Inside Park Manor • SKZ horror au

Chapter 7

Almost as if in a trance, Chan found himself moving up to the incinerator with Hyunjin's name on it. There was a possibility that he was still safe and the list and label were just foreshadowing what would happen to him in the future. Yes. It had to be that.

    "Stay away from there," Seungmin warned, gripping his shoulder and pulling him away from the incinerator.

    "He's still alive, right? The Parks haven't gotten ahold of him yet, right? Right?" Chan questioned, on the verge of breaking down.

    Seungmin ignored him, shoving a loaded handgun as well as a few ammo magazines into his hand. "You'll need this. Trust me."

    Chan stared blankly at the weapon, his mind too overwhelmed to question where Seungmin had gotten it from and why he would need it. "Tell me what happened to Hyunjin. Now."

    "He's alive in one way or another," Seungmin said dully. Chan had a feeling that Seungmin knew more than he was letting on.

    Chan ran towards the incinerator, his legs moving on their own. He needed to know if Hyunjin was there or not. He at least needed to see Hyunjin one last time before he avenged his death.

    Seungmin's protests fell on deaf ears as Chan pulled open the incinerator door. Smoke poured out of the opening onto the floor, a deep growling noise echoing around the chambers inside.

    "Run!" Seungmin cried, grabbing Chan's arm and pulling him out of the room just as a creature emerged from the incinerator.

    The creature crawled out of its prison and crawled across the floor on all fours, its limbs extended to a length that no humans could ever reach. Its body was charcoal black, the skin bubbling and popping. All that remained of its facial features was a giant, gaping mouth, saliva dripping from razor sharp teeth.

    "What the hell is that?!" Chan cried, firing two shots into the monster's neck.

    "You don't wanna know," Seungmin said gravely, pushing a cart into the monster's head.

    The monster climbed up the wall, onto the ceiling, letting out a blood curdling scream as more bullets tore through its body. It reached down, Seungmin narrowly dodging its sharp claws.

    Chan fired another bullet into the monster's head before it fell from the ceiling, landing soundlessly on the floor. It was still moving but no longer seemed like a threat for the time being. The monster made an attempt at speaking, its voice coming out low and heavily distorted.

    "Did it just say, 'it hurts?'" Chan asked, raising an eyebrow in disgust. Seungmin nodded in response. "Should I finish it off now so it doesn't bother us later?"

    "You can't," Seungmin said. "Come with me and I'll tell you more."

    He maneuvered around the monster, leading Chan into a storage room past the holding cells. The room had been completely gutted and their voices and footsteps echoed off the walls.

    "Tell me what the hell that was!" Chan demanded, starting to lose his patience and quite frankly, his mind as well.

    "That was Hyunjin," Seungmin sighed like it was no big deal. "Jeongin argued with Mother and in a fit of rage, used Hyunjin to force him into submission. She sent him down here."

    "You're telling me that she made Hyunjin into that...that thing?" Chan asked, rage coursing through his veins.

    "In a way, yes but no. Hyunjin was turned, which was Mother and Father's fault. However, he turned himself into that form to protect himself from being burnt to a crisp. He normally looks human. For now."

    "So you're telling me that Jisung is like this too?" He said, motioning to the list.

    "Yes, that's right. Hand me the list and I'll tell you everything I know."