"Handwriting's the same as on Amazon's note," Doyoung said hopefully. "Maybe the lab is in the
lighthouse?"
"One way to find out," Sicheng said. "Let's go."
He seemed angry, the same look he wore since their discovery of Serra's exposure to the virus.
After watching him charge the SBHsquad outside, Sunoo almost hoped that they'd come across Dr. Chu; Sicheng would tear her apart.
Sungjoon nodded, slipping the card into his vest. The fear and guilt that he felt were obvious, playing across his features in a constant, twitching mask.
"Right. Serra?"
She nodded, and Sunoo saw that her already pale skin had taken on a waxy tone, as if the top layers were becoming translucent. Even as she watched, Serra started to scratch absently at her arms.
"Yeah, I'm good, don't look at me as if I can do nothing!" she said quietly but they can hint the annoyance and anger in her tone.
She has to know. She deserves to know.
Sunoo knew it couldn't wait any longer. Choosing his words carefully, aware of their limited time, he turned to Serra and spoke as calmly as he could.
"Look, I don't know what they've done with the A-Virus here, but there's a chance that you could start to experience more advanced symptoms in a relatively short amount of time. It's important that you tell me, tell all of us how you're doing, physically and psycho-logically. Any changes at all, we need to know, okay?"
Serra suddenly glared at him that make him freezes, her stern glare; as if she want to strangle him. She sigh and shook her head before smiling weakly, still scratching at her arms.
"I'm scared shitless, how's that? And I'm starting to itch all over... can you do something? I can you even heal me?! You can't- there's NO FUCKING TIME- "
"Serra... noona," said Sunoo calmly and it did give her back to her senses.
She turned her red eyes to Sungjoon, then to Doyoung and Sicheng before looking back at Sunoo.
"I'm sorry... "
Sunoo smiled warmly. "It's okay, Hyeopil said that watched your mood."
"If- if I start to act... irrationally, you'll do something, won't you? You won't let me... hurt anyone?"
A single tear slid down one pale cheek, but she didn't look away, her wet, crimson gaze as firm and strong as it had ever been.
Sunoo swallowed, struggling to sound confident and reassuring, awed by the bravery she saw in Serra's eyes and wondering how much longer that bravery would hold up beneath the roar of the A-Virus running through her veins.
"We're going to find the cure before it comes to that, Hyeopil was now ahead of us, determine than we are. He'll gonna save you, he'll make the cure." he said, and hoped that he wasn't telling Serra a lie.
"Move out," Sungjoon said tightly.
They moved out.
The grounds of the facility were on a definite gentle slant, rising to the north, but as they left the E block and started for the towering black structure that perched over the cove, the curving slope became much steeper.
The rocky soil angled up sharply, maybe as much as a thirty-degree incline, making the half kiick walk into a hike.
Sungjoon ignored the strain in his back and legs; he was too worried about Serra and too busy tearing away at his own incompetence to bother with physical discomfort.
They were closer to the shimmering waters of the cove than they had been since climbing out of them, and the cool, whispering breeze off the moonlit surface would have been pleasant on some other night, in some other place.
The swaying ripples of soft light and the soothing murmur of waves were almost a mockery of their desperate situation, such a sharp contrast to the chaos inside of him that he found himself almost wishing that there were still SBHsquads roaming around.
At least then this would feel like the nightmare it is. And he could do something, he could fight back, defend them against something tangible.
Ahead of them, the rising land curled around to the east, dropping away to a foaming sea far below.
The cove itself was fairly calm, but the sound of waves smashing against the cliffs grew louder as they hurried on, approaching where the ocean met towering, cave riddled rock walls.
Sicheng had taken the lead, Serra next and then the two younger team members. Sungjoon brought up the rear, dividing his attention between the compound to their left and behind and the dark structures ahead.
Directly in back of the lighthouse was what had to be the dormitory, a long, flat building almost twice the size of the concrete blocks they'd left behind.
They hadn't come across quarters for the G. Inc. workers anywhere else, and it had the look of a bunkhouse designed for sleeping and eating, no thought given to aesthetic appeal.
They probably should check it out, but Sungjoon didn't want to waste a moment in their search for the lab.
Hyeopil was probably already in the lab. He need to move quicker than them since he need to make the vaccine- learn about the A-virus then search something to destroy it-
The thought brought on another wave of guilt and angst that he tried unsuccessfully to block out.
He needed to be effective, to get them to the laboratory as quickly as possible without floundering in his doubts and emotions but all he kept thinking, kept wishing was that he'd been infected instead.
Serra's got it and wishing is pointless. It won't cure her and it will cloud his ability to lead.
Sungjoon ignored the negative thoughts, thinking instead of how badly he'd screwed them all.
Who was he, to lead a fight against G. Inc., to clean up the Alpha force and bring honor back to the job?
He couldn't even keep his people safe, couldn't plan a simple covert op- couldn't even battle the demons of self-doubt and horrified guilt that raged inside of him.
They neared the lifeless dorm building, Sicheng slowing to let the rest of them catch up. Sungjoon saw that his team was tired, but at least Serra didn't look any worse.
In the gentle light of the swollen moon, she seemed pale and somehow fragile.
The deathly pallor she'd worn beneath the fluorescents had translated into a soft, porcelain cast, the redness of her gaze turning to shadow.
If he hadn't known better... but he do.
How long now, before that milky skin starts to peel, to flake away and growth with million of eyes?
How long before she can't be trusted with a weapon, before he have to restrain her from...
Stop it!
He let them catch their breath, turning to get a better look at the lighthouse less than twenty meters away and felt his stomach clench, his heart shudder suddenly for no reason that he could have explained.
It was an old lighthouse, a tall, cylindrical outdated building, weathered and dark and as seemingly deserted as the rest of the compound.
Looking at it, he experienced the feeling he had earlier of impending doom, of options closing down behind them and the spinning wheel of darkness ahead.
"Come on," Sicheng said briskly, but Sungjoon stopped him with a hand on his arm, shaking his head slowly.
Not safe.
That tiny voice again, familiar yet strange.
He stared at the looming tower, feeling lost, feeling uncertain and out of control as the wind swept over them, the waves pounding the cliff.
They were waiting.
It wasn't safe, but they had to go in, they couldn't just stand there and it hit him suddenly, a clear realization of what it was that had gone wrong in his mind.
What was really wrong. It wasn't his competence, it wasn't his ability to think or plan or fight. It was something far worse, something he might have noticed much earlier if he hadn't let himself get so wrapped up with guilt.
Sungjoon stopped trusting his instincts. Without the security of the team behind him, he forgot to listen to that voice- so terrified of making a mistake that he lost his ability to hear, to know what to do.
Every time the fear hit him, he pushed through it, he ignored it and he made it that much stronger.
Even as he thought it, as he believed it, he felt the blackness of doubt lift from his exhausted thoughts.
The guilt eased back, allowing a kind of clarity to filter through and with it, the tiny voice inside took on a power that he'd almost forgotten it could have.
'It's not safe, so hit the door fast, two in low, the rest high and covered outside.'
All of this flashed through his mind in seconds. He turned to look at his team, watching him, waiting for him to lead. And for the first time in what felt like an eternity, he knew that he could.
"I think it's a trap," he said. "Sicheng, you and I go in low, I'll take west- Sunoo, I want you and Doyoung to stand on either side of the door and fire at anything standing; keep firing until we call clear. Sorry, Serra, you'll sit this one out."
They nodded all around and started for the deep shadows that surrounded the ominous tower, Sungjoon in front, finally feeling as though he was doing something useful.
Maybe that spinning destiny was too vast, moving too quickly for them to deny but he wasn't going to let it run them over without at least putting up a fight.
Serra deserved that much.
They all did.
Serra hung back as they moved into position, leaning against the back wall of the large building behind the lighthouse to watch. She felt winded by the climb up the hill, winded and strange and there was a buzzing in her brain that wouldn't go away, wouldn't let her fully concentrate.
Getting sick.
Getting sicker, fast.
It scared her, but somehow it wasn't as bad as it had been. In fact, it wasn't really that scary at all.
The initial terror had gone, leaving her with only a memory of the adrenaline rush, like a whiff of a bad dream. The itch was distracting, but not exactly an itch anymore. What had felt like a million bug bites on her skin, each separate and distinct and screaming for relief, had- connected.
It was the only way she could think to describe the sensation. They had connected, had become a thick blanket over her body that crawled and squirmed, as if her skin had come to life and was scratching itself. It was weird, but not exactly unpleasant-
"Now!"
At the sound of Sungjoon's voice, Serra focused on the sudden action in front of her, the buzzing hum in her head making it all seem strange, speeded up somehow.
The door to the lighthouse crashing open, Sungjoon and Sicheng leaping into the blackness, bullets flashing and booming. The high, whining rattle of an M-16 inside.
Doyoung and Sunoo, ducking and firing, out and in and out again, their bodies blurred by speed, their guns dancing like black metal birds. It was happening so fast that it seemed to take a long, long time for it to stop.
Serra frowned, wondering how that could be and then saw Sungjoon and Sicheng step back out into the blue light of the moon, and realized that she was happy to see them.
Even with their strange and distorted faces, their long bodies that moved too quickly.
"...what's happening to me... "
Serra shook her head but the buzzing only seemed to get louder and she was afraid again, afraid that Sungjoon and Sicheng and Doyoung and Sunoo would leave her behind.
They'd leave her behind and she wouldn't have anyone to, to ease her mind.
That was bad.
Sungjoon was in front of her, staring at her with
eyes like wet, dark cherries. "Serra, are you okay?"
At the look on his round and pointed face and the sound of softness in his voice, Serra felt happy again, and knew that she had to tell him the truth. With a tremendous effort, she found the strength to say what had to be said, her voice coming out of the crawling body and the buzzing, sounding as strange to her as the wind.
"It's getting worse now," she said. "I don't think right, Sungjoon. Don't leave me."
Sicheng and Sunoo, their hot, hot hands touching her, leading her away and to the darkness of the open door. Her body worked, but her mind was clouded by the trembling buzzing hum.
There were things she wanted to tell them, things that drifted through the cloud like flashes of pretty pictures but the building they moved her to was dark and hot, and there was a body on the floor holding a rifle.
His face, she could see. His face wasn't strange; it was white, white and curling, textured like the buzzing and the crawling.
It was a face that made sense.
"I got the door," Doyoung said, looking up and grinning, white, white teeth. "One-three-five."
There was a keypad next to an open hole, stairs leading down, and Doyoung's teeth disappeared, his flat face wrinkling.
"Serra- "
"We have to hurry."
"Hang on baby, hang on, we'll be there soon- "
Serra let them help her, wondering why their faces looked so strange, wondering why they smelled so hot and good.
-
Hanbyul had failed.
Dr. Monika stared at the blinking white light by the door, cursing Hanbyul, cursing Dia Amazon, cursing her luck. She hadn't told Hanbyul how to get back inside, which could only mean that the intruders had made it past him.
Amazon had left them a message or sent them one, it didn't matter- all that mattered was that they were coming and he had to assume that they had the key.
She had torn down the markers.weeks ago, but perhaps they had directions, perhaps they'd find her and don't panic, no need for panic.
"You prepared for this, simply move on, next plan. Division first, two fold effect- less firepower, bait for later... and a chance to see how well Eunsuk can perform."
Monika turned to Dr. Eunsuk and spoke quickly, keeping the instructions clear and simple, the route as easy as possible. Monika had already worked out the questions they'd probably ask, though he knew there was a chance they'd try for more information.
She gave Eunsuk several random phrases to respond with, then gave him the small semi-automatic pistol from Dr. Cheng's desk drawer, watching as Eunsuk tucked it beneath his lab coat to make sure it was hidden.
The bullet carrier was empty, but he didn't think it was possible to tell, not if the hammer was pulled back.
She also gave Eunsuk his key; a risk, but then the entire scenario was a risk. With the fate of the world resting in his hands, she'd take any chance necessary.
After Eunsuk had gone, Monika sat down in a chair to wait for a reasonable amount of time, her gaze wandering to the six stainless canisters in restless anticipation.
Her plans wouldn't fail; the righteousness of her work would see her through this invasion. If Eunsuk was caught out, there were still the Nc127, there were still Mingyu, the syringes and her hiding place, the airlock controls in easy reach.
Past all of that, there was still the sunrise, waiting.
Dr. Monika smiled dreamily not even noticing the presence of a person behind her.
-
Serra could still walk, still seemed to understand at least part of what they were saying to her, but the few words she could manage didn't seem to relate to anything.
As they'd gone down the stairs from the lighthouse, she'd said hot twice. As they'd walked into the wide, dank tunnel at the base of the steps, she'd said, "I don’t want," an expression of fear on her deathly pale, searching face.
Sunoo was terrified that even if they found a way to reverse the viral load, it would be too late.
It had all happened so suddenly, so fast that she could still hardly comprehend it. There'd been a man waiting for them in the darkness of the lighthouse, a trap just as Sungjoonhad intuited.
As soon as they'd gone in, he'd opened fire with an automatic rifle, strafing the door from the shadows beneath the winding metal stairs.
Thanks to Sungjoon's plan, it had been over in seconds and as Doyoung had discovered the access door and punched in the code, Sunoo and Sicheng had looked over their waiting attacker, had seen in the narrow beam of Sicheng's flashlight that the man had been infected- his paper-white skin was flaking and creased with strange, peeling etched lines.
He'd looked somehow different than the SBHsquad victims he'd seen, less decayed, his open, staring eyes somehow more human but then Sungjoon had gone to get Serra and Sunoo's interest had been suddenly and cruelly diverted.
It had been the walk up the hill, he'd decided.
Even though it shouldn't have made a difference, he couldn't imagine what else might have brought on the amplification so quickly.
Somehow, the A-Virus must have responded to the physiological changes of Serra's increased heart rate and circulation but as they'd led the confused and stumbling woman into the lighthouse, Sunoo had found that he'd stopped caring about how; all he wanted was to get to the lab, to try and salvage what was left of Serra and Sungjoon's sanity.
The tunnel beneath the lighthouse seemed to lead back toward the compound in a curving, twisting trail, and was carved from the heavy limestone of the cliff. Mining lights were strung along the walls, casting strange shadows as they moved forward, silent and grimly afraid, Sicheng and Doyoung half-pulling Serra between them.
Sunoo was last, again feeling a horrible sense of deja vu as they stumbled along, remembering the tunnels beneath the Shin estate.
The same cold damp emanated from the stone, and he felt the same terrible feelings of moving toward unknown danger, exhausted and afraid of screwing up of not being able to prevent a disaster.
The disaster has already happened, he thought helplessly, watching Serra struggle to keep walking.
They're losing her. In another hour, probably less, she'll be too far gone to ever come back.
As it was, Sicheng and Doyoung shouldn't be touching her. In a single, easy movement she could get at either one of them, biting before they had a chance to let go.
Even that concept made him sick with sorrow and an aching, heavy feeling of loss.
The tunnel veered to the left, and Sunoo realized they had to be incredibly close to the ocean; the walls seemed to tremble and shake from a muted thunder beyond, and the tunnel was thick with a damp and fishy smell.
Parts of the floor seemed too smooth to have been created by human hands, and Sunoo wondered vaguely if the tunnel opened up ahead somewhere, perhaps had once been flooded by the sea.
"Bloody hell," Sungjoon whispered angrily. "Shit."
Sunoo looked up. When he saw what was ahead, he felt his last flicker of hope for Serra die. They'll never find it in time.