tolerated in town, washed it down with more plum wine than he probably should have had in his emotional state, and wandered to a park to cool off in the false night breeze.
The alcohol hit him and his body washed over with a pleasant warmth. His inhibitions blurred and he could only picture Baam's big, sincere eyes and smile. He sat on a bench and felt hot tears stream down his face.
Damn... I guess I drank too much...
((in the secret FUG base with Viole and Jinsung))
"I'm sorry again about these accommodations. Not everyone in FUG is ready for a new slayer." As Jinsung spoke, Baam sat on the ground.
His back was against the cold cave wall, his undone hair covered his face. He meticulously bandaged the wounds up his arms from Jinsung's merciless training.
"I guess you could say we're having to lay... very low." It was a bit of a dad joke.
"It's fine, I'm used to being stuck in a cave," he said flatly. His focus stayed on the process of bandaging, slowly and carefully, up to his elbows on each side.
Underneath, he was covered in burns and blisters that cut into his skin. His master dropped his head, deciding to spare any speeches for another day, and he left Viole alone for the evening.
Every day had been hell since Rachel betrayed him. His still couldn't begin to understand everything that had happened, and in some ways he didn't care.
The only reason he kept going through with living was for the safety of his friends. As long as Fug was threatening their lives, Baam would be their personal weapon and do whatever was necessary.
He looked at the grey stones on the wall through his hair. The ground was cold and hard. Sadly, it reaminded him of his childhood.
But this was much more bitter. When he was in the cave, he was lonely, but he was full of hope for the future. He had trust, and Rachel, and life was simple. But now he had tasted life and knew what he was missing out on. He was a bird taken from nature and stuffed into a cage.
He wondered what his friends were doing, and if they'd already moved on and forgotten him. He thought about Rak and Khun and smiled before feeling like his heart was going to shatter. It hurt so much to think about them that he tried to shove it all away.
[[years later, in the cage with Yama, Baam, Khell Hellam, Khun, Cha and co.]]
"Khun, how do you think that Fug Ancient's future sight works?"
"I don't know, Baam. Not very well, it seems," His blue brows were furrowed. They had only come back from The Wall a few days before and it had been a mess, to say the least. Khell Hellam was floating above them, looking out at the false moon with the same serious expression he'd held since the battle at The Wall. "I wanna ask him."
Something had been stirring in the night, and the air had a very eerie quality to it. Maybe it from all of the death and devastation they were still in the middle of recovering from. It made the veil feel thinner. Like time, space, life, and death were in flux.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Khun's eyebrows shot up as he asked, and his mouth stayed open in a little surprised expression.
Baam smiled wide at him. Aguero is so cute, even when he's all worried.
"Sure, why not?"
Before Baam even gave Khun a chance to answer, he was standing on Khun's lighthouse and holding his hand out to him. Khun blushed a bit but took his hand trustingly and stepped to join him on the glowing cube as they drifted up to the Fug Elder.
"I've been so plagued with visions since the sun set, but I just can't trust my mind's eye anymore." Khell stayed facing away from them, stoic and serious, as he spoke. "But you boys can feel it tonight too, right?"
"Yeah, everything feels weird. I thought I was just imagining it." Baam seemed surprised at his own words as he spoke, "The air is electric tonight. Do you feel off, too, Khun?" He looked to his partner for validation.
"Definitely. The hair has been standing up on the back of my neck for a couple of hours now. I thought it was just my own paranoia."
They reflected on the odd moment, before Baam got back to the point. "Speaking of your visions, sir, how do they work? It seems like all the people we've met who see the future all see it in different ways." Khell nodded in acknowledgement. He would never say it, but he did appreciate their interest.
"I see the lines of cause and effect that guide to the most likely outcome, which manifests as a vision of the future. I suppose it's a bit like the sight of the silver dwarves, but I see visions farther into the future and more sporadically. After living for this long, I guess I'd become comfortable thinking of myself simply as a vessel for time and fate. But now I don't know."
The boys could feel the regret in his tone. Khun stayes holding Baam's hand, they were linked by only their pinkies in a small gesture of intimacy.
Baam reached out to Khell's arm to comfort him and as soon as he touched his skin, an electric jolt ran through his body and- blip!! Khun and Baam were gone, Khun's lighthouse was gone, and Khell was left there alone and shocked.
"That's never happened before."
Khun clung to Baam's hand as the shock struck him, and as they warped out of their place in space and time, Baam instinctively pulled Khun to his chest and held him to protect him. A booming voice came from the stormy darkness as the boys regained their bearings and seperated to look around.
"I am the Administrator of Time. You will resync in one hour."
"What??" Baam yelled, confused. But the voice only repeated itself. "I am the Administrator of Time. You will resync in one hour." Baam and Khun looked at each other.
Could time itself have it's own administrator like the floors? What was going on? Was this some sort of god, or some illusion? Then, two areas began peeking through the surrounding dense, dark fog like lights emerging through a storm.
Something beyond their comprehension washed over them which made them feel comforted and accepting. "I guess I'll see you in an hour?"
Khun nodded at him and flashed him a big smile and stepped towards the light near him. Baam did the same, stepping into the break in the clouds, and he began to walk on a path he found there.
Just a couple steps in, he turned to Khun and he realized he couldn't see him anymore. Grass emerged around his feet, and he started seeing wildflowers around the ground, visible from the bright light of the night sky.
The fogginess was gone, and he was in a field. He was worried about Khun but tried to keep faith that he was safe and focus on figuring out where he was.
The field was plush with greenery, and there were walking trails all over. Athough, nobody seemed to be around. Baam fixed his ponytail absentmindedly as he wandered down a pathway. Ahead, near some trees, he saw a small figure sitting on a bench. He approached with silent caution.
The person was wearing a suit that reminded him of Khun's old wardrobe from when they first met. Baam got closer, and began to make out that it was a boy covering his face with his arms.
He stepped a bit closer and saw distinct blue hair and suspendium earrings twinkling as they caught the minimal light. That must be another Khun! Totally distracted, Baam mis-stepped and snapped some leaves and sticks on the ground.
Khun jumped from the bench and pulled out large knife and wielded it at Baam. His eyes were red and the tear marks were obvious on his face, but his expression was stern. Distinct. Baam saw the long knife the boy held, recognizing it, and then looked into his eyes. "Aguero???"
"Excuse me?! How in the hell do you know my name?" Baam was beaming. "Aguero! It's you! You're so young, what's happening right now?"
Khun went from aggressive to dumbfounded. "How are you going to ask me what's happening? Who are you? Come out from behind those trees."
Finally Baam connected the dots. He knew that was Aguero. His Aguero. So the time administrator must have put him back in time. So in an hour, would he be resynced to his own time?
Thoughts buzzed through his head about the incredible situation. When was he, and why did the administrator decide this was where he should visit?
"Wait, Aguero, have you been crying?" Khun stood his ground, though he was beyond confused.
"Excuse me, who are you??" His hands shook some as he tried to hold the knife steady. Finally, the person came out from the shadows of the trees. Khun watched him intently.
There was something instantly familiar about him. Khun stood in shock as a brown haired boy walked up to him, confidently, with concern in his big, hazel eyes, and reached his hands out to Khun's face.
The boy tenderly wiped Khun's tears away with his sleeves and gave him a sad smile. Khun's expression contorted as he tried to understand what was happening.
He found himself just staring into the boys eyes, shocked with himself. There's nobody in the world he would let touch him. Except maybe Baam, but he was-
"Baam?" Khun's eyes were huge as he searched the man's face for answers. But doubt sunk in and he snapped back to being stern. "Tell me what the hell is going on right now."
Baam took a step back, smiling. Khun's aggression didn't even phase him. "Yeah, it's me!" He began to explain himself, rambling on with a long story about meeting the time administrator and talking to Khell Hellam with older Khun on some higher floor with some dogs. It was a convoluted tale, and Baam was telling it like an overexcited child.
"Baam, it is you." Khun's arms dropped to his sides and the knife nearly fell out of his hand as he stared in shock. "From the future? We're still together in the future? You lived?"
Baam smiled. "What finally convinced you?"
"Only Baam tells incoherent stories like that, and... your, uh- your eyes." Khun blushed, feeling sheepish about his own words. He took a couple steps back and plopped back onto the bench.
"You lived..... You're alive." He placed his head in his hands. "Tell me what Rachel did to you."
"I don't think that I can.... I only have an hour here, I don't want to mess up time or something." He sat next to him, wishing he could tell him everything. Wanting to fix it. He thought of where his current self must be, and had to ignore the desire to go save himself from FUG.
"This path isn't easy, but it's what makes us strong."
Khun looked at the ground, defeated. Tears welled up in his eyes. There was nothing Baam could say to mend him, so he reached out and embraced him. Khun looked surprised, but he let Baam handle him as he wished.
Baam held Khun to his chest, and rested his head on his blue hair. Khun moved his head to Baam's heart and listened to the calming rhythmic beating. Reminding him he was really there.
"Okay.... I understand why you can't say anything. I'm just so glad that you're alive." Khun snuggled into Baam's chest more, hiding his face in the boy's shirt, and Baam could feel the warmth of tears quietly soaking through the cloth.
He started to affectionately rub Khun's back and held him close. They sat in silence like that for a long time, no words were needed. Every few minutes Khun just mumbled again, "you're alive...."