Finding Safe Haven ? &Team Nicholas

ten

In the aftermath, as dust and debris settled, Nicholas and Hanbin emerged from the wreckage, their faces ashen, eyes wide with shock and grief. The horde of zombies was gone, but so was their friend Taki. The weight of their loss was unbearable.

“How? How can we bring him back?” Hanbin choked out, clutching Nicholas’s shirt. “It’s my fault. I was supposed to be the one they took.”

Tick tock. Click clock.

Nicholas had no answers. The loss of Taki, the kid who had brought light to their darkest days, felt like a knife twisted deep in his chest. He had sworn to protect him, a promise made in the bleakest moments of their lives.

The final tock echoed with devastating finality as another chopper descended, its rotors whipping up a cyclone of debris. Nicholas and Hanbin, battered and disheartened, stood in stunned silence. Above them, the clouds rolled in, the castle’s roof now shattered from the explosion. The sun set a stark contrast as it bathed the two friends in a harsh light.

The last standing door creaked open, casting a blinding shade.

From the shadows emerged their real hope—a chubby old man with glasses and a warm smile, accompanied by a little girl who beamed at the sight of her uncle. The old man, with his gentle presence, beckoned Nicholas and Hanbin to approach.

Confused and wary, they obeyed, feeling an inexplicable sense of calm in his presence. “Do you want to take back your friend?” he asked softly. “Do you want to get back at those truly at fault for this monumental accident?”

Nicholas’s confusion deepened. “What do you mean by ‘monumental accident’?”

The old man’s smile faltered, becoming a grim line. He signaled the little girl to step aside and drew Nicholas and Hanbin closer. “This whole apocalypse is an accident,” he revealed. “The government’s experiments with brain parasites, orchestrated by my stepson, Namjoon, spiraled out of control. They unleashed a virus beyond their containment.”

Nicholas’s heart turned to ice. The realization hit him with a cold, unrelenting fury. The very people who should have been their protectors had created this hell. His rage was palpable, a simmering storm ready to erupt.

The old man observed Nicholas’s transformation with a mixture of concern and recognition. “So, are you ready to come with us and claim what is rightfully yours?”

Nicholas and Hanbin exchanged a determined glance. They were ready to fight, no matter the cost. “But before we do, can you tell us your name?” Nicholas asked, sensing a deeper connection.

The old man smiled, his gaze shifting to the jovial figure nearby. “I am Bang Shi Hyuk. I own this place—the castle.”

“And who is that?” Hanbin asked, pointing to the cheerful figure playing with the little girl.

“That is Jung Hoseok, known as Jhope,” Bang Shi Hyuk said. “And the little girl is my granddaughter, Aecha.”

As they watched Jhope lift Aecha with laughter, Nicholas’s heart ached. The scene was a stark reminder of hope amidst their despair. But Hanbin’s question broke the moment of calm.

“How can we get Taki back?”

Aecha’s eyes widened in recognition, and she ran to the door, flinging it open to reveal two figures sitting on the steps—a girl and a boy their age.