Liz knew her life wasn’t like other people’, not even close.

Growing up, it was all about running and hiding for her parents, trying to stay away from something, and Liz couldn’t understand. She pieced together bits of their secrets from whispers and worried looks.

But when she was six, everything fell apart. Hunters caught up with her parents, and Liz saw them take her parents lives. They were gone, just like that.

After that, Liz was practically thrown in to an orphanage. Luckily, she found friends there, their names were Gaeul, Sakura, Mark, and Felix. They did what any other group of kids would do, they played around with toys and have fun.

One day, this guy named Cha Eunwoo showed up. Liz felt something off about him, he carried around an aura that was filled with mischief.

As Eunwoo delved into the lives of the children, Liz felt the knot of unease tighten in her stomach. The receptionist didn’t hesitate to answer his questions, pointing out Liz’s group without skipping a beat.

Eunwoo’s grin stretched wider as he chatted up the receptionist. His words sounded sweet, but Liz sensed a hidden threat behind them as he dug for more details, his eyes lingering on the unsuspecting kids like he was calculating up their worth for whatever he had in mind.

Eunwoo eventually nods, accepting the papers with a predatory smile that seemed etched onto his features, sending a shiver down Liz’s spine. Despite her lack of familiarity with him, she couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling that he different intentions.

“How do you think this man is gonna be like?” Gaeul asks, her voice tinged with curiosity, her eyes scanning Eunwoo with cautious interest.

“He’s looks super cool! Maybe he can be like a secret agent,” Mark piped up, his voice filled with enthusiasm, his gaze fixed on Eunwoo as if he were a character straight out of a spy novel. Liz’s heart sank at Mark’s words.

“No, Mark! Don’t be stupid!” Gaeul scolded sending a hit too his head, though her tone held a hint of uncertainty as she shot Liz a reassuring smile.

“Hey Liz, don’t worry. We’ll be in this together. He won’t be like your old parents, okay?” Sakura murmured softly, her eyes showing a mixture of concern and determination.

Despite her friends’ attempts at reassurance, Liz couldn’t shake the lingering sense of apprehension that gripped her heart, her mind still ran around with doubts and fears. Instead she smiles and nods nervously.

No, he won’t be like her old parents. He would be worse.

As they approached Eunwoo, Liz summoned all her strength to conceal her fear behind a happy facade. This encounter marked a changing point in their lives, one fraught with uncertainty and dread.

Following Eunwoo to his waiting van, the children climbed aboard without question, their youthful chatter filling the air with a false sense of security. As they journeyed onward, their conversations danced with anticipation, buoyed by the assumption that they were headed to a new home.

Felix, ever the bold one, voiced his concerns with a deep voice tinged with apprehension. “Hey mister, where are you taking us?” he inquired, as they all board off entering the building.

Liz watched the exchange with a mixture of curiosity and unease, her gaze fixed on Eunwoo as he responded with a disarming smile. “I’m taking you somewhere fun! Don’t worry,” he reassured them, his words carrying an unsettling blend of comfort and ambiguity.

Despite her misgivings, Liz forced a smile in response, allowing herself to be led into a room at Eunwoo’s direction. They came to a halt at a door. Eunwoo pushed it open, revealing a grey room adorned only by the presence of an elevator standing in the center.

With a sense of fear settling over them like a heavy cloud, the children trailed behind Eunwoo into the elevator. As they descended to the basement level, Liz’s unease swelled with each passing floor, her heart pounding with fear. The doors slid open to reveal a dimly lit corridor, its end swallowed by shadow except for a solitary door beckoning them forward.

Stepping out into the darkness, Liz couldn’t shake the foreboding that gripped her heart. Unbeknownst to them, their journey had only just begun, and the truth of their destination remained behind a door.

As the rest of them entered the room, their gazes flickered to Liz who stood outside the door. Liz’s unease palpable among them. “Hey mister, are you sure this is safe?” she ventured, her voice trembling with uncertainty as she nervously stood in-front of the door.

Eunwoo’s scowl deepened, his patience wearing thin. Without warning, he seized Liz’s arm, his grip unyielding as he roughly shoved her into the room. Gasps of shock rippled through the group, their expressions a mixture of concern and fear.

“Hey! Don’t do that to Liz!” Mark’s protest echoed through the room, his protective instincts flaring in defense of his friend.

Concern etched across her features, Gaeul knelt beside Liz, her voice laced with worry. “Liz, are you okay?”

Despite the rough treatment, Liz managed to summon a soft smile, though the unease lingered in her eyes. “Yeah guys, I’m okay. It was just an accident,” she reassured them, her words a fragile shield against the mounting tension.

Meanwhine, Felix, ever the brave one, confronted Eunwoo. “What are you gonna do to us?” he demanded, his voice trembling with a palpable undercurrent of dread.

Eunwoo’s smile widened, a chilling glimmer of amusement dancing in his eyes as he delivered his cryptic response. “Experiments,” he replied, his words lingering in the air like a sinister omen of things to come.

As panic surged within them, the children made a frantic attempt to flee, only to find the door blocked by three new figures, locking the door behind them. One of them, an older man in his fifties, regarded them with a smirk that sent shivers down their spines.

“Here, dad, the kids you wanted,” Eunwoo declared, his voice laced with a menacing edge.

The old man’s smirk widened as he appraised the children before him. “What an intriguing selection you’ve brought,” he remarked, his words dripping with ominous implications. They all instinctively recoiled, their hearts pounding with fear.

Mark’s voice echoed through the room, filled with desperation as he stood infront of the old man. “Let us out!”

The old man merely chuckled, a sinister glint in his eyes as he casually shoved Mark on to the ground. “Oh, you poor thing,” he taunted, his smirk widening into a cruel grin. “This is just the start.”

As the gravity of their situation sank in, Liz felt a sense of helplessness wash over her. Caught in a web of uncertainty and fear, she stood frozen, unsure of what course of action to take next.​

-

Separated into individual rooms with glass windows, they could see each other but were utterly powerless to help. Their screams fell on deaf ears, futile against the cold, unyielding walls that caged them in.

The men wasted no time in commencing their macabre experiments. Five figures, each entering their separate rooms, approached them with syringes in hand, seeking their blood. Liz fought back, scrambling away from her assailant, but he easily overpowered her, pinning her down until he obtained his sample.

Tears streamed down Liz’s cheeks as she cried out for help, her pleas echoing fruitlessly within the confines of her prison. Meanwhile, her friends remained trapped in their own chambers, unable to offer any assistance.

Once the blood samples were collected, the men conducted a series of tests, their intentions shrouded in mystery and dread. Each of them was subjected to unknown horrors, their fates uncertain and their torment seemingly endless.

-

As time dragged on, perhaps a year or more since their imprisonment began, Liz lost track of the days. The experiments grew increasingly sinister, hinting at a grim purpose lurking in the shadows.

For Liz, each day was a descent into hell. She became the unwilling test subject for their most brutal experiments, enduring agonizing injections that tested the limits of her endurance. At first, the pain was unbearable, reducing her to tears with every prick of the needle. But as the injections became routine, she grew numb to the torment, her face a mask of resignation.

Though the physical pain dulled over time, the toll on her health was unmistakable. Liz’s once vibrant spirit withered away, leaving behind a mere shadow of her former self. Her body wasted away, her once-healthy frame now a mere semblance of its former vitality.

Occasionally, they were granted reprieve from their solitary rooms, allowed to gather in the main room. Yet even these moments of respite offered little solace. Their once-lively conversations dwindled to strained murmurs, their shared laughter replaced by a heavy silence that hung in the air like a suffocating shroud.

Amidst the suffocating despair of their captivity, there were fleeting moments of solace. In those rare instances, they would gather in a circle, seeking comfort in each other’s presence. Mark and Felix would engage in quiet conversation, their hushed tones a stark contrast to the oppressive silence that aded their surroundings. Meanwhile, Liz would lean against Sakura, finding solace in her comforting embrace. Gaeul, ever the source of warmth and affection, would rest her head on Liz’s leg, inviting gentle caresses as Liz absently played with her hair.

In those precious moments, time seemed to stand still. The weight of their shared suffering momentarily lifted, replaced by a fragile sense of camaraderie and companionship. For a brief instant, they were transported from their grim reality, finding solace in the simple act of being together.

The arrival of Eunwoo and his team of scientists cast a foreboding shadow over the cramped confines of their prison. Each scientist wielded a different contribution, ranging in size and complexity, signaling a different experiment than their usual routine. Gaeul tensed as the smallest syringe was directed towards her, its contents promising a potency unlike anything she had experienced before. Despite her frantic attempts to evade the scientist’s grasp, she found herself pinned, the sharp prick of the syringe plunging into her back.

Sakura’s ordeal was even more horrifying, as she was led to a chair adorned with a menacing contraption. With tiredness, she listened to the scientist’s commands, allowing the helmet to be affixed to her head. As the experiment commenced, the others watched in horror as Sakura convulsed and screamed, her distress palpable in the air. Liz could only look on in shock as the scientist manipulated the controls, triggering a reaction within Sakura’s brain that sent her into a frenzy of agony. When the ordeal finally ceased, Sakura lay motionless, her eyes closed as if in a trance.

Fear and concern gripped the group as they watched Sakura’s limp form, unsure of what the experiment had brought upon their friend.

The procession of experiments continued with a relentless and chilling efficiency. Mark was the next in line, subjected to the swift injection of an unknown substance that offered no respite from their torment. Unlike Gaeul before him, he resigned himself to the ordeal, his spirit drained of the fight that once burned within him.

Felix’s turn brought a new form of suffering, as the scientists unveiled a container crackling with volatile energy. The sheer intensity of the contained electricity sent Felix recoiling in terror, his desperate attempts to escape futile against the unyielding walls of his confinement. With a sudden and terrifying surge, the energy broke free from its containment, latching onto Felix’s body with a merciless ferocity. His screams of agony echoed through the chamber, a horrible testament to the torment inflicted upon him.

The others watched in horror as Felix writhed and convulsed, his body contorted by the relentless assault of electricity. Mark pounded futilely on the glass barrier, his cries drowned out by the cacophony of agony that filled the room. Yet, despite the intensity of his suffering, Felix endured, his resilience a testament to the strength that still flickered within him amidst the darkness of their captivity.

Liz was the last in line, and the sight that greeted her was more menacing than anything she had endured before.

“Hey, what are you doing with that? Stop!” Mark’s muffled shouts came through the glass, filled with desperation.

The arrival of a sinister-looking tube, pulsating with a malevolent energy, marked a stark departure from the previous procedures. Liz’s heart raced with fear, her instincts screaming at her to flee from the impending horror.

With cruel delight, the scientists brandished the container before her, its contents swirling with ominous hues of blue, white, and black. Liz recoiled at the sight, her mind reeling with terror at the unknown fate that awaited her.

“Please, I don’t want this. Stop,” Liz’s voice trembled with fear, her pleas falling on deaf ears.

The scientist’s twisted grin sent shivers down her spine, his taunts serving only to heighten her sense of impending doom.

“Aww Jiwon, are you scared?” he taunted, holding the container menacingly close.

With a cruel laugh, he drew nearer, his touch like ice against her skin as he seized her face in a vice-like grip. Liz struggled against his hold, her instincts screaming at her to escape the clutches of this man.

“It’ll be okay dear. It’ll be over soon,” he murmured, his voice laced with false comfort, before stepping away to release the ominous contents of the container.

The scientist’s reassurance fell hollow on Liz’s ears as he drew nearer, his touch sending a shiver down her spine. Despite his soothing words, Liz couldn’t shake the sense of impending dread that consumed her.

Liz’s eyes widened in terror as she caught sight of the label – ‘serum-X.’ The unknown substance seemed to pulse with a sinister energy, its purpose shadowed in darkness. The scientist left one last lingering touch on her face before unleashing the black goop. He left the room with a sinister smile and laugh.

With mounting horror, Liz watched as the viscous goop oozed closer, its movements deliberate and menacing. She scrambled desperately, attempting to evade its grasp, but it was futile.

In a moment of searing agony, the serum fused with her skin, sending waves of excruciating pain coursing through her body. She screamed, her cries echoing through the sterile room, but there was no escape from the relentless onslaught.

As the darkness enveloped her, Liz’s consciousness slipped away, leaving her lying motionless on the cold floor, a silent witness to the horrors that awaited her.

The cacophony of screams and desperate pleas echoed in Liz’s ears as her vision blurred and darkened. Through the haze, she caught glimpses of her friends – Mark’s frantic pounding on the glass, Gaeul’s hands hovering over the barrier in futile desperation, Sakura and Felix whispering words of comfort that she struggled to discern.

Summoning the last shreds of her strength, Liz managed to muster a feeble smile, a silent thank you to her friends. But her efforts were in vain as the darkness closed in around her, swallowing her consciousness whole.

As the door burst open and the room filled with the clamor of rushing footsteps, Liz surrendered to the abyss, her world fading to black, leaving behind only the haunting echoes of her friends’ cries and the chilling uncertainty of what lay ahead.

-

Liz navigated through the following years, the weight of her past was something she carried alone. Homeschooling provided her education she missed from the orphanage and the testing. But she was already smarter than average kids so she passed flawlessly.

After begging to be registered in to a highschool, the people taking care of her reluctantly nodded. Thats where she met Yujin, Winter and Giselle, her best friends that have been there for her since. They brought her smile back and her usual charm.

Yet beneath all of that, Liz held the secret– the dormant presence of the symbiote that still runs deep in her veins.

Time passed and she forgot about it, or tried her best too anyways. But she knew it was coming back to bite her, she just never thought about 

when. 

It’s sealed in her fate,

you can’t rewrite it can you?