12.47pm         KBS Broadcasting Station

Chorong screamed the moment the lights went out. There was a moment of mild panic until Yookyung flipped on her torchlight. "Everybody okay?" she asked, swinging the light around. 

"I’m fine, but how are we getting out of here when it’s so dark?" Bomi wailed from her spot at the door. 

"Anymore torchlights?" Chorong asked, and took out her own phone with trembling hands. The blackout was so sudden it shocked her. You have this under control, she told herself.

"I can switch on my phone," Namjoo said.

"Everybody gather all your stuff," Yookyung said. "We’re getting out of here, the sooner the better."

"I’m with you on that one," Bomi said, eyebrows furrowed.

The girls opened the door and entered the corridor with small steps, careful not to make too much noise. "Let’s go in a single file," Chorong commanded. Yookyung led the way followed by Chorong, Namjoo and then Bomi. Except for their flashlights, the neon glow of the exit sign was the only thing illuminating the corridor. 

There was silence except for the sound of their footsteps and breathing. The group briskly walked to the stairwell where they came from. "Be careful down the stairs, alright?" Chorong called out. She had one hand on her revolver and the other holding her phone out, while her crowbar was tucked into her backpack. The darkness was really an inconvenience as it meant that she could only hold one weapon.

They marched down the stairs with the minimal light, with Yookyung whispering which floor they were at every time they descended each flight. "9th floor," she announced. "Great, we’re almost there." Chorong couldn’t tell she was being optimistic or sarcastic. 

"Argh!" A shout came from Yookyung, who landed on the floor with a resounding thud. "I tripped over something here!"

Chorong shone her torch down and was horrified to see that it was a charger, a stage 2 infected. They had to fight it. Going back up or running away was not a practical option. It hissed at her and looked ready to attack. Chorong raised her revolver and fired two shots at it, but it seemed to dodge well and was mostly unscathed. 

Namjoo rushed forward and blasted it with her electric gun. The shock made the pale white creature writhe in pain for a second. "I’ll handle this!" Bomi swung her bat down on the skull of the creature, causing it to hiss out in pain and fall down the next flight of stairs. Chorong shot at it again, to make sure that it wouldn’t get up again. 

Chorong ran down the flight of stairs. "Alright, let’s go!"

"Wait!" Namjoo was helping Yookyung up, who was wincing in pain. The fall must have been more serious than Chorong thought. Chorong went back to support Yookyung, only to find out that she was bleeding. ", when did this..?" she trailed off, looking at Yookyung.

Yookyung sighed. "When I fell I must have accidentally sliced my own thigh," The cut didn’t seem especially deep, but she was bleeding excessively. Yookyung reprimanded herself for being so careless. "I’m so sorry guys."

"We have to bandage this up, you’re bleeding too much." Chorong said anxiously. 

"Uhh guys?" Bomi said. "We might have some trouble heading our way."

Chorong cursed herself internally. The gunshots she fired earlier must have attracted more of the infected. 

"I’ll be right there!" Chorong shouted as Namjoo went down to assist Bomi.

She retrieved a scarf from her backpack and started to wrap it around Yookyung’s thigh as tightly as she could. "This will have to do," Chorong muttered to herself as Yookyung grunted in pain.

"They’re here!" Bomi screamed, and the metallic pings every few seconds from her metal baseball bat meant that she was hitting them, hard. 

"It’s been more than 30 minutes!" Namjoo managed to say while fighting off the hoard of infected. "Why didn’t they send help yet?" 

Chorong finished tying her knot and picked up her crowbar, ready to go help the others. "Don’t worry about me," Yookyung reassured. They exchanged a look that said let’s do this, and with that Chorong turned around to help Bomi and Namjoo. 

Crack. She smashed the head of a normie in without mercy, and then performed a low kick that swept another one off of its feet, making it fall. Immediately, Chorong attacked it with a swift blow to the head. It appeared that learning Hapkido as a kid really helped.

"My gun’s out of battery! Help!" Namjoo screamed. She was cornered by a group of infected on the railing of the stairs, and was close to being forced off the edge. Between the two flights of stairs was a narrow space, and she could fall all the way to the first floor. There was no way she could survive that fall.

"!" Bomi was struggling against another charger, unable to help. Chorong tucked her phone in her pocket and gripped her crowbar with two hands, flashlight be damned, and hit the small crowd of infected in a sweeping arc. "Ugh! Get away from her!"

Meanwhile, Yookyung had gotten back on her feet and was soon helping her, using her katana to slice them. The thrashing Namjoo screamed and lost grip of her cellphone and it fell down all nine floors, landing seconds later with a smashing sound. "Help! I can’t hold on any longer!" 

Only two left! Chorong hit the remaining two normies as hard as she could, but Namjoo was already slipping off the railing, about to fall, but fortunately Yookyung reached out and grabbed Namjoo’s right hand. She strained against the weight until Chorong, too, took hold of Namjoo’s shoulder and hand. Together, they hauled her back to safety. 

Just then, someone shouted "Guys! We’re here!" and the sound of footsteps became unmistakable. Finally, help was here. Bomi yelled and pushed the charger away from her with both hands on her and it staggered away to a corner. And then Eunji ran towards it, driving her axe deep into its skull. "Whew," she said as she stepped on it to take her axe out. 

"You guys are safe!" Bomi cried out in bliss. Hayoung, Eunji, and Naeun were here to save them. They had been separated just 2 hours ago at the pet clinic after a wild attack by some dogs, and it was a relief to see everyone mostly in one piece. They rushed into an impromptu group hug, and Chorong signalled at a slightly limping Yookyung to join them. The air was electric and Chorong suddenly felt like she could cry. 

"I’m so glad everyone’s safe and sound," Yookyung spoke in a hushed tone.

"You had no idea what we went through!" Hayoung exclaimed. 

Chorong laughed. "Us too. For now, let’s just get out of here."

Namjoo nodded dramatically, eyes wide. After all, she just had a near-death experience.

"Alright," Eunji led the way down, while Chorong stayed behind to help Yookyung down. 

When the group reached the first floor, Chorong’s eyes hurt slightly due to the bright daylight. She shielded her eyes, slowly adjusting to the brightness. "My phone!" Namjoo lamented. "It’s gone forever now." The screen was cracked like an intricate spiderweb. Hayoung comforted her by telling her that she would get another phone for her once the whole thing was over. 

Xiao and the rest of the group were gathered in a school bus that Eunji’s team got earlier. "Cool wheels," Bomi commented as they all got on the bus. 

"Courtesy of me," Jae replied. Bomi said nothing in response. "And you’re welcome." he drawled lazily.

Xiao approached Yookyung. "Taejoon has been vomitting non-stop for the past few minutes."

"That’s perfectly normal," Yookyung assured, and then plopped down on one of the seats further back, clearly exhausted. 

"I’ll help you bandage that," Naeun grabbed her backpack, or rather first-aid kit and went to sit with Yookyung.

"So what is the plan now? Get to the airport?" Yuri asked, sharpening her sai. The sound of metal on metal grated on Chorong’s nerves, but she chose not to say anything.

"That’s right, and we should go through by terminal 3." Chorong spoke up. "Everyone should also try to get some rest-"

"Why terminal 3?" A man that was Taejoon’s friend interrupted. His name was Kyungho or Kyunghoon. "Isn’t terminal 1 the most convenient? You know I’m starting to think that all this is nothing but a fraud. Does the Cure really even work?" His tone was cynical and filled with distrust. 

"Yeah," Another woman chimed in. "This whole ELITE bull they’re feeding us too."

"Excuse me?" Namjoo said, outraged. She scoffed and rolled her eyes at them.

Hayoung expressed her incredulousness. "It’s up to you if you want to trust us, but don’t you think that if the Cure was fake, he would have turned by now?" She gestured at Taejoon, who was breaking out in cold sweat.

Hayoung hit the nail on the head with her logical point, rendering the man speechless. "I still think we can’t trust you guys," he said firmly. Some other people agreed with him with nods and murmurs, as well as hostile glances.

"Fine," Eunji said coolly. Her face was composed and unperturbed, as if saying, we don’t need you anyway. The tension in the bus heightened.

"Let’s not fight," Xiao attempted to mediate between the two opposing groups before anybody got physical.

Yuri considered Yookyung for a moment, scanning her injured thigh. It was hard to tell where she stood. "Let’s just get to airport asap," She stalked away with Kyla in tow. "C’mon, Kyla."

Chorong could see Jae from the driver’s seat, looking at the commotion with unease. Then, Xiao’s crew all scattered off, and the bus was divided in two, with the girls at the back of the bus and the rest in front.

Naeun sighed, and there was silence. 

"Now we gotta deal with people turning their backs on us?" Bomi joked, trying to lighten up the atmosphere.

"This is ridiculous," Eunji commented.

Chorong tried to calm them down. "They’re just like that because of what happened so far. People always need to find something to point fingers at to make themselves feel better. Don’t mind them. Let’s just rest for now." 

Chorong leaned against her seat and watched the rest of the world go by in a blur. Buildings up in smoke, wrecked cars, a few infected here and there. It was a long journey for sure, but they could make it. Their destination was getting closer and closer.

Note: Comments are greatly appreciated! It really motivates me to keep writing.