HELICOPTER AND CAR PLANS

The airport room was a stark contrast to its usual bustling atmosphere. The once lively space was now eerily silent, the only sound being the faint whirring of the ventilation system. Rows of empty seats lined the area, their cushioned surfaces devoid of passengers. Overhead, fluorescent lights flickered intermittently, casting eerie shadows that danced across the tiled floor.

The walls were adorned with posters advertising travel destinations and safety regulations, their vibrant colors muted by the dim lighting. A row of vending machines stood against one wall, their illuminated displays casting a soft glow in the dim room. In one corner, a small television mounted on the wall displayed a news broadcast, the sound muted but the images still flickering across the screen.

Nearby, a row of windows offered a view of the tarmac outside, where a few abandoned planes sat eerily still in the moonlight. The night sky stretched out beyond, a blanket of darkness punctuated by the occasional twinkle of distant stars.

Despite the eerie atmosphere, the room provided a temporary refuge from the horrors that lurked outside. The group huddled together, their faces etched with determination as they discussed their next course of action amidst the quiet tension that hung in the air.

"A helicopter?" Jaeyeon struggled to comprehend the sudden shift in plans.

"I know how to fly one. We just have to cross the second section," Sae Joon Hyun explained confidently.

"I... I can drive. The passenger car is parked close to the runway. If we get in, then I can drive us to the third section," Yuri suggested, her voice trembling with fear. "If we can find weapons that are long and sturdy, then we can pull it off."

"Long... and sturdy... Like the pole Jaeyeon is using. Why don't we look for similar things? Can we find guns here?" Eunhye asked, hope mingling with her fear. Joon Hyun nodded. "A pilot and the staff must be prepared for anything and everything. They must have something useful in the supply room."

"Where is the supply room?" Jaeyeon inquired.

"It is... behind the main building," Joon Hyun sighed. "Wha- we just crossed that section... we must... go back... ?" Eunhye's voice quivered with dread.

"You don't have to come. Not all of us need to go anyway," Sae Joon Hyun said soothingly, patting Eunhye's head. She nodded, wiping away her tears.

"You'll go alone?" Yuri asked, her voice tinged with concern.

"Of course not. I might end up dead if I do. Who wants to join me?" Sae Joon Hyun asked casually, scanning the group.

"I'll join you," Jaeyeon volunteered.

"Nope," Joon Hyun immediately rejected the proposal.

"What? You want... Miss. Yuri to accompany you?" Jaeyeon asked, confused.

"If there is anyone else... ?" Sae Joon Hyun commented sarcastically.

"I'll... I'll go with you," Yuri exclaimed, holding back her tears. But Sae Joon Hyun shook his head. "Eunhye is still in shock. She just encountered this crazy hell. But you both look like you have seen enough to not act surprised anymore. She'll need someone who can fight to stay with her. I doubt Miss. Yuri will be able to hold those things back."

Yuri nodded in understanding. "I am not good at close combats, I can only hold back for so long. But Jaeyeon is great at close combat and long-range attacks as well. He can push back a well enough number of those creatures for us to save ourselves. But! I can help in distractions. Last time we encountered one, we realized they are attracted to smells and noises like animals are. If we throw things around them or surround them with things that have an intense odor, we can get through. I have enough things like that. So, I'll agree with Sae Joon Hyun's intuition." She began stuffing her handbag with various items: pepper spray, perfumes, garlic, toy phones that play music, room fresheners, toy ducks, and even kitchen knives.

"I understand the knives and pepper spray, but where did you find so many perfumes?" Eunhye questioned.

"Where else? I took them from the immobilized creatures' handbags. Some of them were females," Yuri replied casually as she tied the bag around her waist with a rope, her demeanor changing with the weight of her bag.

Sae Joon Hyun smiled awkwardly in her direction. "How many of those creatures did you encounter...?"

The room they occupied was bathed in a soft, pale glow now, emitted by the overhead lights, casting long shadows across the tiled floor. The rows of empty seats seemed to stretch endlessly, creating an eerie sense of isolation in the otherwise mundane setting. Outside the windows, the darkness of the horror pressed against the glass, obscuring the view of the tarmac beyond.

As the hands of the clock reached midnight, tension hung heavy in the air, palpable in the hushed whispers exchanged between Eunhye and Jaeyeon. Their voices echoed softly in the empty room, mingling with the distant hum of the ventilation system.

When Sae Joon Hyun and Yuri dashed out of the room, leaving behind a trail of uncertainty, Eunhye turned to Jaeyeon, her expression filled with concern. "They will be fine, right?" she asked, her voice tinged with worry.

Jaeyeon offered her a reassuring smile. "The guy? Definitely. He looks too athletic to lose to those lethargic grave ups," he replied, his hand waving dismissively.

"The what?" Eunhye asked, confusion evident in her voice.

Jaeyeon leaned in, his tone lowering to a conspiratorial whisper as he explained. "Oh, I and Miss. Yuri call them the 'grave ups'. People die when they get bitten by them. No chances of being alive at all. But when they have a strong grudge or something they want to do, they will rise up from their death to achieve the same."

Eunhye's eyes widened in shock as she listened intently to Jaeyeon's explanation. The concept of these 'grave ups' seemed like something out of a horror movie, yet here they were, facing it head-on.

Jaeyeon continued his explanation, recounting their own encounter with one of these creatures and how they had deduced their behavior. "Basically," he concluded, "you turn into those 'grave ups' when you have a strong sense of doing something. Like a death wish."

As the gravity of the situation sunk in, Eunhye pondered Jaeyeon's words, her mind racing with the implications of their discovery. "So they already have something in their head," she mused, "But since they were on the verge of death, they couldn't take it and with the strong desire turned into those so they could achieve it?"

Jaeyeon nodded in agreement, adding further insight into the creatures' motivations. "Not necessarily," he clarified. "Some develop this strong desire on the spot. For example, when they are getting bitten and they see a car nearby. They think, 'I wish I could just reach the car. Then I could be safe'."

Eunhye's thoughts whirled with the implications of their conversation, her mind grappling with the terrifying reality of their situation. "So say, if before dying they see someone standing there," she ventured, "Will they think of 'why didn't that person save me'?"

Jaeyeon's eyes widened in realization as he considered her question, the weight of their predicament pressing down upon them. "Yeah," he replied grimly, "That will turn into a grudge, and the person will tear through everything and anything to get to the cause of the grudge. The person who didn't save him."

Eunhye's heart sank at the thought, a chill creeping down her spine as she contemplated the implications of their discovery. "I think... one of the creatures... is behind my... life alone..." she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

"What?" Jaeyeon exclaimed, his eyes widening in alarm at her revelation.

As the reality of their situation settled over them like a suffocating blanket, Eunhye and Jaeyeon exchanged a look filled with apprehension, their thoughts consumed by the looming threat that lurked just beyond the safety of their makeshift sanctuary.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The room they had barricaded themselves in was dimly lit, with only a few flickering fluorescent lights casting eerie shadows across the shelves lined with supplies. The air was heavy with tension as Sae Joon Hyun and Yuri hastily scavenged through the room, searching for any weapons or tools that could aid in their escape.

"Miss. Yuri, can you distract the creatures in front of the supply room?" Sae Joon Hyun whispered urgently, his voice barely audible over the pounding of his heart.

Yuri nodded, her movements quick and precise as she retrieved a toy duck from her bag. With practiced ease, she wound up the toy and tossed it out into the corridor, where it began emitting loud, distracting noises, drawing the attention of the creatures lurking outside.

Seizing the opportunity, Sae Joon Hyun and Yuri darted into the supply room, their breaths coming in ragged gasps as they slammed the door shut and locked it from the inside. The room was filled with a chaotic array of shelves stocked with various supplies, creating a maze-like environment that seemed to swallow them whole.

"How long will the duck last?" Sae Joon Hyun asked, his voice tight with anxiety as he scanned the room for any sign of danger.

"I turned the key a massive number of times. So, let's say around fifteen minutes?" Yuri replied, a nervous half-smile tugging at her lips.

Without wasting a moment, Sae Joon Hyun and Yuri began grabbing whatever makeshift weapons they could find, their hands trembling with adrenaline-fueled urgency. They exchanged a determined nod, their eyes meeting in silent agreement as they prepared to face whatever horrors lay beyond the safety of their makeshift sanctuary.

But before Yuri could turn the doorknob to make their escape, a deafening crash echoed through the room, causing both of them to freeze in terror. Sae Joon Hyun's heart pounded in his chest as he spun around, his eyes widening in alarm as he spotted a box crashing to the ground from the top of one of the shelves.

The sound of approaching footsteps grew louder, accompanied by the unmistakable snarl of the creatures closing in on their location. Yuri's grip tightened on the doorknob, her breaths coming in shallow gasps as she fought to keep her composure in the face of imminent danger.

Sae Joon Hyun's senses were on high alert as he cautiously edged closer to the fallen box, his ears straining to discern any sign of movement within. Every muscle in his body tensed as he braced himself, the oppressive weight of fear bearing down on the both of them like a suffocating shroud.