Plague 2023 (Plague 2022 Season 2)

Episode 8

THE BETRAYAL

Their friends, who had been suspended in a seemingly peaceful slumber, were now awake. But something was terribly wrong. Their eyes were wide open, but devoid of any recognition or humanity. Their bodies, previously still and serene, were now twisted and contorted in unnatural angles, as if they had been puppets wrenched into grotesque positions. They didn't have any otherworldly distortions but their limbs definitely looked like they were being controlled.

Eunhye let out a strangled gasp, her hand flying to her mouth. "No... no, this can't be happening," she whispered, her voice breaking.

Yuri's eyes filled with tears, a mix of rage and despair. She took a step forward, her hand reaching out instinctively, but she stopped short, paralyzed by the sight of her friends' forms. "What have you done to them?" she choked out, her voice barely more than a whisper.

Sae Joon Hyun clenched his fists, his knuckles white with the force of his grip. He turned his gaze to the woman, who was now standing, her mask hiding any expression but her eyes gleaming with malevolent pleasure. "Answer us!" he demanded, his voice raw with anger. "What did you do to them?"

The woman removed her mask slowly, revealing a smile that was both triumphant and chilling. Jeha, Jay, and Jihoon stood in front of Eunhye, Sae Joon Hyun, and Yuri. Behind them, the rest of their friends were lined up as if forming a protective barrier for the woman.

Yuri's heart pounded as she looked around the room. They were trapped, surrounded by their own friends who now stood against them. Panic gripped her as she scanned their faces. Each one appeared normal, like the friends she had always known. Their hands were held high, not in a gesture of surrender but something more ominous. Their limbs seemed intact, but the smiles that stretched across their faces were horrifying. There was no cloudiness in their eyes, yet the glint of menace was unmistakable.

As Yuri struggled to comprehend the nightmare unfolding before her, Sae Joon Hyun's mind raced. He couldn't help but notice the absence of several friends. Yon, Eugene, Hailey, Jaeyeon, Hamin, and Suyeong—where were they? An unsettling feeling gnawed at him. What had happened to them? Were they still alive, or had something even more sinister befallen them?

While these questions swirled in his mind, Sae Joon Hyun knew they were in immediate danger. The situation was too perilous to dwell on the missing. He had to focus on the present threat. The woman with the triumphant, chilling smile was clearly in control, and their friends, once allies, were now turned into menacing adversaries.

"Well then. Good luck," the woman said with a sinister smile, her voice dripping with mockery. She turned and dismissed herself from the room, leaving an air of chilling finality. The door behind her opened with an eerie creak, then closed immediately after she exited, sealing the room with a heavy thud. Now, it was just the friends against each other, with no escape in sight.

Sae Joon Hyun felt a surge of desperation. "In-Ha! Miss In-Ha! Do you hear me?! Do you recognize me?!" he shouted, his voice echoing off the cold, sterile walls. But his words seemed to fall on deaf ears, the sound bouncing back like they were speaking into a void.

Their friends began to advance, their smiles stretching wider, almost grotesquely so. The expressions on their faces were devoid of any recognition or warmth, replaced instead with a chilling, uniform menace.

"No, no, no! Wait! Jeha! Jay! Jihoon! Don't you recognize us?" Eunhye's voice trembled as she pleaded, her eyes wide with fear and disbelief. She looked into the faces of those she had once trusted, hoping for a flicker of recognition, but finding none.

Yuri's heart raced as she took a step back, her voice breaking as she called out, "Yohan! Zera! Yunha! Minyoung! Minji! Young! Charyeong! Mina! Don't you recognize us? Please come back to your senses!" She could hardly believe what was happening. Each name she uttered felt like a desperate grasp at the thin threads of sanity, but their friends continued their advance, their eyes glinting with a cruel, unfamiliar light.

Suddenly, Jeha lunged forward and grabbed Sae Joon Hyun by the neck with a vice-like grip. "Ugh!" Sae Joon Hyun gasped, his eyes widening in shock and pain at the sudden attack. Eunhye whirled around immediately, her heart pounding. "Sae Joon Hyun!" she screamed, her voice a mixture of fear and desperation as she rushed toward him. She grasped Jeha's arms, trying to pry them away, but his grip was as immovable as heavy boulders, veins bulging and pulsing under his skin.

Eunhye's scream reverberated through the room, a sound that seemed to trigger the others. Minji let out a primal roar and lunged at Yuri. Yuri was knocked to the floor, but managed to place one hand behind her head to cushion the fall while using her other hand to push against Minji, desperately trying to keep her at bay.

Jay moved next, his eyes filled with a terrifying intensity. He grabbed Eunhye by the hair and yanked hard. Pain shot through Eunhye's scalp, and she knew that if she didn’t go with the pull, her hair might rip out from her skin. But she couldn’t abandon Sae Joon Hyun, who was struggling for breath as Jeha's grip around his neck tightened.

Jeha's grip tightened relentlessly around Sae Joon Hyun's neck, and he felt his vision starting to fade. The edges of the room grew dark and blurry. "Sae Joon Hyun! Please! Stay awake!" Eunhye screamed, her voice raw with desperation.

Jay yanked harder on Eunhye’s hair, and the air was filled with the sickening sound of fabric tearing. Pain shot through Eunhye’s scalp as she felt the roots of her hair being pulled to the brink. Blood began to seep from her head, trickling down her forehead. She let go of Jeha's arms, unable to bear the excruciating pain any longer.

Jay shoved her away forcefully, and she collided with the white wall, the impact jolting through her body. She slumped down, her head throbbing as she clutched it with both hands, trying to steady herself despite the overwhelming pain.

Meanwhile, Yuri struggled beneath Minji’s relentless assault. Minji was a skilled fighter, and Yuri knew she stood little chance in a direct confrontation. Her only hope was to keep Minji at bay. Stabilizing her head against the floor, Yuri brought her other hand forward and pushed with all her might. But it was barely enough to keep Minji at a short distance. Every ounce of her strength went into holding Minji off, yet she could feel herself weakening. She couldn't lift herself or move, trapped in a defensive stance that left her vulnerable.

Sae Joon Hyun, on the verge of losing consciousness, felt the world around him narrowing to a pinpoint of light. Jeha’s grip was unrelenting, cutting off his air supply and sending waves of dizziness through his head. His lungs burned for oxygen, and his thoughts grew muddled. Suddenly, he felt himself being lifted off the floor, Jeha’s powerful grip hoisting him into the air. The sensation was surreal, as if he were floating away from his own body.

Eunhye, dazed and in pain, looked up through her blurry vision to see Sae Joon Hyun’s feet dangling off the ground. Panic surged through her. "No! Sae Joon Hyun!" she cried out, forcing herself to push through the pain and scramble to her feet but before she could reach Jeha, Jay appeared right in front of her, blocking her path and preventing her from helping Sae Joon Hyun.