ECHOES OF TERROR: SECRETS IN THE SHADOWS

Jeha sat slumped in the corner of the vehicle, his eyes hollow from exhaustion. The faint flicker of a dim interior light illuminated his face, making the dark circles under his eyes appear even deeper. He held up a bag with a weak grin. "I brought whatever I found lying around in that store," he muttered, his voice raspy.

Mina, sitting across from him, raised a skeptical eyebrow. She rubbed her arms to stave off the chill seeping through the vehicle's thin walls. "Hah... but what's the point of all this?" she asked, gesturing vaguely at the bag with a flick of her wrist.

Jeha leaned his head back against the cold, rusted wall, letting out a tired chuckle. "If not for their actual use, one can at least toss them at those zombies or whatever they are," he replied, his voice laced with sarcasm.

Mina smirked, her lips curling slightly. "You didn't run into any zombies on your way back?" she asked, the faintest trace of amusement in her voice.

Jeha shook his head, his sore eyes closing briefly. "No. Just flying trash," he replied with a small shrug.

That was all it took for Mina to break into a stifled laugh. "Pfft."

Jeha's tired gaze turned sharp, feigning irritation. "Why is that so funny?" he asked, though the corners of his mouth twitched upward.

"No, haha, nothing," Mina managed between laughs, waving him off.

The others in the vehicle exchanged amused glances as the conversation unfolded. Yuri, sitting in the back corner, leaned closer to Eunhye and whispered, "Mina's being pretty chatty with him."

Eunhye nodded slightly, her gaze flickering between Mina and Jeha, who were still exchanging quiet remarks. The light banter between them eventually faded into a more subdued exchange of nods and brief words until silence reclaimed the space.

Suddenly, Yon spoke up, his voice cutting through the quiet. "My house," he said, sitting up straighter.

Joon Hyun, who had been sitting with his arms folded, furrowed his brow. "What about your house?" he asked, his tone sharp but curious.

"We can go there, Hyeong," Yon said, turning to face him fully.

Joon Hyun's eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"There are... helpful things there. And a laboratory," Yon replied, his words hesitant but deliberate.

"A laboratory?"

"Yes. My father was in the research field," Yon said, his gaze steady but cautious.

Joon Hyun's expression hardened. "I've been meaning to ask you this, Yon."

Yon tilted his head slightly, a flicker of unease crossing his face. "Yes... Hyeong?"

"Can we trust you?"

The question hung in the air like a blade poised to strike. Yon blinked, visibly caught off guard. "Excuse me?" he said, his voice tinged with disbelief.

"I'm sorry to say this, guys, but apart from Eunhye, Yuri, and Jaeyeon, you all seem suspicious to me," Joon Hyun said, his voice steady and unyielding. "But most of all, you, Yon. You act like you anticipated all of this. You pushed open a heavy metal door on your own. You slice through them, and they take ages to stand back up. You carry around bottles of acid. I just can't trust you."

Yon opened his mouth to respond, but Joon Hyun raised a hand to stop him. "Oh, and don't think I didn't hear the little conversation you had with Yunha."

Yon's jaw clenched, his hands curling into fists on his lap. "Oh? Is overhearing conversations a habit of yours?"

"You tell me," Joon Hyun shot back. "It's not like you were talking in your own room."

Silence fell over the vehicle as the tension between them thickened. The others watched the exchange with bated breath.

"You know I'm right, Yon," Joon Hyun pressed, his tone growing firmer.

Yon exhaled sharply through his nose, his gaze dropping momentarily. "You eavesdropping on me and Yunha-"

"-was something in the lines of coincidence," Joon Hyun interrupted.

Yon's eyes darkened as he leaned forward slightly. "What do you even want to know? You heard it all."

"You did all that. How should I trust you won't do it to any of us?" Joon Hyun asked, his voice low and dangerous.

"I won't," Yon replied, his tone unwavering.

"How are you so sure, Yon?"

"Because Eugene is here as well," Yon muttered, almost inaudibly.

Joon Hyun's brow furrowed. "Yon?"

Yon's shoulders sagged as he glanced at Eugene briefly. "I won't, Hyeong. My friends are here."

The weight of his words settled over the group. Joon Hyun leaned back slightly, studying Yon's expression. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing should happen to them," Yon said, his voice soft but resolute.

"You would have? If they weren't here?" Joon Hyun pressed, his tone accusatory.

Yon met his gaze head-on. "What's the point? They are here," he replied simply.

"Yon," Joon Hyun said, his voice a mix of exasperation and suspicion. "You'll have to stop talking in circles if you want this conversation to go anywhere."

Yon sighed heavily, rubbing the back of his neck. "What do you want to hear?"

"The truth," Joon Hyun said firmly.

Yon hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Fine then. Don't tell me you regret it later," he said quietly.

"I won't. Go ahead," Joon Hyun replied, crossing his arms again.

As Yon began to recount the events that had led them to this point, the vehicle seemed to grow colder. The others listened in silence, the occasional gasp or sharp intake of breath punctuating the story.

***

[Approximately a year earlier - Boseong]

Yon's father stood in front of his senior, the vial of his latest creation resting in his hand. The man before him, a senior in the research bureau, eyed the vial with a mix of skepticism and curiosity. Yon's father set it down gently on the desk between them, the glass catching the light as he did so.

"This," Yon's father began, his voice steady yet filled with a certain urgency, "this is a very effective bacteria."

The senior's brow furrowed as he glanced back at Yon's father, skepticism still lingering in his eyes. "You want us to inject live bacteria into people?"

Yon's father met the man's gaze, his tone resolute. "Let's test it, at least. See if it works as predicted."

The senior let out a soft sigh, his fingers drumming against the desk. "You really want to risk something like this? We're talking about human lives here."

Yon's father's expression softened, but his resolve remained unshaken. "We have control over it. I have a bacteria disabler with me-if anything goes wrong, even in the slightest, we can neutralize the bacteria before it can do any harm."

The senior looked at the vial once more, then nodded slowly. "Alright. I'll trust you on this one, Mister Lee. But this better be good."

"Thank you," Yon's father replied, bowing his head slightly in gratitude.

A test subject was quickly arranged. The first candidate-a cat-was injected with the bacteria. The research team observed it closely, tracking every small change in its behavior. For three long days, the cat was monitored. Its reactions were swift, its reflexes faster than anything they'd ever seen before. The cat's range of vision seemed to broaden, and its endurance was far superior to what one would expect from a simple domestic animal.

The researchers exchanged glances, excitement beginning to build in the room.

"It works..." one of them whispered in awe.

Yon's father, standing nearby, gave a slight nod of approval, but he wasn't satisfied yet. "Shall we try it on a human?" he asked, his voice steady but tinged with anticipation.

The senior hesitated, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "It's too early for that. We don't have enough data. What if it goes wrong?"

Yon's father's hand tightened around the vial as he reached for the bag at his side, pulling out a small device. "I have the bacteria disabler. If anything goes wrong, we can neutralize it immediately. This could be the breakthrough we've been waiting for."

The senior looked at the device, a complicated mechanism that could stop the bacteria from spreading if activated. After a moment, he gave a reluctant nod. "Fine. But only because it's you, Mister Lee. We'll go ahead with it."

A second test subject was quickly arranged-a man from the nearby town. He was injected with the bacteria and placed under observation. For the next three days, the research team watched intently, taking meticulous notes. Like the cat, the man exhibited the same enhanced qualities. His reflexes were quick, his vision sharp, and his strength remarkable. The results were undeniable.

"Impressive," one of the researchers commented. "This could change everything."

Yon's father allowed himself a brief smile, his confidence growing with each successful test. With the enhanced machines, skilled teams, and refined protocols, the vials were eventually converted into tablets. The next step was distribution, but it was limited to a single region at first. Only a select few received the tablets, their health and reactions closely monitored.

For a month, the results were nothing short of extraordinary. People who had taken the tablets showed remarkable improvements. Their physical stamina increased, their mental clarity sharpened. Word spread quickly, and the region began to buzz with talk of the tablets' efficacy. People praised the breakthrough, and it seemed like Yon's father's work would become a monumental success.

But the success was short-lived.

In the following weeks, strange reports started to emerge. People who had taken the tablets began to show symptoms much earlier than expected. Where it had initially taken several days for any side effects to appear, now they were manifesting in just two days. It was subtle at first-an increase in irritability, slight aggression. But it didn't stop there. Soon, people were becoming uncontrollably violent. They stopped caring about the safety or well-being of others, even those they had known for years.

The side effects worsened quickly. A week later, the symptoms began to appear within just a day of taking the tablets. People became violent, their actions fueled by a blind aggression. The transformation was rapid and terrifying. Neighbors who had once greeted each other in the street now became enemies, lashing out for no apparent reason. Small arguments escalated into full-blown fights, resulting in injuries and hospital visits. It wasn't long before people were harming themselves, biting and scratching at their own bodies in a fit of rage.

The situation became dire. What had started as a promising breakthrough quickly turned into a nightmare.

In response, the research bureau immediately shut down the distribution of the tablets. The stocks were seized, all remaining samples were destroyed, and any research files relating to the project were erased. The officials acted quickly to cover up the incident, but the damage had already been done.

Yon's father, devastated by the results and fearful of the repercussions, knew they had to leave. With the city in chaos and rumors of the project's failure beginning to spread, he packed up his family and moved them to Jeonju, hoping to escape the fallout. But Boseong, the city that had once held so much promise, was left in ruins. Its streets were now filled with violent, uncontrollable citizens, and no one was certain who could be trusted anymore.

The failure of the experiment had not only destroyed Yon's father's career but had also plunged the city into an abyss of terror that it would never recover from. The region became a ghost town, its inhabitants left to fend for themselves in the wake of the outbreak. Yon's father, haunted by the consequences of his actions, could only watch as the world he had known crumbled around him.

***

By the time Yon finished, the group sat in stunned silence. The weight of his confession hung over them like a storm cloud.

"So," Joon Hyun said finally, his voice breaking the silence. "That tablet was your creation."

"Technically," Yon replied, his gaze fixed on the floor.

Joon Hyun exhaled slowly, his fingers tapping against his arm. "You're a huge asset... and also a ticking time bomb," he concluded.

Yon glanced up, his expression unreadable. "Ticking time bomb is a stretch, don't you think?"

Joon Hyun leaned forward, his eyes narrowing. "You can turn into those things at any time. I don't think it's a stretch."

As the vehicle rolled forward again, the group exchanged uneasy glances, their destination looming ahead like a shadowy promise.