Reclaiming the Power
Kim Chan-yeol, who had been glancing warily at Choi Ha-sa, spoke cautiously to Hyun-soo.
"I know it's kinda awkward to say this, but when everyone's busting their asses and you talk like that, it kills our morale. You think we're just sitting here 'cause we don't get it?"
"Is that so? Sorry. I was just wondering where the hell this ends. No idea how long we've gotta keep this up..."
Hyun-soo scratched the back of his head sheepishly in response.
"It's just a rumor, but word is once they've secured all of Yeouido, they'll round up whatever's left of the army, navy, and air force for a landing op. So don't lose heart. It'll be fine. Right, Choi... I mean, Sergeant Choi?"
"Hey, just call me sergeant. Why you gotta keep throwing 'sergeant, sergeant' at me like that? You trying to piss me off or what?"
"Come on, what's with you? Bad dream last night or something?"
Indeed, Kim Chan-yeol was the best at handling Choi Ha-sa.
He was the kind of junior who could absorb even the senior's petty gripes and flip the mood around.
The type you just couldn't hate.
"Dreams? Always nightmares. Sick of 'em."
"Still, I'm glad you're here, sergeant. After Sergeant Jeong and the squad left, you're all I've got left."
"You've got one more."
"Who?"
"Squad Leader."
"That's going a bit far, don't you think?"
"Sorry. Crossed the line there."
"Since you admit it, I'll let it slide this time."
The two burst into giggles like nothing had happened, lightening the air.
They really were a well-synced duo.
One would charge in, the other knew when to pull back.
Senior or junior, didn't matter.
Han Jaejeong watched them with a silly grin.
Just then, the door to the small room creaked open.
Kim Chan-yeol and Choi Ha-sa shot to their feet and saluted.
"Sir! Sleep well?"
"Yeah, at ease, at ease. I'm good."
Jeong I-jin shuffled in like a corpse, still half-asleep, clutching a can of food and his canteen, dragging his feet.
Seeing this, Jaejeong asked him,
"How'd you know we were having breakfast and bring your own grub?"
"Obvious, right? Wake up, shit, eat, wash. Standard routine. Could eat first then shit and wash, whatever."
"A true soldier through and through. A soldier's morning: shit, eat, wash. Those three, right?"
Kim Chan-yeol beamed.
I-jin laboriously lifted his heavy-lidded double eyelids and eyed him.
"You're weird. If anyone else said that, it'd sound like ass-kissing and piss me off. But you? Can't even hate it."
"That's my charm, sir."
"That bastard's got a viper coiled up inside him, Captain."
Choi Ha-sa tossed in his two cents at the perfect moment.
"You could use a snake or some kinda gut snake yourself. Being a straight-shooter soldier ain't got no perks."
"Nah, a man's gotta have backbone. I stick to my no's till the end."
"Bet Chan-yeol gets his stars before you, Hoon."
At I-jin's words, Kim Chan-yeol shot Choi Ha-sa a smug side-eye.
"Eat up."
"Yeah."
I-jin lazily cracked open the can.
Then he chomped and swallowed chunks of tough tuna like it was nothing.
Watching I-jin, Jaejeong felt an odd disconnect.
How to put it—something felt off, different from before.
Well, time had passed, after all.
The old Jeong I-jin had been straightforward.
In a spot like just now, he'd have backed Choi Ha-sa.
As Jaejeong aged, so had I-jin changed—and that made time feel scary all over again.
The guy who wouldn't compromise on shit.
While Jaejeong spaced out, the small room had crammed full—people trickling in as they woke.
Heading back to the living room, Jaejeong went to rouse Anna in the master bedroom.
Seeing her blissfully asleep tugged at his heartstrings.
"Wake up."
He yanked the curtains hard and cleared his throat loudly.
But Anna didn't budge.
Suddenly, the hospital rooftop flashed in his mind.
Her enduring the blazing sun without flinching.
Impressive stamina for a girl.
Her sleeping this long meant she was wiped out.
"Hey, get up."
He leaned in close, grabbed the blanket, and tugged.
That's when it happened.
"Daddy... mm... Daddy, I missed you."
Mumbling in her sleep, Anna suddenly yanked Jaejeong and spread her arms to hug him.
Startled, Jaejeong swung to push her head away—and clocked her instead.
Smack!
"Ow! What the—?!"
Anna's eyes flew open to Jaejeong frozen like a statue.
"What're you doing here? Did you hit me, oppa? Shit, my head hurts."
"H-hit? Who hit you? Dream some better dreams. Get up already—everyone's waiting."
"Really? Why didn't you wake me sooner?"
I did—you wouldn't budge.
Swallowing the words with his spit, Jaejeong headed to the living room.
* * *
A bit later.
On the rooftop, Anna nocked a firecracker arrow and drew her bowstring taut.
"Light it."
Jaejeong stood by like a servant, flicking the lighter.
Sizzle!
Hard to believe a typhoon had raged through—not a whisper of wind.
The fuse caught, white smoke curling up.
Anna took a deep breath, held it.
Twang!
The firecracker arrow arced high.
Impossible to track where it'd land from here.
But Anna's shots always hit dead on.
Like now.
Boom! Pop!
Kang Youngman lowered the binoculars to see bright flashes and bangs on the school field.
"Perfect score."
"Light it."
The fuse lit again.
Three rounds later, no zombies left in the area.
Kim Chan-yeol, Choi Ha-sa, and the KEPCO Employee gawked at the firecracker arrows' live demo.
"Who the hell came up with this?"
"Me. Why?"
Anna shot back flatly.
"Just... incredible. Nothing else to say. How'd you even think of it...?"
"Gotta do what it takes to survive, right? Nice eye, mister."
"Haha, you think? Looks like you'll do big things. No ordinary gal."
"Right? But seems like everyone else here missed it."
Jaejeong cleared his throat and scanned the group.
"Effect doesn't last forever, so we're moving fast on foot from now. What you see from up here ain't the ground view—assume they can pop from anywhere."
That's when it hit.
"Kyaeeeeek!"
A ear-splitting shriek tore through the street.
The group, heading for the stairs, bolted to the roof edge.
A Crazy Mom.
The firecrackers on the field had fizzled out, making her scream stand out.
"That crazy bitch!"
Anna bit her lower lip hard, drawing her string.
Aiming at the Crazy Mom smack in the road's middle, she inhaled deep.
Not close range.
And it was weaving side to side.
But had to drop it before another screech.
Firecrackers weren't infinite.
Twang!
The arrow sliced the air, punching straight into its forehead.
The Crazy Mom, mid-screech, flopped into a meat heap.
"Ah, running low on arrows too."
Anna patted her quiver, muttering.
The group marveled again at her perfect marksmanship.
"Light it."
Another firecracker arrow flew, luring zombies charging from the road back to the field.
"Firecrackers are almost gone."
"Move, now."
Jaejeong bolted down the stairs, urging them on.
Another Crazy Mom here would spell real trouble.
Low on firecrackers and arrows—they needed mobility.
Half-running, Jaejeong led, I-jin and Anna flanking, the rest trailing.
Four shots cleared the street—no zombies in sight.
"Where?"
Jaejeong yelled back while sprinting.
The KEPCO Employee pointed to the next block.
Soon, the fabled KEPCO headquarters loomed ahead.
As described: three front entrances.
A big gate to the yard, main door to the building, small emergency exit.
Crossing the wide intersection, eyes darted everywhere.
Scanning every alley corner.
One slip at a crossroads, and you'd be swarmed.
Anna, bow ready, covered rear.
Kim Chan-yeol and Choi Ha-sa flanked left and right, rifles up.
At the main entrance, the employee swiped his card.
[Lock Released]
Door unlocked, they rushed in.
Anna, last in, left it ajar—bracing for a zombie flood.
Jaejeong, I-jin, and Youngman crept in silently, weapons ready, scanning.
The door had banged loud—zombies inside would react.
Jaejeong eyed the door.
Anna got the signal and shut it tight.
That instant.
[Lock Set]
Youngman squeezed his eyes shut.
Sounded way louder inside than out.
Negligible in busy times, but now?
It echoed down the silent halls, deep into the building.
All eyes snapped right, down the long corridor.
At the far end, under flickering fluorescents, dark shapes flickered in and out.
Zombies.
But...
Way too many.
This many employees here?
The group's eyes bulged.
"Ugh! Urgh!"
With grotesque groans, faces shuddering, they charged full tilt.
Dozens—no, hundreds of sightings, still couldn't get used to it.
Blackened rotting skin, discolored retinas.
"Where to?"
Jaejeong pulled a smoke grenade, asking the employee.
"Power control room upstairs!"
"Move!"
Whoosh! Hiss!
Jaejeong rolled smoke grenades down the zombie-packed hall, bolting up the central lobby stairs.
His shout drew more from above.
They swarmed the stairs at the sound.
But Jaejeong and I-jin were faster.
Foot on the second floor, Jaejeong bayonet-stabbed a zombie's eye.
Squelch! It slumped.
Using the pull-back recoil, he rifle-butted the next one's skull.
Crack!
It face-planted dead.
Meanwhile, I-jin, dual daggers drawn, dove into the infected.
Right before collision, he rolled aside, tangling them into a pile.
Stab! Stab!
One skull-tap each—two down in a flash.
Sensing a grab from behind, I-jin rolled away, stood for one-on-one.
Roooar!
The oblivious charger met a pathetic end.
The rest of the group, ascending, just watched.
No room to jump in.
"What the hell do these guys even...?"
The employee blinked like in a dream, lost for words.
Infected