The End... or a New Beginning?

The gentle hum of life had finally returned to the Hotel of New Beginnings. The battles were over, the losses mourned, and the visible and invisible scars were beginning to heal. The past months had been grueling, pushing Ji-won and Man-hee to their breaking points. But now, they could breathe for the first time in what felt like forever.

Man-hee sat at the edge of the bed, her fingers brushing through Ji-won's hair. Once warriors against forces beyond their understanding, the two women now allowed themselves the luxury of a quiet morning. Ji-won's head rested in Man-hee's lap, her breathing soft and steady. The sunlight streamed through the curtains, bathing the room in a warm, golden glow. It was a stark contrast to the chaos they had endured.

"Do you think we'll ever get used to this?" Ji-won asked, her voice still thick with sleep.

Man-hee chuckled softly, her fingers continuing their soothing motions. "What, peace? I don't know. It feels... foreign."

Ji-won turned to face her, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Foreign, huh? Like the way you looked at me when I first showed up here?"

Man-hee raised an eyebrow, smirking. "Ji-won. Can you blame me?"

Ji-won playfully swatted Man-hee's shoulder. "And yet here we are."

"Here we are," Man-hee echoed, her voice softening. She leaned in, pressing her forehead against Ji-won's. "And I wouldn't change a thing."

Ji-won closed the distance between them, her lips brushing against Man-hee's in a kiss that spoke of gratitude, love, and promises. It was a moment neither thought they'd ever have a moment they both fought so hard to protect.

Later that day, they walked through the gardens, planning small renovations to the hotel. The world outside seemed brighter, almost unreal. Flowers bloomed in vibrant colors, and the spring air carried a hint of jasmine.

"What would you do," Ji-won asked, lacing her fingers with Man-hee's, "if we could leave this place for a while? Travel, maybe?"

Man-hee tilted her head, pretending to think. "I'd take you somewhere with lots of sunlight. Somewhere we could just... exist. No fighting, no ghosts." She squeezed Ji-won's hand. "But only if you promise to wear sunscreen. I'm not nursing a sunburn."

Ji-won laughed the sound light and unburdened. For the first time in years, she felt free.

Their laughter was interrupted by a sudden chill. The temperature dropped so abruptly that Ji-won shivered. Overhead, the once-clear sky darkened, clouds rolling in as though summoned by an unseen force. Heavy raindrops began to fall, drumming against the ground in an almost rhythmic cadence.

Man-hee stopped her brow furrowing. "It wasn't supposed to rain today."

Ji-won looked up, her smile faltering. "It's... strange, isn't it?"

Before Man-hee could respond, a gust of wind swept through the garden, scattering petals and leaves. For a moment, the air felt heavy, and oppressive, as if the world were holding its breath.

"Let's go inside," Man-hee said, her voice laced with unease.

They hurried back to the hotel, the storm intensifying around them. By the time they reached the entrance, the rain was coming down in sheets, obscuring their view of the garden. Thunder rumbled in the distance, a low, ominous sound that seemed to vibrate through their very bones.

   That night, in a bustling district of Seoul, the perfect illusion of peace was shattered.

A young man stood on the roof of a high-rise building. His friends just stepped behind him, and they called out desperately. "Hyun-soo, don't! Come back!"

He turned to face them, his expression eerily calm. "It's okay," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "I have to."

Without another word, he stepped off the edge.

The crowd below screamed as his body hit the pavement. What should have been a gruesome scene was instead... wrong. 

The impact should have left a mangled corpse, but the body was... intact. Almost pristine.

The police arrived within minutes, securing the area and cordoning off the scene. Investigators moved carefully, inspecting the body with a sense of dread settling in their chests.

"Is this some kind of accident?" one officer muttered, kneeling next to the body.

"It doesn't look like it," another responded, inspecting the man's neck and limbs. "He jumped but why? And look at this these scales."

The officer reached out, gingerly touching the man's arm, his fingers brushing against the faint, iridescent scales that marred his skin. They shimmered in the light, a stark contrast against the pale flesh.

"What is this?" the officer whispered, more to himself than anyone else.

Meanwhile, just a few miles away in Incheon, another mystery was beginning to unfold. In an alley near the market, a police officer stumbled upon a body propped against the wall. It was a woman, her body seemingly lifeless, but there was something wrong.

The body was not just dead; it was decayed, with advanced decomposition that seemed far beyond anything the medical examiner had ever seen.

"Her... her body is just decaying," the officer stammered, backing away. "But she was alive yesterday. I saw her at the coffee shop."

Another officer knelt beside the woman's body, scrutinizing it. The skin had shriveled, her face gaunt and drawn, her hair falling out in patches. Yet, the most disturbing part was that the woman had only been dead for less than a day.

"How is this possible?" the officer asked, shaking his head. "There's no logical explanation for this. No disease, no injuries, nothing."

As the investigation unfolded, more bodies surfaced, each one bearing the same signs of rapid decay. What was even more troubling was that none of the victims had been dead for more than 24 hours. The decomposition was like something out of a horror movie, but the coroner could not find any signs of external cause.

"This is... impossible," the coroner said, his voice strained. "We're dealing with something unnatural here."

Back at the hotel, Ji-won and Man-hee remained blissfully unaware of the horrors unfolding in Seoul. They spent their days tending to the garden, planning renovations, and dreaming of a brighter future. But the peace was short-lived.

Ji-won woke one night drenched in sweat, her chest heaving. "Man-hee," she whispered, shaking her partner awake. "I... I saw something."

Man-hee sat up, concern etched on her face. "What did you see?"

Ji-won hesitated, her voice trembling. "A shadow. It was... coiled, like a snake, but huge. It was watching me."

Man-hee pulled her into a comforting embrace. "It was just a nightmare. You're safe here."

But Ji-won couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

The next day, Man-hee turned on the news while Ji-won prepared breakfast. The somber expression of the anchor immediately caught her attention.

"Another unexplained suicide occurred this morning," the anchor reported, her voice steady but grim. "This marks the twelfth such incident in the past week. Authorities remain baffled by the growing number of mysterious deaths."

Man-hee's heart sank, her stomach knotting with unease. "Ji-won," she called, her voice laced with urgency. "You need to see this."

Ji-won wiped her hands on a towel and joined her at the table. Together, they watched the footage of the latest victim, a young woman found in her apartment. Her body, the reporter explained, had been found barely an hour after she'd sent a text to a friend.

"What is happening?" Ji-won whispered, her voice trembling. Fear crept into her eyes as she looked at Man-hee, hoping for reassurance she knew might not come.

Man-hee's jaw tightened, determination replacing her worry. "We need to find out. Whatever it is, it's spreading, and it's close."

Their investigation began at the apartment of the latest victim. Man-hee snapped her fingers, and with a shimmer in the air, they teleported directly to the scene. The apartment was steeped in an unnatural stillness, the kind that made the hair on the back of Ji-won's neck stand up.

"It's freezing in here," Ji-won murmured, wrapping her arms around herself. The flashlight in her hand cut through the dimness, revealing an ordinary yet eerily untouched living space.

Man-hee scanned the room, her expression tense. "It's too quiet," she said softly, stepping further inside. "Like everything froze the moment she died."

They entered the bedroom, and Ji-won stopped abruptly, her flashlight illuminating the chilling scene. The victim, a young woman in her twenties, lay slumped on the floor near the bed. Her body was untouched by decay as if she had passed mere moments ago. Her face was serene, but her neck told a different story.

"Man-hee," Ji-won whispered, pointing.

The light revealed intricate, shimmering scales creeping across the victim's arms and face, their faint iridescence catching the beam. They formed a hauntingly beautiful yet grotesque pattern, curling along her skin in a way that seemed deliberate, almost alive.

Man-hee knelt beside the body, her eyes narrowing. "The scales... they're exactly like the ones reported," she muttered, reaching out but stopping herself. "It's like they're growing out of her skin."

Ji-won's voice trembled. "How does this happen? These deaths are supposed to be suicides... but this?" She gestured at the scales. "This isn't natural. This isn't normal."

Man-hee straightened, her gaze shifting to the wall. "Look over there."

Ji-won followed her line of sight. Above the bed, faint markings were etched into the plaster. More scales, subtle but unmistakable, shimmered faintly under the light.

"This... it's like a signature," Man-hee murmured, stepping closer. She hesitated before running her fingers just above the markings, careful not to make contact. The air near them felt charged, like static electricity before a storm.

Ji-won backed away, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. "This doesn't make sense. These people are supposed to be dying by their own hands, but what could leave something like this?"

Man-hee's jaw tightened. "Whatever it is, it's leaving a mark. On them, on this place..." She looked down at the victim again, her expression hardening. "And it's not stopping."

As they exited the apartment, the stillness seemed to follow them. Just as they reached the hallway, a faint whisper brushed past their ears, too soft to make out words, but unmistakably there.

Ji-won shuddered. "Did you hear that?"

Man-hee nodded, her expression grim. "This is bigger than we thought. Let's go."

But even as they left, the unsettling sight of those shimmering scales lingered in their minds, a question they couldn't yet answer.

The Same night, Ji-won stood on the balcony of the hotel, staring out at the stormy horizon. The rain lashed against the rooftops, lightning illuminating the darkened sky in sharp bursts.

Man-hee joined her, wrapping an arm around her waist. "What are you thinking?" she asked gently.

Ji-won didn't respond immediately. When she finally spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper. "It feels like something's coming. Something worse than before."

Man-hee tightened her hold, her gaze steely. "Whatever it is, we'll face it together. Like we always do."

A flash of lightning lit up the night, and for the briefest of moments, Ji-won thought she saw a figure in the distance, tall, cloaked, and watching them from the edge of the forest. She blinked, and it was gone, leaving only the storm and her pounding heart.

As the thunder rolled, a single, unsettling thought lingered in both their minds: Was this truly the end of their struggle, or the beginning of something far darker?

To Be Continued............

- 2013 words

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