Plague 2023 (Plague 2022 Season 2)

Episode 6

INTO THE ABYSS

As they sat on the cold, hard floor of the corridor, Sae Joon Hyun broke the silence, his voice low and contemplative. "I think we are trapped here. Someone wants us to encounter those zombies."

Eunhye turned to him, her eyes wide with confusion and fear. "What? What do you mean?"

Sae Joon Hyun met her gaze, his expression calm despite the gravity of his words. "The zombies didn't attack us. Maybe someone is studying us. It's just an assumption, though," he said, his tone almost casual.

Eunhye sighed softly, marveling at Sae Joon Hyun's calm demeanor. It was unsettling how easily he could voice such terrifying thoughts. Yet, there was something oddly reassuring about his composure, as if his ability to stay calm under pressure was a beacon of stability in the chaos that surrounded them. He was the man she used to know and that was a relief in this moment.

Despite herself, Eunhye felt a small smile tug at the corners of her lips. She quickly suppressed it, grappling with the severity of their situation. It wasn't the time for smiles or relief. They were still in grave danger, and the unknown threat lurking behind their ordeal was far from comforting.

Before Eunhye could continue the conversation, a strange sound pierced the air. It was the unmistakable noise of a door being unlocked. Both she and Sae Joon Hyun turned sharply, their eyes darting to the massive door they had just passed through. But it wasn’t this door. Then which one was it?

Slowly and stealthily, they stood up together, their bodies tense with anticipation. They waited, their senses on high alert, ready for whatever might emerge. The sound had set their nerves on edge, and it felt like the content of the door would spill out towards them, given everything that had just transpired.

Eunhye clenched her fists tightly, her breath coming in shallow, rapid bursts. Her eyes strained to see through the dim light, every muscle in her body coiled like a spring. And then, from the shadows, a figure emerged, bathed in the faint glow of the corridor's lights.

It was a familiar face. Yuri.

"Seon... Seonsangnim?" Eunhye’s voice wavered, a mix of disbelief and overwhelming relief flooding her system. Without hesitation, she leaped forward, her arms wrapping around the scared figure in front of her. Yuri’s body shook with sobs, her tears flowing freely like rain.

Sae Joon Hyun exhaled a deep sigh of relief, the tension visibly leaving his body. He watched as Eunhye held Yuri close, the two women clinging to each other as if their lives depended on it.

As they pulled away from their embrace, Yuri's voice trembled as she began to speak. "It was so scary, Eunhye," she said, her eyes wide with lingering fear. "We have been fighting zombies and everything together all this time, so when I found myself in this white robe, alone in that all-white room, I couldn't think of anything else but to run away."

Eunhye nodded, her expression sympathetic. "Yeah, I understand," she murmured, her hand gently squeezing Yuri's for reassurance.

"And also... look at these wounds on my hand?" Yuri continued, extending her arms to show the tiny, angry red marks peppered across her skin. "I don't know what these are or why I had injections all over my body, but it was so painful to pull them out."

Sae Joon Hyun stepped closer, examining the marks with a frown. "I had them too," he said quietly, rolling up his sleeve to reveal similar wounds on his own arm.

A sudden realization hit Sae Joon Hyun like a bolt of lightning. His eyes widened as he looked at the tiny puncture marks, then back at Yuri and Eunhye. "We’re guinea pigs," he whispered, the horror of the situation sinking in.

Before Yuri and Eunhye could respond to Sae Joon Hyun’s chilling realization, a figure emerged from the shadows, her presence sending a jolt of fear through them. The woman wore a pristine white shirt and pants, covered by a long doctor’s overcoat. Her face was obscured by a mask, and a hair cap concealed her hair. She moved with an eerie calm, the clinical precision of her movements amplified by the dim lighting of the corridor.

"I knew it. You are quite smart," the woman said, her voice muffled slightly by the mask but clear enough to carry a tone of cold amusement. She paused to tighten her gloves, the snap of the latex echoing ominously in the silence. "Do you want to see what is going on with the rest of your friends?"

Sae Joon Hyun stepped forward, positioning himself protectively between the woman and the others. His eyes narrowed with suspicion and anger. "Who are you? What have you done to us?"

The woman chuckled softly, a sound devoid of warmth. "Who I am is of little importance. What matters is what I can show you." She gestured towards a door that had been hidden in the shadows, its presence unnoticed until now. "Come, see for yourselves."

They didn't have much choice because they were in unknown territory, and this woman clearly knew what was going on. Sae Joon Hyun glared at her, anger simmering just beneath the surface, but he followed her anyway, with Eunhye and Yuri close behind.

As they entered the room, the door creaked ominously behind them before locking with a final, echoing click. The woman flipped a switch on the wall, and the room was dimly illuminated, revealing yet another space bathed in sterile white.

Their eyes scanned the room, taking in the unsettling uniformity of the place. To their right, something caught their attention—large glass tubes filled with a strange blue liquid. Inside each tube, dark silhouettes were suspended, connected to a network of medical wires and tubes.

The three of them walked toward the glass enclosures, their footsteps echoing softly in the otherwise silent room. The woman remained behind them, tapping her foot on the floor with an almost mocking rhythm, her arms folded across her chest.

Eunhye's breath hitched as she approached one of the tubes. She pressed her hand against the cold glass, feeling the slight vibration of the bubbles rising in the blue liquid. Squinting, she tried to make out the features of the figure inside. When she finally did, a wave of horror surged through her.

The person inside was someone she recognized.

She stumbled backward, her eyes wide with terror. Sae Joon Hyun reached out just in time, catching her by the arms before she fell. "What? What is it?" he asked, his voice urgent.

Eunhye couldn’t find her voice, her mind reeling from the shock. Instead, she raised a trembling hand and pointed at the tube. Sae Joon Hyun followed her gaze and felt his stomach drop.

Before they could fully digest the horrifying reality before them, the woman approached from behind, her presence sending another shiver down their spines.

"Isn't this so entertaining?" she said with a chilling enthusiasm. "There are so many things we can do with them. We have a remote control here," she continued, holding up a small device with levers and buttons, "and I can control them completely by just moving these levers."

Yuri's eyes flashed with anger. The sight of their friend, Jeha, suspended in the glass tube, his face devoid of emotion and his body pierced by numerous syringe wires, was too much for her to bear. She stepped forward, her voice trembling with rage. "Hey! What's your problem?! Who are you guys?! Why are you doing this to us?"

Her anger was palpable, justified by the sheer cruelty of the situation. Jeha’s face was ashen, his eyes shut but his expression twisted in silent agony. The blue liquid bubbled around him, amplifying the surreal horror of the scene.