People throughout history had discovered that captivity did not always end when the door opened.
Viktor Frankl, who survived the concentration camps of the Second World War, once observed that abnormal circumstances could make abnormal behaviour perfectly normal. It was one of the crueller adaptations of the human mind. Given enough time, fear became routine, obedience became instinct, and survival meant learning rules that no longer made sense once freedom returned.
The ten people rescued from beneath the construction site had been free for less than an hour.
They had been moved to a room well away from the surrendered men, behind two steel shutters and most of the underground loading bay. Nobody guarded the door, nor had anyone told them where to sit or when they were allowed to speak.
Yet most had chosen the walls anyway.
The Doctor stayed with them.
For a while, he said very little.
Then his attention settled on the woman wearing what remained of an EDF uniform.
It was difficult to mistake one, even in its current state. The emblem of an eagle, perching its claws atop a giant tree.
The dark fabric had been torn along one shoulder and stained almost black in several places. Whatever rank markings had once sat neatly across the front were scuffed beneath dirt and dried blood. One sleeve had been ripped away entirely, exposing a bruised forearm wrapped in bandages.
She was sitting with her back against one of the concrete supports.
Unlike most of the others, she wasn't resting. Her eyes moved every few seconds. Door. Corridor. The other survivors. The Doctor. Then back to the door. He crossed the room. She noticed before he had taken three steps. By the time he stopped a short distance away, her posture had straightened.
"EDF?"
The woman glanced down at herself.
"...Good guess."
"I'm glad I ignored the callback, then."
That earned the faintest movement at the corner of her mouth. Words almost seemed to leave her lips, but in the end she only shook her head, as if quietly admonishing the careless declaration.
"Jun Tae-yoon."
She looked back up.
A hand came up.
Not immediately.
There was the slightest hesitation before she offered it.
Jun took it.
Her grip was weaker than it probably used to be.
"Thank you. ...We wouldn't have lasted another day."
He waited.
"Second Lieutenant Seo Yerin."
"...Second Lieutenant. Oof."
The woman smiled.
"On account of being saved, I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
Jun released her hand.
Yerin's gaze lingered on him for a moment longer.
"Doctor."
The man paused.
"I heard it a few times while we were being moved. Your... companion? The pretty one with the violet hair. She called you that."
Her eyes drifted briefly towards the doorway.
"She really whacked those guys downstairs. Like—shhk, shhk—then one kick and the fella just went flying."
Yerin made a small motion with her hand, almost reenacting it.
"Like a damn ragdoll. Heh."
She shook her head.
"Pretty girl, though. Wouldn't have expected tha—gahk... cough, cough!"
Jun passed her one of the bottles of water he had distributed among the former hostages. Yerin took it with a quick nod and gulped down several mouthfuls. She closed her eyes, swallowed once more, then cleared her throat.
"...Sorry."
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
"Anyway. Doctor. That's what she called you."
Jun gave a small nod.
"Yeah."
"So..." Yerin turned the bottle slowly between both hands. "You actually one?"
A pause. He looked at a corner of the room.
"If you count being a combat medic during my reservist days."
Her brows lifted.
"You can call me whatever you feel comfortable with."
"Right. Then Doctor it is. Easier for me."
Yerin took another mouthful of water before lowering the bottle between her knees.
Something struck the barricades outside.
A heavy metallic thud travelled faintly through the concrete.
Several people in the room stiffened.
Yerin's head turned towards the doorway almost immediately.
"Sure brought a lot of company with you."
She looked back at Jun.
"Doc, how are we getting out of here?"
"We're working on it."
Her brows rose.
Jun nodded towards the ceiling.
"My friend's clearing a path from up top."
Yerin studied him for a moment, as if trying to find some trace of a lie.
"...You're serious?"
"How else did you think we managed to take control of this place?"
"..."
Her eyes wandered towards the ceiling again.
Another distant crack sounded somewhere above.
"...Right."
Yerin took another drink.
"Okay. Then that makes things easier."
Jun waited.
"There were still EDF collection points running when my unit went out. Closest one from here should be..." She paused, looking towards the floor as she worked it out. "Maybe forty minutes on foot. Less if the roads aren't completely screwed."
"How many people?"
"At the point?"
"Yeah."
"...Couldn't tell you now. Last count I heard was ...a few hundred."
Jun's gaze stayed on her.
"Can they take ten more?"
Yerin gave a small snort. She gestured around the room with the bottle.
"Ten isn't the problem, Doc. Getting ten there alive is."
"What route is the safest?"
That question came quickly enough that she looked at him again.
A short breath escaped her nose, as she shifted forward.
"Main road's out. Too open, and there was already a pile-up near the junction before my squad got grabbed. We'd cut through the service roads behind the old commercial blocks instead. Smaller streets, more cover, less chance of walking straight into a crowd."
She traced the route loosely against the concrete with one finger.
"From there, head north until we hit the EDF barricade."
Jun's eyes followed her hand.
"Still there?"
"Should be."
She glanced up.
"There was another collection point closer to Lincol, actually. If you came from that side, it might—"
"It's gone."
Yerin stopped.
"...Gone?"
Jun nodded.
"Lincol fell."
The bottle went still between her hands.
"When?"
"Yesterday. Evening, I think."
He paused.
"...It's past midnight already."
Yerin stared at him.
"A few hours ago, then."
"Yeah."
"The whole district?"
"Enough of it."
Jun looked towards the floor for a moment.
"I don't know where the EDF line is anymore. Or how far they had to pull back."
Disbelief crossed Yerin's face, followed by something quieter.
"There were still units... they were holding the southern approaches when we deployed."
"Not when I left."
Her brows drew together.
"You saw them retreat?"
"No." Jun shook his head.
"That's the problem." He looked back towards the route she had traced.
"I know where they were. I don't know where they are now."
Yerin was quiet for several seconds.
"Then forget Lincol." Her finger shifted away from that side of the imaginary map.
"If that line collapsed, this route's safer anyway. We go west first, keep away from the main junction, then work north. There's a secondary checkpoint near the district boundary."
"How far?"
"Forty minutes if everyone could walk normally."
Her eyes moved around the room.
"...So... ...longer than that."
"Any vehicles?"
"Maybe. EDF had transport moving between the collection points. Trucks, ambulances, whatever they could spare. Whether any of them are still there..."
She gave a small shrug.
"You know as much as I do now, Doc."
Jun didn't answer immediately.
His gaze remained on the crude route she had drawn.
"What happens if that checkpoint's gone too?"
Yerin looked at him again.
"Then we keep moving north."
A slight pause.
"There's another EDF position farther back. That's where my unit was based."
Her fingers tightened slightly around the bottle.
"We got dispatched from there after an emergency call came in. Armed insurgents, civilians trapped inside..."
She gave a small, humourless shrug.
"...The rest is history."
She shifted the bottle to one hand.
"But if the closer checkpoint is gone, that's where I'd head. Bigger perimeter, more personnel, medical staff. Last I heard, they were still receiving civilians."
Jun glanced across the room.
"Alright. We clear the route in the morning. Let's stick with those two points for now."
His gaze lingered on the former hostages.
"EDF should take them in. People are already starting to lose it from all this."
He looked back at Yerin.
"And I get the feeling it's only going to get worse."
Yerin followed his gaze.
"...You're probably right. People lose it when nobody's in charge."
She took another drink.
"Speaking of that..."
Yerin looked at him.
"Have you heard anything about what the government actually plans to do from here?"
Her expression changed slightly.
"...Why are you asking?"
Jun blinked.
"Is that a strange thing to ask?"
"A little."
He was quiet for a moment.
"...I'm fine for now. I've got capable people with me. But what about those who don't?"
His gaze wandered towards the room.
"There doesn't seem to be an end to these zombies. If this keeps going, eventually the whole country gets overrun."
A pause.
"No electricity. No clean water. Food stops coming in, the old ones spoil."
He looked back at her.
"I'm asking for all our sake. Do you know anything?"
Yerin stared at him for a moment.
Then she drew in a slow breath and let it out through her nose.
"Sorry, but..."
A scrape came from the corridor.
Her eyes shifted past Jun.
Someone was standing just beyond the doorway.
One of the surrendered men.
He looked worse than before. Pale, jaw clenched, one hand pressed against his side while the other hung strangely close to his waist.
Jun turned slightly.
The man stopped.
For a second, nobody said anything.
Then he smiled.
It was not a friendly one.
"Thought I'd find you alone."
Yerin straightened against the pillar.
Jun did not move from the chair.
The man's hand disappeared beneath his shirt.
Despite her condition, Yerin reacted first.
"Gun—"
Too late.
The man ripped a compact EDF sidearm from the back of his waistband.
He brought it up with both hands.
"Say your prayers, motherf—"
Then, without warning, violet light flashed.
A chain appeared from empty air.
It crossed the man's throat cleanly.
His gun fired once into the ceiling. Several of the former hostages screamed. Concrete dust burst down as the report filled the room.
The man stumbled.
For a second, he seemed confused.
Then both hands flew to his neck.
Blood slipped rapidly between his fingers.
The pistol hit the floor.
He followed a moment later.
Jun was already on his feet.
Violet light shimmered beside him.
A silhouette formed from nothing.
Lunallu stepped out with one chain still extended, its edge wet.
"...She was here the whole time?"
"I told you. I have capable companions."
Yerin looked between the two of them for several seconds before leaning her head back against the concrete.
"...You know what Doc?"
She let out a long breath.
"Fine. I'll tell you."
Jun's attention returned to her.
"There was a contingency order going around before my unit went out. Not officially announced to civilians. Most lower-rank personnel weren't supposed to know much about it either."
Yerin lowered her voice.
"You were right about one thing. If this keeps up, the country won't be able to function."
She drew in a long breath.
"They say that if the containment lines keep collapsing, the government's prepared to abandon most of Eden."
...
He stood.
Something small came from one of his pockets.
A handheld communicator.
Jun checked it briefly before holding it towards her.
"Take this. It's a communication device."
Yerin stared at the unfamiliar design.
"What's the channel?"
"Don't bother. It only works between these two devices. Keep it on you."
She accepted it.
"If something changes, call me. Can't guarantee anything, but I'll try to help if I can."
Jun crouched beside the dead man, his back to Yerin as she fiddled with the device.
"About seventeen hours of use left. Only counts down when you're actually talking into it."
He picked up the EDF sidearm, removed the magazine, checked it, then slid it back into place.
Jun held the grip towards her.
Without a word, Yerin took the pistol too.
Her fingers closed around it almost automatically. Her shoulders straightened.
Jun glanced around the room and finally smiled.
"I'll leave this place in your care for a bit."
Yerin gave a silent nod.
He turned towards Lunallu.
"Come on."
She followed without asking where.
Yerin watched the two disappear into the corridor.
The night air met them several floors above.
By the time Jun and Lunallu reached the rooftop, the noise from the barricades had become clearer. Groans carried through the streets below, broken every few seconds by a thin flash of yellow.
Another zombie dropped.
Then another.
Charlotte sat near the unfinished edge of the building, one leg hanging over the concrete as she lazily sighted down the Lumen Stylus.
A yellow dart left its tip.
Far below, something collapsed between two abandoned cars.
Charlotte tilted her head.
"Forty-two."
Jun stopped a few steps behind her.
She glanced over her shoulder.
"Oh."
Her smile returned.
"Finished making friends, Doctor?"
Lunallu came to a stop beside him.
Charlotte looked between the two of them, then towards the street again.
"Good. I'm getting rather bored."
Another flash.
"Forty-three."
Jun looked down at the growing number of bodies below.
Then towards the city beyond them.
Ten streaks of light slowly fell from the dark skies above.
"...We need to talk about what comes next. For all three of us."