Chapter Text
The world has always been a cruel place; but for the past nine years it turned into hell. In October 2015 outbreak of an unknown disease took place, turning people into monstrosities, corrupting both their bodies and minds. It all started when a team of Korean scientists was conducting research in Antarctic. They discovered a virus that has been buried in the ice for millions of years. Human curiosity and need to investigate won, resulting in them taking the mystery back to South Korea. Unfortunately, things got out of control – people started to get sick. At first it looked like a flu epidemic – high temperature, coughing, pain in the muscles. And soon, it went downhill; the infected started to get aggressive, with a tendency to bite others. The reality once known to mankind was turned upside down in a matter of weeks.
Since then, every single day was a battle for survival. However, a group of mysterious individuals worked together to rebuild society, establishing the “Squid Organisation” to save all the healthy people. Hwang In-ho was one of them. After being given a second chance in life, he became the leader of base nr 28. And now, October 2024 he was on another mission to eliminate infected.
As always, before leaving he made sure to prepare all the essentials – water, flashlight with extra batteries, food, gun and more. In-ho grabbed his backpack, then left to meet his companions at the gates of the facility. It resembled a small town – plenty of houses, as well as a canteen, hospital, even a school and cinema. Everything to resemble a normal life.
When he arrived, Jung-bae and Dae-ho were already waiting for him.
-Officer! What took you so long? – the older man asked, checking the clock on his wrist. He was relatively short, with dark hair set to the side.
-My apologies, I should’ve prepared sooner – In-ho replied with a polite smile on his face. – Anyway, if we’re all here, let’s get going – he started moving towards the truck parked in front of them and the two men followed.
This mission was a little different than the previous ones, since the estimated time was well over a week, all due to the distance they had to cover to get to their destination. For the past few years, they’ve already cleared most of towns and cities located near the coast, although the infected were still coming back. Even though, they hoped to get rid of all of them one day, as well as save every person still alive. Throughout their “adventures” they did a pretty good job –
In-ho, as the leader of the group, made sure there would be no complications during their work; Jung-bae always had his back, which earned him the title of “officer’s second-in-command”; Dae-ho on the other hand was there to treat their wounds at all times, wishing to become a “real soldier” one day, but still giving his all to the role he was assigned at the moment. There were other soldiers with them too, but most of them changed each time they were leaving the base.
Since their camp was settled on an island, they needed to travel by boat to get to the main land. It didn’t take too long and before they noticed, they were already in the port. The truck left the ship with no problems, slowly heading into the depths of the land.
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After two days of traveling, they finally arrived at their destination – suburbs of a bigger town located in the northern part of the country. It was around noon when they stepped out of the car and started exploring. The infected feared light, so during the day they hid inside buildings, forests, metro stations. These were all the places they had to check and clear out – twenty people against whatever was lurking in the dark.
In-ho’s team first stop was a church; for an unknown reason there were always plenty of monsters in those.
-Ironic how such disgusting creatures would hide in the home of God – Dae-ho said as they walked towards the entrance. A hair strand fell out of a small ponytail which he had tied up on his head. He quickly tossed it away and focused on the mission again – I assumed they would be scared of holy water or something.
-Keep it down. They might hear us – In-ho spoke and suddenly everyone froze. – Alright, me and Jung-bae will go in first, the rest of you follow us. Dae-ho, you’ll stay outside with the backup. – the corpsman nodded as the two of his colleagues went inside.
There was a smell of rotten flesh in the air, combined with dead silence filling the building. As soon as they entered a little deeper inside, a strange figure sat up from a bench in the front. It spotted them immediately and screeched for it’s companions. Soon enough a swarm of infected started running towards them, but they were too slow – In-ho’s team already opened fire. After a series of loud bangs, the room stood still, with dead bodies piled on the floor and echoes bouncing off the walls.
They made sure no creature was left alive and left, knowing well if they stay here for too long, there will be more of them running towards the sound.
-Let’s get going – In-ho insisted. – Nothing more for us here.
After inspecting few other buildings around and taking out whatever was inside, they found themselves in front of a metro station.
-Keep your guard up here, we never know how many we might encounter – In-ho instructed, giving orders to his teammates. They followed as he entered underground. At first, they were hit with complete silence. Not a mouse squeaking nor rats hunting for food. Nothing. They made their way deeper inside, but with each step the tension grew bigger, like someone holding their breath, waiting to let the air out of lungs. Suddenly, one of In-ho’s soldiers screamed in pain. They turned to him immediately only to see a monster eating him alive. The team didn’t waste time, shooting the creatures immediately.
-Shit, they got smarter! - Jung-bae shouted as he took down one of the infected running towards them. Soon enough some of the teammates were out of ammunition, while the infected kept coming out of nowhere.
-Fuck, we need to head back! – In-ho yelled while still taking down the monsters in front of him. When he ran out, all he saw was destroyed truck, with supplies falling out of it and soldiers defeated by the enemy. This was a fight he could not win.
-Officer! Jung-bae! Here! – both men turned to the direction from which the voice was coming. Dae-ho stood in an entrance of what seemed to be a motel. Without hesitation, they ran to their friend, but before In-ho was able to enter, something grabbed him by his backpack.
-Officer!- Dae-ho screamed, horrified by the picture in front of him.
-Fuck!- In-ho grunted as he struggled to keep the monster from hurting him. Desperate to get away, he took the equipment off and ran to the door, just in time before the creature could go after him.
-That was close – the corpsman sighed in relief, thanking whatever deity for a shelter deep in his heart.
-It’s not over yet – the officer claimed coldly. – We’ve lost the only line of connection with the base – he took out a walkie talkie out of his pocket, crushed to pieces as a result of combat. – We should also figure out a way to keep the infected out of- a steel door shut down sealing the entrance.
-Who are you? – a low, raspy voice echoed through the corridor – and what are you doing here? – like on a command, all three of them turned around. They were now facing a tall man with a gun pointed directly at their faces.
-Gi-hun? – Jung-bae asked in disbelief. Both of his friends looked at him confused, expecting a completely different reaction.
The mysterious man lowered the gun, his eyes opening slightly.
-Jung-bae? – from harsh his voice changed to shaky. – Is that really you?
-Holy shit, it is you! – the soldier couldn’t hide his excitement anymore. – how did you even end up here? I thought you were long gone!
-And how did you end up here? – he questioned confused. – Who are these two?
-I’m Hwang In-ho – the leader answered – and this is Kang Dae-ho – he added pointing to the man standing by his left.
-Don’t worry, they’re my teammates! – Jung-bae explained. - Why don’t we get to know each other a bit better, hm? We’re stuck here anyway, so we might as well do something while we wait for those creatures to go away.
Gi-hun stayed silent for a moment, thinking what he should do. Eventually, he replied to the request:
-Follow me – he finally put his gun down and started walking away from the door. The other three walked right behind, going deeper inside the building.
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After a short explanation of what happened, Gi-hun served his guests a meal.
-My goodness, this is so good! – Dae-ho shouted, stuffing his mouth with noodles.
-We’d sincerely like to thank you for helping us, Mr. Gi-hun – said In-ho, giving their host a polite smile.
-There’s no need to – he answered smiling slightly. – I’d like to ask, if it’s not a problem, but why are you even here?
-We’re on a mission – Jung-bae started. – We regularly travel to mainland and get rid of the infected. We also take in any healthy people to our base.
-What base? – Gi-hun was confused by words his friend was spitting out.
-It’s a survivor camp – In-ho explained. – One of many located in South Korea.
-All thanks to “Squid Organisation”! – Dae-ho added with mouth still full of food.
“Squid Organisation?” Gi-hun thought to himself. There was something off about it, but he couldn’t quite figure out what.
-Anyway, what’s it with the motel? How long have you been living here? – Jung-bae questioned while taking a sip of the soup.
-Right after the breakout, in all the chaos I hid inside this place. I turned it into a bunker and have been living there since then – the answer was dry, yet not rude; just painfully honest.
-For nine years?! – the confession took everyone aback, even In-ho was impressed.
-Yeah – Gi-hun chuckled quietly, seeing their reaction, although his expression quickly went back to dead-serious before he spoke again. – Surviving was the only thing I succeeded in, though.
-What do you mean by that? – In-ho asked.
-All this time I’ve been trying to find my daughter, but…I still don’t know where she is- the room fell silent. Nobody knew what exactly should they say, but on In-ho’s face, a trace of understanding appeared after hearing his story. – And I’ve been trying to figure out how to cure the infected, however, no luck there too.
-Do you really believe there is a cure? – all of sudden In-ho spoke. His eyes were focused on Gi-hun, like a predator that has just found their prey.
-What? – Gi-hun was too stunned by an unexpected answer to think of anything else than a simple “what”.
-I’m just asking. You know, it’s been nine years already, I’m sure if there was an antidote it would be ready by now.
-I…I don’t know…I’m still sure there must be a way to cure it.
The tension in the room grew rapidly with every word spoken. Both Jung-bae and Dae-ho didn’t like where this was going and decided to act on spot:
-Hey, now, now! If there is a cure, then there is a cure and if not, then not. There’s no reason to be arguing about it, right? Let’s all finish our food and go to sleep, I’m sure everyone is exhausted – Dae-ho nodded approvingly.
-I have an offer for you, Mr. Gi-hun – the two friends glanced at each other stressed about the outcome – I’d like you to help us get to our base. We’re out of food, medicine and weapons. We’ve lost only way to contact the headquarters too. I’m sure you have plenty of supplies that could help us out – before Gi-hun was able to reply, he continued.- In return, we’ll help you find your daughter. What do you say?
Gi-hun stayed silent for a while. After a moment of hesitation, he replied:
-Okay. We’ll leave tomorrow morning. For now let’s all prepare for the night, it’s starting to get dark.
After that, they got to work, cleaning after their meal and getting the place ready before the sunset.
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Although the motel was filled with traps and alarms, Gi-hun still decided to keep the watch. Sitting in his room filled with monitors, he watched the surrounding area. Thanks to the solar panels on the roof he had enough energy accumulated to power cameras during the night. Consumed by his thoughts, he didn’t notice Jung-bae entering the room.
-Woah, where’d you get all those from? – he asked looking around.
-Why aren’t you sleeping?
-I’m not tired yet.
-You were the first one to suggest going to sleep, though.
-Shut up! I just didn’t want you to argue with the officer!
Their conversation was interrupted by screams recorded outside. They both turned to the screens. After a moment of silence, Jung-bae spoke again:
-Gi-hun, what happened to your mother?
-I don’t want to talk about it – he replied turning away.
-Hey, I’m your friend, right? I have the right to know – he put a hand on his arm. – Besides, you know you can tell me anything– Gi- hun stayed silent. – Did she, you know…
-She got infected – he finally brought himself to speak. – I tried to save her, but there was nothing I could’ve done.
-I’m sorry to hear that – Jung-bae replied. – I know how you feel, I’ve lost my wife and kid to those sick monsters too-
-They’re not monsters, Jung-bae – Gi-hun turned to him, his eyes cold. – Even if they seem like creatures out of hell…they all have been people once – Jung-bae couldn’t find the right response to that. Instead, he stared at the monitor, watching the silhouettes roaming the streets.
-You were always like that – the words came out of his mouth without giving them a second thought. – Always seeing good in others, even if they’re the worst people on this planet.
-That’s because we’re all humans. And no human being deserves to be treated like an animal– Gi-hun’s gaze was focused on the screen again, like he was trying to find humanity in the victims of the plague.
-Woah. You should’ve become an activist, not a car manufacturer employee – Jung-bae chuckled, seeing how his confused friend was looking at him.
-What is that even supposed to mean? – Gi-hun asked, not understanding Jung-bae’s conclusion.
In response to that, Jung-bae burst out laughing, which caused Gi-hun even more confusion.
As they were talking, none of them noticed a figure standing by the door. In-ho was watching them closely, resting his eyes on the man, who he promised to help.