Negotiation (1)
The radio call ended, and Jinwoo turned to Sheriff and Mingu.
“He says it actually worked out for the best. We should hide in another building until the zombies are cleared out.”
Sheriff, who had been watching the situation outside through the window, nodded.
“Yeah, well… even if they begged us to come over right now, I don’t think we could anyway. Look at all those zombies swarming around…”
Thick clouds of cigarette smoke billowing from the motorboat dock had drawn thousands of zombies not only to the pier itself but to the entire promenade and plaza. It looked like the horde would stay that way for at least the next several dozen minutes.
In that case, it was smarter to take shelter while every zombie in the area was still obsessed with the tobacco scent. This wide-open subway station wasn’t exactly a safe place to linger. Sheriff quickly accepted the logic and asked Jinwoo,
“Anything else?”
“He said we shouldn’t go too far because he needs to be able to reach us on the radio…”
Jinwoo added wearily. As the team’s firepower specialist, he felt guilty for putting too much burden on YB and pushing him too hard. Of course, the guy would never show it or complain.
“Then let’s use that building. Looks like the right height.”
Sheriff, scanning the surroundings, pointed at the six-story officetel attached directly to the right side of the subway station. In an area surrounded by nothing but high-rise apartments, it seemed like the most stable refuge available. The distance to cover was short enough that they could move over quickly.
“Before we head out, smash that thing open and loot it.”
Mingu pointed first at Sheriff’s hammer, then at the beverage vending machine. There were three people but only two backpacks, and the water that had been in one of them had just been shared. They had no idea how many hours they’d have to hide in that building, so they needed to stock up on supplies.
“Hey, if you want a drink, you can open it yourself, old man. Why do you keep trying to make me run errands? Huh? Am I your subordinate?”
Sheriff grumbled in annoyance but still grabbed his hammer and stood in front of the vending machine. He agreed that they needed the drinks.
“I’ll open the next monster’s belly for you instead.”
Mingu replied casually as he pulled a pack of cigarettes from Sheriff’s backpack and nonchalantly tore open the wrapping.
“Whoa, look at you getting all excited. You’re even gonna smoke? Hold off until we get inside the building, old man.”
Sheriff nagged when he saw Mingu put a cigarette in his mouth. Mingu snorted and flicked on his lighter.
“In this situation, who’s gonna notice if I smoke one more?”
“Huh?”
Sheriff paused for a moment at the unexpected answer. Come to think of it… the entire area was hazy like a summer night filled with mosquito coils. He didn’t know exactly how many cartons YB had burned at once, but the whole district was completely saturated with the smell of tobacco. Enough to pull every zombie in the subway over to that motorboat dock…
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Smoke all you want.”
Sheriff shook his head and lifted his hammer.
BANG—!
He struck the lock area with precise, powerful force. The vending machine’s locking mechanism gave way without resistance.
Creak—! Clatter! Thud—!
When Sheriff yanked the door open, beverage cans and PET bottles that had been jolted forward rolled out noisily.
“Not bad.”
At Mingu’s praise, Sheriff shrugged as if it were nothing.
“There’s a sweet spot if you hit it right. You’ll get it after a few tries. Here!”
Sheriff tossed ion drink cans to Mingu and Jinwoo in turn, then opened one for himself and chugged it down. Thanks to the widespread zombie outbreak that had cut the power, the machine was still stocked with a decent amount of beverages.
“Here, Samsuk. Drink up.”
Jinwoo poured some of the ion drink into his palm and held it out to Samsuk.
Lick—! Lick—!
After two quick passes of the big tongue, the ion drink vanished from Jinwoo’s palm, leaving only saliva. Jinwoo repeated the process several times before finally drinking the rest himself.
“Looks like those punks didn’t loot this area.”
Mingu muttered to himself, thinking of the kids they had met in the subway last summer. Those brats had stuck strictly to moving underground, so they probably never would have come all the way to Gangbuk through areas where the tracks were exposed.
“What are you muttering about like some old geezer? If you’re done drinking, take these.”
Sheriff picked out only the bottles with caps and tossed them to Mingu.
Thud—! Thud—!
Mingu caught the drinks with quick hands and stuffed them into Sheriff’s backpack. Jinwoo filled his own pack with five bottles. Since he had removed the magazines, there was plenty of space.
“This should be enough. It’s not like we’re staying for days.”
After finishing the drink resupply, Sheriff shouldered his backpack and prepared to move. Jinwoo grabbed his shoulder.
“Hold on, you idiot. We plan the operation first, then move.”
Thanks to today’s incident, Jinwoo had realized something clearly. He, Sheriff, and Mingu had all grown far too accustomed to fighting alone. As a result, they were extremely weak when it came to dividing roles for teamwork.
Just like YB had pointed out—if they had left one person outside to keep watch… they could have avoided all the hardship they went through today. They also wouldn’t have wasted over two hundred precious rounds of ammunition.
“Alright. Once we’re outside, I’ll run to the building first. Then you cover me from the stairs, little brother.”
Mingu, who had stubbed his cigarette butt into an empty drink bottle, spoke up. It seemed like a slightly more cautious approach than usual, so Jinwoo nodded.
“If anything feels off, turn around and retreat immediately, big brother.”
“Will do.”
Mingu answered readily, gripped his machete, and dashed down the alley.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—!
There wasn’t a trace of fear in those fast, light footsteps. Jinwoo pressed his eye to the K-2’s scope and swept the muzzle left and right, ready for any zombie that might leap out from somewhere. But…
“Nothing here.”
Mingu reached the building with ridiculous ease and waved his hand, signaling them to come. It was a relief, but for some reason Jinwoo felt deflated and let out a small sigh.
“Damn it.”
When they moved carefully, there was nothing. The moment they let their guard down even a little, thousands of zombies came rushing in… It almost felt like the zombies were toying with them. Of course, those things didn’t seem intelligent enough for that.
- You guys take shelter yet, Jinwoo? Get to high ground.
YB’s voice came over the radio. Jinwoo answered while walking down the empty alley alongside Sheriff and Samsuk.
“We’re on our way now. We picked a safe spot, so you be careful too, Yubin!”
Thanks.
The last word he only muttered in his heart. But YB would definitely have understood it anyway.
It was already evening by the time Jinwoo’s group returned to the floating café. Until then, YB had been carefully observing the newly changed movement patterns and timing of the zombies. Only after confirming it was safe did he radio Jinwoo.
They stopped by Jabeolle again to retrieve the polycarbonate shields and built a bulletproof table. They adjusted the movement cycles of any zombies that might pass near the negotiation site by linking them with other groups. They set up a table and radio at Ttukseom Plaza, finished preparing Jinwoo’s sniper position, and—to hide their own movements and locations—spent the past four days dragging the corpses of zombies they had killed to inconspicuous spots. The remaining three days flew by like a flash while they prepared for the negotiation.
There hadn’t been any incident as critical as the time they were trapped in Jabeolle by the 120-kilometer zombies, but not a single day had been easy. Of course, everyone had expected it would be tough. In a world overrun by zombies on all sides, it would be strange if living away from home felt safe.
Finally, the day of the negotiation arrived.
“Haa… Once this is over, we can go home.”
Sheriff stretched widely while gazing at the early winter morning sky over the river, where the sunlight had yet to fully fill the air. The word “home” sounded a little unfamiliar coming from him, so YB turned to look at Sheriff with a renewed gaze.
Come to think of it… that grand mansion on Big Island was a place where they ate, slept, and laughed with the people they loved, but YB himself had still been vaguely thinking of the house where he once lived with his grandmother as “home.” Maybe it was time to change that perception.
- Chk! Yubin, set up one more target.
Jinwoo’s radio call came from the Ttukseom ferry dock, his designated sniping point. Even though they had already practiced four times, he still didn’t feel like it was perfect.
“Got it. Just a second.”
YB placed two PET bottles on the bulletproof table.
- Firing. Don’t walk behind them. Signal when you’re ready.
Jinwoo said. Once everyone was in position and YB raised his hand, two sharp thunks rang out almost simultaneously. The PET bottles shattered and flew backward. Right after, the gunshots followed.
BANG—! BANG—!
“That bastard’s insane. That one skill of his is just…”
Sheriff picked up the PET bottles with clean holes through their centers and tossed them into the trash, his face full of admiration. To show that kind of speed and accuracy from over five hundred meters away was still awe-inspiring no matter how many times he saw it. And with a K-2, not even a sniper rifle…
“Confirmed hits. I think that’s enough, Jinwoo. Check behind you one more time to make sure it’s safe.”
YB pressed the transmit button on the radio, then wiped the moisture off the table with a towel. Jinwoo’s trick relied on surprise, so they had to keep anything involving water here an absolute secret.
“Alright. When they come up, we seat them here… I sit here, and you stand there, right?”
Sheriff double-checked the flow from the spiral staircase and the seating arrangement around the table. Sheriff would sit beside YB, Mingu would stand behind the opposing soldiers… That way they secured Jinwoo’s line of fire, and if things went south and they had to flip the table for a brawl, they could fight from both sides.
“Ice in the cooler looks good…”
YB opened the cooler and checked the condition of Terra’s blood bags and the drinks.
“Your nose is still…”
Mingu glanced at YB’s nose and tilted his head. The nose YB had smashed into the duck boat still hadn’t fully recovered from the swelling, and the bruise remained. Mingu knew exactly how important the situation had been when it happened, but with a face like that… it made him look weak for someone representing them in negotiations.
“It’s fine. Anyway… the intimidation factor is going to come from you and Sheriff. My nose won’t even draw much attention.”
YB waved it off like it was nothing and took a deep breath.
“Huuu…!”
This was already the third time, but he still felt nervous and tense before every negotiation. Their opponents were armed soldiers. Even with Jinwoo providing cover, if a real firefight broke out, there was a chance one of the three of them—including himself—could die.
After firing at zombies himself, he understood it even more clearly. A gun was a weapon that could completely destroy a person in an instant, without any large movements required.
Of course, YB knew the other side wouldn’t attack without reason. They desperately needed the immune’s blood, so they wouldn’t make the foolish decision to flip the board.
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump—!
A short while later, just after eight-thirty, the sound of helicopters approached from the south. They couldn’t see them yet, but it meant the negotiation team was closing in.
“Right on time.”
YB checked his watch and nodded. They had arrived a little earlier than the promised time, but that was better than being late. In an hour, over a thousand zombies would be passing through this area. They had to finish the entire negotiation before then so they could send the soldiers back safely.
“Let’s head downstairs, Sheriff. You too, big brother.”
YB gestured for Sheriff and Mingu to move to the second-floor restaurant. They couldn’t let the negotiation counterparts see them while still in the helicopter. Since their side was weaker, they had no choice but to handle the opponent with maximum caution.
“By the way… Chris told me that even if we hide like this, an Apache would still see everything. Something about detection cameras.”
As the three of them hid in the shadows behind the restaurant’s refrigerator and peered out the window, Sheriff spoke up.
“Yeah, I heard about that too. Still, there’s no harm in being careful.”
YB nodded, his face pressed against the window. If the other side used their best equipment and did everything they could, there was nothing they could do about it. But that was no reason for them to start off sloppy. Besides… there was still a good chance the opponent wouldn’t bring Apaches.
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump—!
The propeller noise that had been approaching from behind grew loud overhead, and soon a Black Hawk landed on the plaza beside the swimming pool. As promised, only one landed. The other three Black Hawks circled in the air above, waiting until the passengers of the landed helicopter had safely disembarked. So far, everything was proceeding exactly according to the manual YB had laid out.
“…Good. Good.”
YB muttered to himself as he watched through the window. Only after the Black Hawk that had dropped off the five soldiers disappeared from view did he press the transmit button on the negotiation radio.
“Is this the person in charge? Please respond! Is this the right person? Respond!”
He hadn’t been told who the counterpart for this deal was. So he could only ask in such a vague way.
- Chk—! Yeah, it’s me, Lieutenant General Park! I came in person like we agreed, and I did everything you said! Where are you? Let’s get this deal done quick! Chk—!
The other side answered in a hurried, impatient voice.
Kwak or Park?
YB tilted his head but answered with a sound somewhere in the middle of the two pronunciations. The radio’s audio quality would make them sound similar anyway.
“Lieutenant General Ak! If you turn around, you should see the floating café! The white building! Please come up to the third floor! Do you know where it is?”
- So that’s the negotiation spot! Alright, chk—! I’m coming! Wait for me!
After a short pause, the other side answered. However, there was no sign of them sending a radio message elsewhere. They were probably having a quick internal meeting.
“They’re coming. Let’s head up and get ready.”
YB clapped both cheeks loudly and met Sheriff’s and Mingu’s eyes in turn. If they could just finish this negotiation safely, their winter preparations would finally be complete.