37: Incheon [12]
•••
Zack, Jay, and Vasco's eyes widened in disbelief. The room, lit by a few flickering tube lights, held a heavy, dark gloom. The air was thick with the scent of disinfectant and something metallic and coppery that Zack's mind refused to name.
Then, in the dim, oppressive light, Zack saw them. Eleven people in total. Both Daniels were on the left side of the room. Big Daniel was asleep, his chest rising and falling slowly, a stark, peaceful contrast to the chaotic scene. Small Daniel was sitting beside him on the floor, head bowed. On the right, seven people sat huddled together. Zack recognized them as the "Speed" faction of the Half-Baked King of Incheon, Jaegyeon Na.
But it was the three people at the far end of the room that truly made Zack's blood run cold. A massive man with tattoos snaking up his neck and arm, wearing a blood-soaked suit that clung to his enormous chest, was smoking a cigarette. The Chest Monster, Samuel Seo.
Beside him, on the floor, a man sat facing downward, his back exposed. His face was hidden, but his hands were clenched into tight fists, his gaze fixed on someone lying flat on the ground in front of him.
"What… happened in Incheon?" Zack muttered, his voice barely a whisper. It wasn't the sight of the men that shocked him, but the state they were in.
Everyone in the room, except for Big Daniel, was injured.
Samuel Seo's suit was soaked crimson, not just on the front but all over. Blood stained his face, streaks of it dried and caked onto his skin.
The man sitting on the floor was covered in bandages, his back a crisscross of white gauze. The man lying beside him was a mummy, completely swathed in bandages from head to toe.
The members of Jaegyeon Na's "Speed" were also severely injured, some with bandages on their faces, others clutched at their stomachs. Only Jaegyeon Na and Small Daniel seemed to have gotten away with minimal injuries.
Jay, silent and swift as ever, had already crossed the room and sat down beside Big Daniel.
"Ah, so you're here, Zack." Small Daniel said, not looking up. His voice was flat, devoid of its usual energy. He hadn't even registered Jay's presence.
Zack swallowed hard and stepped into the room, Jay and Vasco right behind him. The door shut with a soft click, sealing them in the heavy silence.
"What happened here, Daniel?" Zack asked, his voice filled with a disbelieving tremor.
Daniel scoffed, a hollow, bitter sound. "What do you think?" He finally looked up, his eyes dark and empty. "We lost… badly."
Before Zack could reply, Jaegyeon Na spoke, his voice raspy. "You're here to help us?"
Zack nodded, but as he opened his mouth to explain, Vasco suddenly charged forward, past Zack, to the man on the floor, and grabbed his shoulders.
"What the heck happened to you!" Vasco shouted, his face contorted in a mix of shock and rage.
The man didn't move, he didn't even tried to reply.
"What the heck happened to you, Jake Kim!" Vasco roared, his eyes wide and wild.
The man on the floor slowly turned his head. A thin, jagged scar ran across his lip and nose. His eyes were dead, a dark, unsettling void. It was Jake Kim, the boss of Big Deal. Another son of the legend.
Jake Kim's lips curved into a smile, but it never reached his dead and dark eyes. "Ahh, Vasco. When did you arrive?"
When Vasco met Jake's stare, his own eyes widened further. The expression on Jake's face wasn't despair or depression. It was something far worse. It was a complete and utter Breakdown.
Vasco's jaw clenched, a question dying on his lips as he suddenly noticed the man lying on the floor, the mummy swathed in bandages. It was Lineman.
Vasco's teeth ground together, his jaw muscles jumping.
But then suddenly. Someone spoke,
"That voice… I know that voice…" Zack said, pointed his hands towards at Jake. "You… you're the one who called us to Hotel Vivi?"
Jake's dead-eyed smile returned. "Oh yeah. So, you must be Zack Lee, right?" he said in a calm, disturbingly soft voice.
Zack's eyes widened even more.
But then, a deep, authoritative voice cut through the tension. "You here to chit-chat?"
Zack and Vasco looked over at the source of the voice. Samuel Seo was sitting on a stool, leaning against the wall, a fresh cigarette between his lips. His muscular body seemed to fill the space, and his gaze was a challenge.
"Huh? Don't make me repeat it, would you?"
The ex-leader of Big Deal, the ex-president of the Workers' 4th Affiliate, one of Goo Kim's secret friends, The Chest Monster. Samuel Seo.
"Huh? Whatcha you looking at?"
Zack forced himself to clear his mind and looked at Small Daniel, who was now talking with Jay. "Would you care to enlighten me with what happened here and what's going on?"
Daniel let out a long, shuddering breath. "I don't know the full story. The ones who know...are…" he trailed off, glancing at Samuel and Jake.
Samuel exhaled a plume of smoke. "Man, my mind's gonna burst if I have to tell them everything." he muttered.
"You are going to tell us, right? What happened?" Vasco's voice was low, but filled with an unwavering determination.
Samuel exhaled again. He looked at the members of Speed, who had been silent, listening intently.
"Okay. Brace yourself. I am now gonna tell you what I know…"
Everyone in the room gulped. The tension mounted, thick and suffocating.
---
Four hours ago, three hours before Allied started their journey to Incheon, one hour until Kitae Kim's arrival, eighteen hours until Yuujin's arrival…
---
Samuel lit a cigarette and took a long, deep drag. He exhaled the smoke, the fumes curling around him like a shroud.
"Hah. These fodders aren't better than a meat shield. The difference between them and Jaun Ryu is immense."
Samuel was standing on a mountain of bloody bodies, a grim monument to his own power. His body was bare from the waist up, his muscles bulging and crisscrossed with cuts and bruises. He took another drag, the hot smoke a familiar comfort.
"Hah, that Gangseo weirdo will surely have a hard time."
But then, a sound. The unmistakable clang of metal and the soft footfalls of a person walking. Samuel's head snapped up. He spun around, his eyes scanning the horizon.
And then he saw…something...no....someone.
•••
[A/N: Wanna know what did Samuel saw ,today? now? Read the Synopsis.]