[CONTENTID1]Phoenix[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]Chapter One[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

The leaves on the trees outside turned red and orange as the weather gradually became colder. It was September in South Korea when the first cases of an unidentified disease became known.

Initially, it didn’t seem too alarming. A few people had to be surveyed after developing a ravenous hunger that couldn’t be sated no matter what they ate. In their desperation, some started devouring raw meat which oddly helped to suppress the symptoms for a while, but once the hunger returned, it was intense and made them act irrationally.

Only two weeks after the first cases had become known, the World Health Organization classified this new disease as a threat—everyone who had contracted it needed to go into quarantine in local hospitals where they were monitored by doctors and nurses. The virus at fault, now labeled RABV-12, was closely studied by experts across the globe

Seri was working as a surgeon in Seoul when this happened, and like many of her colleagues, she was concerned by the state of the quarantined patients she saw in the hospital. Their eyes were wide open, filled with greed, and once anyone walked past the windows of their rooms, they would pound on the glass with such force it nearly shattered. Soon enough, nobody went near them without security guards as protection.

At first, it was believed the spread of RABV-12 had been stopped successfully, but this miscalculation would prove to be fatal. It was only a matter of time until things went out of hand. More and more cases emerged not only in South Korea but all around the globe until it was impossible to track the chain of infection.

Researchers and doctors worked tirelessly to find out more about this illness. They were dealing with a disease that shared similarities with rabies but was significantly more aggressive. The period between the infection and the first symptoms varied from minutes to several days. Presumably, the virus was transmitted through direct contact with the saliva of an infected patient.

As news reports about the first uncontrolled outbreaks became more frequent, the world’s population was thrown into a state of panic. South Korea’s military was deployed to aid in hospitals and enforce the strict quarantine rules. The situation grew direr each day. It was at this time that Seri began to dread going to work, but her sense of duty forbade her from staying away. As a cardiothoracic surgeon, many gravely ill patients depended on her and her team’s expertise. Unfortunately, her decision to save lives put her in the center of danger.

The day Seoul fell, she was at the front line to witness it. The virus mutated faster than anyone could have anticipated, turning the quarantined patients into voracious monsters. As soon as they broke free of their confinement, the hospital became a battleground. They attacked anyone who crossed their path, spreading the virus further among other patients, staff members, and soldiers who were present.

In a single day, RABV-12 consumed the entire city, and amidst the ensuing chaos, Seoul’s infrastructure collapsed. The streets leading out of Seoul were crowded with cars, several accidents blocking the way. Trains, busses and other means of public transport came to a standstill. The fastest way to flee the city was on foot, but this also came with many risks.

In the course of the disaster, mobile networks were overloaded and failed. Contacting friends or family members suddenly was impossible.

South Korea was one of many nations that drowned in disarray. As the virus consumed the entire country, brought down police departments, military bases, and public institutions, the government fell silent. The last official statement was broadcast on September 19th.

From that moment on, the survivors were on their own.

A cold wind swept across the street, swirling up a plastic bag someone had lost in their haste to flee the city. The silence hanging over Myeongdong was frightening and unnatural. It could give you a false sense of security, letting you believe you were alone when it wasn’t like that at all. They lurked at every corner, and they weren’t always easy to spot. Sometimes they lay in wait until a careless, unarmed survivor came across them and thus met an untimely end.

Seri called them zombies, for lack of a better term. They acted like the bloodthirsty undead she knew from horror movies. Many of them looked like rotten corpses, their state of decay varying from several stages. After the absolute nightmare she had witnessed in the hospital, she knew better than to underestimate them and always carried at least one weapon when she left her hideout. They could only be stopped with brute force, their head being their weak spot.

During the initial outbreak, she had attempted to reach her home after fleeing the death trap of a hospital, but her apartment complex had been overrun with infected people. As desperate as she had been to lock herself in and hide, she wasn’t stupid. It had been too risky to enter. And so, she had turned her back on her home and looked for a different place to stay.

Four weeks had gone by since that day—and what had occurred in this short time gave her nightmares. She locked these dark memories away in a deep part of her mind in order to retain her sanity, concentrating only on the present. Right now, she was plagued by hunger. Her stomach rumbled. She hadn’t had a proper meal in too long because the shops and homes near her hideout had been ransacked. There was nothing edible left to take, so she was forced to leave her refuge and discover new and possibly more dangerous places in the city.  

With a backpack on her shoulders and her trusted baseball bat in her hand, she neared a store at a street corner and peered through the windows. The inside was dark—she couldn’t tell if anyone was there, but the open door was suspicious. She knew she shouldn’t risk it, but she had no choice. Her body was at its limit, demanding sustenance. She had become frail and her strength waned with each passing day. Yesterday, she had opened the last can of soup she’d had.

With a queasy feeling, she sneaked into the store, ducking behind a shelf immediately. Her footsteps were soundless as she tiptoed further inside, brown eyes nervously taking in her surroundings. It didn’t look good—all that was left were spoiled vegetables and inedible items. This place had already been cleared by other survivors as well. Seri’s heart sank. Sheer desperation brought tears to her eyes. Wasn’t there a single place in this goddamn city that still had food left? Myeongdong was a lost cause at this point—she needed to move on if she wanted to survive.

But as she walked into the next aisle, she came upon a priceless treasure; a bag filled with food. Her breath hitched and her eyes widened. She ducked down and looked over her shoulder, not seeing anyone in the vicinity. The owner of the bag was nowhere to be found. Seri couldn’t believe her luck. The bag contained canned food and other non-perishable items. Even a chocolate bar peeked out on top.

She was so relieved about her discovery that she initially didn’t question why this random bag had been left in the middle of the store. Why would anyone leave an assortment of valuable food behind? Unless they hadn’t left it behind and were still inside the store.

This realization hit Seri like a lightning bolt. She shot up and turned around right on time to see someone lunging at her. Thanks to years of self-defense training, she was able to deflect the attack. Her reflexes were exceptional—her former hapkido teacher would have been proud of her.

Seri came face to face with a man she had never seen before. His black hair was messy, swept away from his forehead, while his dark brown eyes pierced her as he assessed his opponent. Her initial confidence evaporated when she noticed that he was a soldier. His dark green military uniform had a few tears, but she could make out the letters stitched onto its fabric—Captain Byun Baekhyun.

Within the two seconds that she had scrutinized him, she realized something alarming. He was ripped. His shoulders were wide, body lean and muscular. In a trial of strength, she would be at a disadvantage. Her gaze briefly darted to her baseball bat on the ground. He followed her line of sight, scoffing and kicking the weapon out of reach.

“The food belongs to me, you ing thief! Give it up and leave,” he snapped. The dark timbre of his voice sent shivers down her back. He wasn’t to be trifled with, and in any other situation, she would have run away, but she needed to eat.

“I can’t.”

“Okay,” he said nonchalantly, but his expression darkened further. It was menacing. “I’ll take it by force.”

He didn’t give her time to prepare. His fist shot towards her stomach, intending to knock her out, but she dodged him and grabbed his wrist. She had practiced this particular move so many times, executing it was as natural as breathing. Even though the soldier was heavier and taller than her, she didn’t hesitate and grabbed him by the collar of his uniform. Twisting her body, she broke his balance and threw him over her shoulder on the ground.

She met his eyes, surprise flickering through them before they narrowed. He tsked and didn’t stay down—unfortunately, she couldn’t make a run for it. Now he took her seriously and stopped playing around. She couldn’t evade the harsh kick she received. His boot collided with her waist, knocking the air out of her lungs. She hit a shelf and several items went flying in all directions.

“I don’t like thieves,” he growled as he approached her. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

“Shut up! You don’t know anything about me, ,” Seri fired back. Soldier or not, this guy couldn’t be trusted.

She pushed her battered body up, ignoring the pain that flared through her back. The weakness in her limbs due to malnourishment was bothering her. She wasn’t sure if she could win a fight against a trained soldier in this state. But what would he do to her if she lost? A distant memory flashed before her eyes. Her gut twisted and she visibly flinched. She couldn’t afford to get distracted by events that lay in the past. The present was all that mattered.

Seri flung herself at her opponent with so much speed, her dark-brown hair was flying after her. But he foresaw her intention and caught her fist before it collided with his sharp jawline. His mouth formed a cunning smirk. Tightening his grip on her hand, he pulled her towards him abruptly. She didn’t have enough time to prevent the inevitable. He jutted his leg out and made her fall to the ground.

Or at least he tried to, but Seri caught herself elegantly and came to stand on her feet, assuming a cautious posture as she scrutinized him. Her eyes flitted to the exit that lay, unfortunately, behind him. Catching her gaze, his lips twisted.

“Ah, ah. You’re not getting out of this,” he muttered. She hated his derogatory tone. “Return my supplies.”

“They’re mine now!” she hissed, desperately thinking of a strategy. They were not evenly matched, and she wasn’t as arrogant as to think she could win against a soldier. Thus, she needed a good plan, some sort of trick she could use. But with her weapon out of reach and no other means to defend herself, she was stuck in a dangerous predicament.

A terrible thought struck her—what if he was armed? What if he was hiding a knife somewhere on him? He wore a military uniform and there were enough small pockets where he could stash a knife. Her resolve to secure food for herself waned as her fear mounted. Maybe she had bitten off more than she could chew, maybe she should just give up. But then what? Starving wasn’t an option either. She knew, in only a few more days, she would be too weak to put up a fight if she didn’t find anything to eat.

Her small moment of panic was all it took for him to gain the upper hand. He bridged the distance in between them with two quick strides and grabbed her arm. Her eyes widened as she recognized the technique he used. She had practiced this many times in her hapkido lessons, so she knew what to expect. He tried to unbalance her in order to throw her down—it had to be his aim to immobilize her when she was on the floor, but she wouldn’t let him.

Sweat gathered on her forehead. It had been a while since she had to deal with a strong opponent like him. Her cool brown eyes met his steely ones and narrowed.

“When will you give up, huh?” he spat. “This is pointless, you’re just wasting my time.”

“Oh, am I? Then why don’t you defeat me quickly?” she taunted, a provocative smile on her lips. “Is it because you can’t?”