Chapter Text
Shin ju was shocked when he arrived back at the mountain. He had followed Yeon as long as he could. Now he has a new objective and he would not fail.
”Shin ju-ah. You have been a faithful servant. My time is short. I will be gone for a while. I’ve already lost Ah-eum. I need you to do me a favor.”
“Of course, master. You know I would do anything for you.”
“Find Rang-ah. He’s all I have left. I need to know he is safe. He’s not going to understand why I’m gone. Look after him until I return. Will you do this for me, please?”
“Of course, I will. He’s too young to be left alone. I will find him and keep him safe until you return.”
“I know you will. Thank you.”
But now looking at the devastation he found, he wasn’t so sure he could keep his promise. Huge swathes of forest were now scorched, the spotted orange lights of dying embers all round. How could anything survive this?
He wandered the mountainside, helping what creatures he could and doing his best to ease their pain when he couldn’t. Why were humans so destructive? What purpose was there to causing so much pain? Shin ju didn’t understand.
He had lost a day and still had not found his charge. Growing even more worried, Shin ju had come across several traps, traps that looked like the ones the humans had set for his sisters on his old mountain. He prayed that Rang had not fallen prey to one of them.
It would be mid afternoon when he finally got his first clue. Although it disheartened him even more. While wondering the burnt land, he spotted a familiar lump of fur blowing in the breeze. Hurrying over, he found the little black dog that was Rang’s constant companion, blistered and unmoving. Tears fell as he took the creature and buried it amidst the few trees that remained.
But where was Rang? He did find small footsteps leading off in one direction. It was his only lead so he followed them, hoping he would finally find what he was searching for. It took him well into the night.
—-
His head hurt. Why did his head hurt? Slowly as the darkness began to recede, voices filtered in.
“Where else can we find more creatures like that unguarded? Most of the mountain’s been burned.”
“We’ve got a few more traps to check. We might be able to get a couple more.”
As they spoke, memories started popping up. After blacky, he sat there for a while. He wasn’t sure what to do. He was planning on waiting for his brother to show up but he still hadn’t come. The sun was setting and the crackling and popping of the embers kept setting his nerves off.
That’s when he heard something crying. It sounded hurt. Without thinking he was running off to find what made the scared and pain filled sound. Dashing into a thicket he saw a young raccoon girl sitting on the ground, crying with something around her ankle.
He fell down next to her and looked at the strange contraption. It took him a moment to remember Shin ju’s warning once to watch for human traps. He could only guess this was one of them. He looked at the girl, who wasn’t much younger than him and attempted to calm her.
“Hey, it’s gonna be ok. I’ll get you out. Do you know where your family is?”
The girl watched him cautiously, her face tear streaked. Slowly, she shook her head no.
Not worrying about that, he encouraged, “It’s ok, we can find them together. Let’s get this off first, okay?”
For a moment, he considered the trap, then went off to find a stick. He slid it into the space next to her ankle and pushed down. Centimeter by centimeter it began to open. When he got it far enough, he told her to pull her leg out. She was free!
“Thank you,” a quiet voice said.
Smiling brightly, Rang was just happy he could help. He took a strip of cloth from his outter garment and wrapped her ankle. When he was done he got up and held out a hand. “Come on. Let’s find your family.”
She grabbed on and held onto her savior as they hobbled through the forest. When they heard strange voices, he put a finger to his lips, indicating to be quiet. He moved them under some heavy brush and pointed at her and the ground. She nodded her understanding and stayed put.
He pulled out one of the axes Yeon made him practice with and carefully made his way towards the voices. He found a group of men talking. There were several beings tied up nearby. He recognized a few as raccoons. They could be the girl’s parents.
There were a few other creatures, wolves and owls and such. They all seemed scared and hurt. He could not allow this. Yeon was the mountain god that protected this mountain and he was Yeon’s brother. He had to protect them until his brother came. There were only 3 of the humans anyway.
Building up the courage, Rang hefted his ax, shouted and dove headlong into the mix. His attack caught them off guard and his movements so fast, the trio just scattered.
Accepting this would be victory, he quickly set about freeing the prisoners. The girl he rescued before came out crying and ran to her family. He grinned seeing them happy.
Calling out, “Hurry and leave before they come back. And be careful of traps.”
“You too,” they replied then ran off.
Two of the captives lingered. “You’re the mountain god’s brother, aren’t you?”
He couldn’t help the full, enthusiastic smile that spread over his face. “Yes, he’s my hyung.”
“I heard he abandoned his post for a woman.”
“That all this is happening because he abandoned all of us.”
“No, that’s not true! He wouldn’t do that! He wouldn’t just leave without telling me. You’re wrong!”
“What do you know? You’re just a kid.”
“I heard he’s a half breed. If I was his brother, I’d abandon the kid too. Nothing but trouble they are.”
Rang was on the verge of tears. He couldn’t believe what they were saying. His brother wouldn’t abandon him, would he? And he just saved them. How could they be so mean?
Before he could protest, shouts could be heard approaching fast.
“Come on, let’s get out of here!” And then the two were gone.
Unsure now, he ran off in the opposite direction, longing for his brother to show up and prove they were all lies.
Night had fallen. Distracted and vision blurred, Rang wasn’t paying enough attention to his surroundings. In an instant, there was pain and he was falling. Automatically he cried out. Twisting around he glanced at his foot, metal teeth biting into his leg.
No! How could he have been so stupid to get trapped? Fighting back the tears, he searched for the ax he had been holding. Perhaps it would be enough to free him. He found it! Just as his fingers touched the hilt a foot came crashing down on his arm. Yelping at the pain, he looked up to find one of the humans above him.
The man shouted, “Over here! I got the little bastard!” Soon others joined him. “Tie him up.”
Not ready to give up, with his free hand, Rang reached back and pulled the other ax. Screaming, he blindly slashed, barely registering if he landed a hit. He was rewarded by an answering yelp. He heard someone spit out, “Bastard!” Then everything went dark.
So that’s why his head hurt. Rang snarled. One of his captors heard him, stood up and kicked the boy in the stomach. “Shut up, brat.”
“My brother’s going to kill you!”
The others laughed. A new person sauntered over and knelt in front of the boy. “I doubt that.”
“He will come!”
Turning to his cohorts, he inquired, “Who is this brat again?”
“Lee Yeon’s little brother. They say he’s just a half breed bastard.”
Regarding his prisoner, the man stood and sighed. “No wonder he’s a troublemaker. Listen you little shit, you just cost me a lot of money.”
“I didn’t do anything!”
Kicking the boy again, he hissed, “Did I say you could speak? Aish.” The man crouched down and grabbed a fistful of hair. Then he explained, “You released those creatures we had. They were going to fetch me a lot of money. Now all we have is you. Some halfbreed wretch that no one cares about.”
“My brother will save me!”
The others mocked the child. But one of the group seemed to consider something. “Hey, if his brother is that nine tailed fox, doesn’t that make him one too? Does that mean he has the same powers?”
Their leader was about to scold his companion until he realized what he was saying. Dollar signs began to go off. “You’re right! He may just be a pup now but he is still a fox. We could probably get a good price for him!”
“No, you ca-Ah!” A foot came down hard on his wounded ankle. Stars danced across his vision. When they cleared, instinct took over and he bit the closest thing to him. Satisfied by the resulting scream, he was unprepared for the punch to his cheek.
Above him there was a scuffle. “Not the face!” Their leader ordered. “Don’t you know these creatures were made for seduction. He’s young but he’ll learn his place soon enough. But in order for us to get the right price, we need that baby face flawless, got it!”
“But he bit me! He deserves to be punished!”
“And I agree, just not the face.” At the man’s confused expression, he elaborated, “Kick him, punch him, beat him anyway you want, just not on his face. And be careful not to kill him, he’s worth nothing dead.”
The leader laughed then wandered off. The bitten man smiled. “I’ll make you pay boy.” He stepped away and Rang began to struggle frantically against his bindings. They had tied his arms behind his back. Then the man was back with a long, thick sapling. “I’ll show you brat!”
A new agony overwhelmed him. Strike upon strike rained down on him. Hitting him over and over causing welts to form and bleed. Unable to hold back, he screamed and cried. Rang had no idea how long it lasted. In the end the man fell back panting, utterly exhausted.
They left him alone to his misery for a while. His mind and body numb, he no longer registered their conversation. The trio were sent off to check their remaining traps leaving their leader and Rang alone.
Still lost in that pain filled haze and shivering, he didn’t sense the potential threat. Hands were suddenly on him, trying to remove his clothes. The man hissed in his ear, “You are a pretty little thing,aren’t you? You’re mine to sell, I deserve to try out the merchandise first, right boy?”
Rang closed his eyes tightly, whimpering. He didn’t understand what the man was talking about but he knew it was bad. Desperate, he begged, “Hyung, save me!”
And then the hands and the weight of the man was gone. He heard someone screaming then abruptly silenced. New hands were on him, working to free his arms. The sharp sting of blood rushing back to the trapped limbs left him gasping.
He noticed these new hands were gentle and drops of water landed on his face. Oddly, he felt safe. He breathed, “hyung.”
A different yet familiar voice answered. “Rang-nim, I’m so sorry! I already failed Yeon-nim! But you’re safe now. I’ll take care of you until Lee Yeon-nim returns. I swear to you!”
Throat too sore to form any words of response, Rang’s grasp on consciousness was quickly failing. Knowing he was safe he allowed the darkness to claim him once more.