Civil War (2)
In the middle of the city center, the truck ground to a halt. Horns blared furiously from behind, but Min Cheol-woo was too busy scanning the eyes of every passerby, one by one. With each pair he checked, cold sweat trickled down the back of his neck.
How many of these fucking parasites are there?
There were more non-humans than humans. Just within his current field of vision, over ten parasites lurked. Darwin was a small city with a population under 150,000, yet the moment he stepped into downtown, he'd already spotted streets crawling with them. So how many were scattered across the entire city? No—were they really confined to this place? How deeply had they infested the whole of Australia?
The thought hit him like a punch to the gut, stealing his breath. It had taken a full two weeks to reach Australia by yacht after the rift opened in the sky. The wind had been too weak for the blue drug's components to spread this far, but the parasites? They could've easily crossed the ocean and made landfall. If even this backwater was this overrun, places like Sydney or Melbourne didn't bear thinking about.
Australia had already fallen to the parasites. That was the conclusion in Cheol-woo's mind.
"What the hell are you doing?"
"Just checking eyes for a second."
"Pardon?"
At least the deputy director was human. Cheol-woo let out a quiet breath of relief. If even the guy right in front of him had turned out to be a parasite, he might've actually choked.
"It looks like parasites are distributed across Australia. The guy passing by the car right now, and the one on the bench across the street—they're both parasites."
"...You're serious? You said they were indistinguishable from the outside."
"That's for civilians. I can tell them apart."
"Can you prove it?"
"I could crack one of their skulls open right now to show you, but I can't do that. They're still pretending to be human for now. The moment they realize we've clocked them, they'll sabotage everything in a heartbeat."
Rushing in blindly was a no-go. With so many parasites disguised as low-priority civilians, it was obvious they'd infiltrated the military, police, and government higher-ups. No one knew how far they'd spread, leaving any counterattack wide open to vulnerability.
On the surface, Australia remained a pristine continent untouched by the blue drug or monstrous creatures. While the rest of the world had been reeling over the past two weeks, Australia had wallowed in peace—which meant an internal assault from the parasites would collapse them before they could even respond.
"Mr. David Min, is everything you've said about these parasites true? You're certain?"
"Dead certain."
"..."
Deputy Director Jason's expression turned grave. He rubbed his chin, lost in thought for a moment.
"I need to head back to headquarters in Canberra. Can't trust the director or even my own subordinates. I'll have to grab an X-ray camera and vet people one by one myself."
"Good luck."
"Uh..."
"Yeah?"
"I hate to ask, but... could I request your assistance?"
"..."
Ah, fuck, I knew this was coming. Cheol-woo squeezed his eyes shut.
"If everything you've said is true, going back to HQ alone is suicide. Hell, I might get strapped to a chair and infected the second I arrive."
"You need an escort."
"Yes. You seem handy with firearms. Could I impose? Not the whole way—just until I secure a few reliable subordinates. Lend me some firepower in the meantime."
"..."
Cheol-woo licked his lips. Jason had a point; sending him off solo was as good as murder. Even a solid backup secured on the spot could turn parasite within an hour. But tagging along to HQ? Exhaustion was already creeping in.
Facing mutants was simple—empty his mind, pull the trigger, done. But parasites? That was people-shooting territory. Difficulty and risk skyrocketed.
As Cheol-woo wrestled with the decision, thud thud—a black-suited agent rapped on the truck window.
"Everything alright, Deputy Director? You stopped suddenly..."
"Must've mixed up the gear controls. We'll head out soon. Actually, I think I should transport the sample myself. Bring it in this truck."
"Uh... Understood, sir."
The agent eyed the truck interior suspiciously before jogging back to the lead vehicle. The window slid shut, and Cheol-woo spoke.
"That agent's a parasite too."
"You can really tell just by looking at their eyes?"
"Told you, I'm sure."
"Fuck..."
Jason clawed at his hair in frustration. That guy he'd been rolling with this whole time—a parasite? He hadn't suspected a thing. If he was infected, when the hell did it happen? His mind reeled.
Parasites on the street? Abstract. But his own agents? That hit home hard.
This is insane. The scale's too massive.
If even his surrounding subordinates were compromised, where the fuck did he start? No clue.
A blanket memo on parasites? That'd tip them off, inviting retaliation just like David Min warned. Safest play: poach reliable underlings one by one, purge the top brass quietly, then work downward to the grunts. Cleanse the entire Secret Intelligence Agency in secret. Then politics—executive branch, parliament, all hushed. Military and police next. Only then, mass civilian purge.
But easy? Hell no. They looked human. Kidnapping and assassinating key politicians, military brass, and cops while the Agency seized the nation? Coup-level difficulty. The Agency didn't have the weight for it.
As Jason nursed his growing headache, the black sedan carrying the sample ahead revved and peeled out alone.
Jason snatched his radio in shock. "What the—? I said bring the sample back!"
[Apologies, sir. Lab says the sample might degrade—needs delivery ASAP. Aren't you escorting VIPs to the hotel? We'll drop it off quick and return.]
"Don't care what the lab says. Bring it back. I need to transport it."
[Sorry. We'll explain later.]
"..."
This motherfucker? Jason's face twisted. The radio cut off, and Cheol-woo slammed the accelerator.
Rumble rumble—the truck roared after the lead vehicle amid screeching tires. Jason bellowed into the radio, then glanced at the driver's seat and froze.
David Min gripped the wheel left-handed while drawing his pistol right-handed, aiming out the window at the target ahead.
"Wait—"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Bullets from Cheol-woo's Maigen punched through the sedan's windshield. Rear tires exploded with twin pops, sending it fishtailing wildly.
Cheol-woo seized the moment of slowed speed, flooring it to ram the black car.
Crash! Boom! Airbags deployed as the sedan smashed into a roadside tree.
In the three seconds it took, Jason blinked in stunned silence. Cheol-woo and Yuri leaped from the truck.
"You fucking bastards! What the hell—"
An agent stumbled out, blood streaming from his head. Bang! A hollow-point slug drilled between his eyes.
Yuri vaulted onto the half-wrecked roof with agile grace. As agents inside drew pistols on Cheol-woo, her blade sliced through the roof, severing their right hands.
"Argh! Fuck! Deputy Director, why us?!"
"Who the hell are you?! You think you'll get away with this?!"
Blood gushed from their stumps as the agents from passenger and driver seats wailed in unison.
Cheol-woo eyed them alternately, then shot the passenger's head. The driver wailed louder, snot and tears streaming.
Cheol-woo approached, pried his eyes open, stared long and hard, then lowered his gun. This one was human.
Cheol-woo grabbed the carry-on from the trunk and strolled back to the truck. He handed it to Jason, whose trembling hands accepted it.
"Secret Intelligence Agency, right? You can cover up a little fender-bender like this."
"..."
Meeting David Min's unflinching pupils without a flicker of doubt, Jason realized he'd misjudged the man. Not just handy with guns. This guy was a monster.