Chapter 4: python

The eerie scream of the apartment door made Jongho wince at its loud and drawn out volume. His keys scratched against the wooden frame as he pushed through the now unlocked doorway, scurrying through to allow his guests to follow.

He moved aside to let San and Wooyoung walk in. Their eyes cast curiously over every small trinket, but they didn't make any comment at the untidiness. Jongho was secretly grateful for the former. With so much that had gone on over the last twenty four hours, plus the five days Yeosang had been missing . . . cleaning really hadn't been his top priority.

Jongho was a little more cautious around San after the strange look he had earned earlier that night, so he made sure to leave some extra room between them. He wasn't quite sure what he had done to earn the elder's hostility, though he was beginning to have a very good idea of what was wrong.

Perhaps Jongho had misjudged their relationship at first glance.

Poor little innocent Jongho had just strolled into that room and pretended that Wooyoung and him hadn't not talked for years since their school days. Of course, as Wooyoung would have gone through life while Jongho was still in the process of graduating and moving in with Yeosang, he would have had his fair share of experiences. Including dating experiences.

There was a blank chunk of time that left a lot of questions that he felt he might not get answers to.

If there was any indication from the look he'd gotten, San was probably currently dating Wooyoung. The thought made a small sour pang of something scratch inside his chest. It would explain why San had been so protective of Wooyoung when Jongho had simply asked to speak with him.

Even now San stood close to Wooyoung's oblivious form, as if drawn in by the same invisible magnet as Jongho. Though Jongho's almost supernatural pull seemed all the stronger, as if his level of magnetic attraction was amplified after so long apart.

Jongho shook off the thought with a firm shake of his head. Now he was being foolish.

He couldn't dwell on such things now, there were far more important things that needed to be taken care of.

Like the broken robot version of Yeosang that they'd come to collect.

Jongho trudged forward down the unlit hallway, calling out over his shoulder in indication to follow. "It's this way," Jongho brushed a hand against the fork of the hall that split into their separate bedrooms. He turned to face the door which he knew was the only barrier between them and the currently deactivated android wearing the face of a friend.

His visitors followed behind him dutifully, though Jongho couldn't shake the idea that San had something more to say, though he bit his tongue instead.

With one last glance up at the 'Woosan' pair, Jongho turned the handle to Yeosang's room, and ran a hand down the wall to flick the light switch on.

Jongho blinked carefully at the new brilliance of the overhead lamp, his eyes were not used to the brightness after walking through the pitch black streets and the warm undertone of Wonderland's decor.

He was able to spot the abnormal form in the center of the room, propped on the only bed, instantaneously. His eyes were immediately drawn to Yeosang's fake, as if he was gazing upon an enigma that he had yet to solve, a puzzle that remained unfinished.

The robot lay prone on its front with wide open eyes, and each glass orb was void of light. It was almost like staring into an open night sky where each star had been swallowed by an invisible black hole. Its current position revealed the open back of the enhanced being, each wire and cord crossed over in some nonsensical pattern. The formerly flashing dials were powered off and made the back panel seem even more metallic and artificial with its grey monotone. Jongho hadn't really bothered to close that panel before he'd left.

Though he secretly admitted that keeping it open was a subtle reminder that this Yeosang wasn't the real one. And that everything that had occured that night wasn't just one big hallucination. He was almost afraid he'd wake up and realize that it had been a dream, and Yeosang would reappear safe and sound, and very much real.

Wooyoung released a strangled noise at the sight of his missing friend laying still with blank eyes of stone. His hands came up to small fists in front of his mouth as if he was about to bite off the tips of his own fingers, but instead they trembled with emotion. His eyes were twin pools of anguish, but he brushed off San's concern, wiping his unshed tears into his long sleeves.

Even if it wasn't the real Yeosang, it still looked exactly like him. And the thought of Yeosang being in any danger was horrible to Jongho, and was no doubt appalling for Wooyoung who had been friends with Yeo for far longer.

This 'Yeosang' was a bit more worse for wear than the android 'Mingi'. Whereas Mingi's robot had simply been disconnected, Yeosang was missing a hand and the connection port where it should have been resting was fried and dysfunctional. After it had delivered its message, the android had been fully drained of all of its power and it had finally stopped sparking. Jongho was barely able to catch where one wire was frayed from being pulled apart when the hand had disconnected. Surrounding it were the scattered blackened smudges across the metallic surface, signs of a problem with other wires out of their sight.

Even San winced at the pitiful sight, but he wasted no time to pick his way over to the ruffled bed. He curled his arms under the shoulders of the limp android, releasing a small grunt as 'Yeosang's' body followed gravity and pulled on his strength. The android's head fell back over San's arm not so gently, making San shuffle his grip carefully in an attempt to re-adjust.

Wooyoung jumped to attention at San's small sound of effort, quickly gathering his wits and breaking away from the doorway to help. Wooyoung worked with gentle hands, lifting his arms under the android's knees to help distribute the weight.

Jongho hadn't really had a problem with how heavy the mass of circuitry was, mainly because he'd hadn't really had to carry Yeosang anywhere other than onto the bed. Also he was beginning to think that there was a strange mechanism in the android's system that worked only when it was active and functioning properly.

Somehow that mechanism lessened the weight of the masses of circuitry and solid metal contained within the outside human appearance, and now that 'Yeosang' was powered off. . . it was no longer working.

Wooyoung and San were most likely attempting to carry the weight of a smaller appliance without that mechanism activated to help them lessen the load.

Once again Jongho cursed the wily creators, surely they had thought of everything at this point. And then some.

Wooyoung was the one who started to back away, choosing to be the one that walked backwards as the pair retreated back to the apartment's main entrance. Jongho made sure to hold each door open for them, knowing that it was the best way for him to help. He didn't want to get in the way to try and help lift because the halls of the apartment building he lived in were narrow and hard to travel through in large packed groups.

The android's body already took up extra space, and Jongho was worried about being trampled at the least.

So instead he stuck to the simple task of holding the door.

And as Wooyoung took his first steps out into the hallway, Jongho was suddenly struck with the fear that one of his neighbours would see. It certainly looked suspicious for a group of young male adults to be carrying another unconscious one out of the building. He would have a hard time trying to explain what they were attempting to do without spilling the full truth.

There was a safety risk for those who became directly involved in the hatching case, and Jongho didn't want many people to know. Even though it killed him to keep unsuspecting strangers in the dark, he was even more worried that whoever was behind this would begin to target the people who became involved.

That's why they needed to get a jump on things as soon as possible. With so many people out there who were at risk, they couldn't afford to just sit around twiddling their thumbs and waiting for action to come bite them in the rear.

And that's why they needed Yeosang's android.

They were trying out Hongjoong's suggestion, with little prompting from Hongjoong himself.

There was a supposed 'tech genius' that Seonghwa was familiar with that he called in for anything technology related at Wonderland. They were well enough acquainted and Seonghwa trusted him enough to tell him some of the truth, and why they needed help.

And just like Seonghwa had promised, the tech genius jumped at the opportunity to help. (But also just to get a good look at the high level of technology and programming it took to construct Yeosang and Mingi's android models.)

Hongjoong had suggested trying to track down where the robots had originated from, as there was a chance that the real people were being kept in the same location. He hoped that pinpointing that location would be their first great leap in the right direction. Their first main priority was to get all those innocent people out of harm's way, including Mingi and Yeosang. Although Jongho didn't want to be a pessimist, he didn't think they'd be able to free all of those people at once. At least not at this point in time, with only the six of them to fight back and free their friends.

It was still a little strange for him to think that once they had all been oblivious to the real danger of these 'hatchings'.

Now knowing the dark truth, they almost seemed like a curse.

Millions of people walked around freely, living their day to day lives without fear. Hatchings were coincidences for a few. Others just didn't care enough about it or just went with the flow, believing that 'if it happened, it happened.' Though Jongho had even heard of some cases were hatchings were celebrated.

He'd heard a news report on it once. He hadn't been paying that much attention to the television until this concerning story had appeared on that night a few months ago.

In some parts of the city, hatchings were seen as some sort of passage into adulthood or something to be celebrated with an elaborate party. Jongho had seen groups of families in parks and restaurants, all with bright grins, shouting out to the world that 'their wonderful son has finally reached adulthood!' or that 'their sister had begun her right of passage' that would end after those five days.

It made Jongho sick to his stomach to think of all the people who may be trapped, terrified, or even no longer living, while their families partied through the night without worry.

Maybe it was their way of coping, maybe it was something even far worse.

A voice broke through his thoughts, and when he shot back to reality he found Wooyoung looking in his direction with a small friendly smile. San and Wooyoung were already out in the hallway, but Wooyoung had paused just to address him.

"I guess we'll see you tomorrow then?" Wooyoung hefted the fake Yeosang's legs up higher, as if a hidden indication that the hatching research would begin the next day. San didn't say a word, only turning his head in the opposite direction impatiently.

Jongho's eyes widened just slightly, and he brought a hand up to rub the back of his neck nervously. He still wasn't used to Wooyoung looking at him with his bright starry eyes.

He swore that those eyes would be the death of him one day.

"Uh y-yeah, definitely," There was a small stumble in his words, and Jongho cursed himself internally. "I go to the front door right?" Jongho called after their now retreating forms.

Wooyoung tilted his head back and called out over his shoulder, "Yeah, Yunho will let you in." His friendly smile didn't falter even when he turned his head back to face the direction he was walking.

Jongho nodded in confirmation, though he realized that Wooyoung was no longer looking at him.

Jongho made sure to wave to Seonghwa who was waiting at the end of the hallway, holding open the door to the stairs. (They'd made the decision to take the stairs to avoid bumping into more people, despite it being more difficult than just escaping through the elevator.)

Seonghwa noticed his small movement and dipped his head in a small acknowledgement, but he froze in what Jongho thought was shock as Wooyoung and San approached.

He watched as Seonghwa was entirely taken aback by the android being carried towards the stairs between the Woosan duo. He did a quick double take, sweeping his gaze over Yeosang's figure to fully take him in.

Jongho raised a curious eyebrow at Seonghwa's strange reaction. It was the most normal he had seen the elder act. Ever since being formally introduced to the elusive owner of Wonderland, Jongho had only seen Seonghwa act with calculated intent and a professional outlook. He was every bit the businessman that Jongho had expected, though he had underestimated how dedicated Seonghwa was to Wonderland and its upkeep. It seemed as soon as you placed work in front of him, Seonghwa wouldn't rest until it was taken care of.

The elder man, who really could have been a college student as well, was mature and didn't seem to care about all the things people their age would be worrying about. Like dating or parties, or grades, or even college expenses.

Seonghwa had been so distracted by the appearance of the android that he hadn't fully registered when Wooyoung and San had passed by him to the stairway. They were probably half way down the first flight when Seonghwa realized and scrambled to catch up, the door swinging shut behind him with an audible slam.

Jongho grinned to himself as he closed the door to his own apartment.

Even though it wasn't his real best friend, Yeosang continued to gain admirers with his otherworldly visuals.

Jongho moved to push away from the chipping door, feeling the lock click into place under his palm. He ventured from the main entrance way into the small kitchen, spotting the now cold chicken that had been delivered just before Jongho had left for Wonderland.

With a weighted sigh, Jongho shoved it into the fridge, no longer feeling hungry.

From there he chose to head into his own bedroom just to face plant onto his soft comforter. Sighing into the cloudlike feeling, he felt the tenseness of his shoulders release.

Though his mind remained a rushing racetrack of information, it was now that he wasn't surrounded by any distractions that everything hit him at once. It hit with the force of a tidal wave; the realization of his new responsibility and the future of the unstable agreement he'd made with Hongjoong. He couldn't help but be overwhelmed with it all.

Yeosang was gone.

In an unknown state, and unreachable by any regular means.

He'd made an unlikely alliance with the Elites who were rumoured to be a lot more than just workers in Wonderland. If they chose to drop him, he would be out of their business before he could blink.

And every forgotten feeling he'd had for Wooyoung when they were younger had suddenly been rekindled all in one night. The same Wooyoung that he couldn't have. That he could never have.

It seemed as if every odd was largely not in his favour.

Jongho squeezed his eyes shut in a silent prayer that Yeosang was holding up as well as he could in the current situation. Jongho couldn't squash the crippling worry that had been living in the pit of his stomach for the past six days.

He found himself mumbling a second prayer, hoping that tomorrow they would be able to find answers to his ever piling questions.

------◎▼◎------

As he drew closer to the looming brick structure that was Wonderland, Jongho noted the stark difference between the nightclub in the daytime versus the night.

When the sky was painted obsidian, the brilliant neon rainbows of the Wonderland signs were like beacons for starved customers. The ambiance that surrounded the building spoke of a hidden world beyond the tall main doors. One that belonged to those who walked among the elite, one that was graced only at times by those who were not regulars. The music echoed inside the brick walls that were draped with colour, but was unheard by those outside. The beat jumped along with the listener's racing heartbeat, an ode to the rush of adrenaline the loud voices of the club goers generated.

Wonderland, and everything that came to mind at the sight of it, was enough to make one feel truly alive, if even for just a night.

All to be silenced and calmed once the sun had risen.

During the day it was as if the excitement had been wiped clean from the brick. Almost like a secret society of witches had discovered how to steal the bliss of the night in one simple spell. A spell that brought the sun up.

With no one around looking for the ticket into Wonderland's exclusive night activities, the sidewalks around it were bare. Gone were the massive crowds of drunks and regulars, all fighting for a way in.

Though as Jongho drew closer, he noticed one lone figure tucked beneath the overhang, hidden in the slight shadow of the dying sun.

Yes, the sun was once again tucking itself behind the mountains because Jongho had spent the whole day catching up on school work. Plus he had to spend time on the nightmare that was explaining Yeosang's whereabouts to his professors and his boss. He'd settled on some far-fetched tale of Yeosang being out of the country to visit family, one that they all were somehow buying.

Jongho dodged around a crew of giggling children being chased by a frantic teenager who was undoubtedly meant to be babysitting them instead of chasing them through the main city. The kids had no worry though, they had made a game out of it.

Jongho smiled at their innocence and sent out a small prayer that they would be protected from the truth of the hatchings case.

His legs continued to carry him forward until he was almost directly in front of Yunho, who looked him up and down indifferently.

Jongho felt an air of awkwardness as he realized all the problems he had caused for this man he'd first met under twenty four hours ago. He'd not only restrained this man's boyfriend, but he'd also revealed that said boyfriend was a complete fake.

Jongho didn't think that Yunho had many pleasant things to say about Jongho at the moment. But at the same time Jongho wasn't sure how to address the tense situation so instead he gave him a small smile, hoping for the best.

Jongho decided to take a dive.

"Um, how are you?" Jongho asked cautiously, mentally slapping himself for sounding like a socially inadequate potato.

Yunho hummed in response, tilting his head to look even more down on Jongho's frozen form. Yunho was naturally far taller than Jongho would ever hope to be, which could be easily used as an intimidation tactic if needed.

Jongho didn't get the sense that Yunho wanted to intimidate him, only that he wanted to test Jongho's worth.

"Well," Yunho began with a somewhat flat tone, "I just found out that my boyfriend's a robot, has been for about a month now, and we have no way of getting him back anytime soon. So, I'd say I'm just peachy."

Yunho's fingers were gripped so tightly around his biceps as his arms were crossed that they were turning white and his skin scarlet red.

Jongho winced at the sudden onset of emotion, "I-I don't know what else to say other than I'm sorry."

Yunho's eyebrow perked up in surprise, "Why? It's not your fault." When he finally noticed how Jongho had placed a fair amount of space between them he quickly jumped in to clarify. "I'm more mad at myself," Yunho once again turned away, letting his bangs fall over his eyes, "I should have noticed that something was off. I keep beating myself up for it over and over again. I feel like I've failed him."

Jongho waited silently as Yunho pushed through the main doors and made a bee-line for the hallway that led to the Brig. Though he paused mid step once he heard Yunho's confession.

Yunho turned to look at him with confusion once he noticed that Jongho was no longer following.

Jongho forced himself to continue walking again, though he made an effort to stride directly beside Yunho. "How were you supposed to know? All these androids were made to look exactly like a human person. Hell, anyone we meet out there could be one of them and we'd never know."

Yunho regarded him with a strange new look in his eyes, some weird mix between surprise and perhaps an inkling of a new respect he'd found for his younger follower.

Though that look didn't stay for long and was quickly washed away into a more neutral expression. Yunho's dark eyes seemed to swirl in the accented red lights of the hallway, giving off an eerie sparkle of red that almost made him appear sinister.

Jongho tried not to shiver too noticeably, and thankfully Yunho turned away from him at that moment, speaking lowly almost half to himself. "I mean I guess. Only if you're sure."

Jongho tried to relay confidence in his bright smile, confidence that was partially cement and mostly based on optimism.

"I know we haven't even known each other for a week, but I'm really sure. I saw them with my own eyes." When Yunho flashed him another uncertain glance, Jongho spoke again more firmly, "Trust me on this."

Yunho paused in front of the door that was carved with the inlaid compass, finally allowing a small smile to break through his outermost shell. Even if it wasn't much, it was all Jongho could ask of him in return.

With the smile still on his lips, Yunho descended the black staircase to the Brig. He cast a few words over his shoulder, "Then trust me in return, we will help you get your friend back. Just like we'll get Mingi back too. No matter what it takes."

Jongho didn't hesitate to nod solemnly in agreement, trailing Yunho's form with his eyes as he took the first step into the Brig in front of him. Yunho stepped off to the side closer to the private bar that was located to the left of the door.

With the tall form of Yunho no longer blocking his view of the rest of the room, Jongho's gaze fell on the rest of the Elites as if they were strong magnets that automatically caught his eye. Jongho had to admit that there was some strange air around the Elites, something that attracted people like a moth to a flame.

A stranger was mixed in among them though, and Jongho regarded the new person curiously. Little side note questions were already beginning to pop up in his mind.

The unfamiliar man was typing furiously onto a sleek black laptop that was covered in more stickers than it probably should have been. Each unique in its own strange way. Jongho found himself eyeing the baby blue astronaut cut out in particular.

Both of the androids lay on opposing tables in front of the small gathering of the Elites and the man Jongho didn't recognize. There were a bundle of cords that fell away from where they were connected to the small laptop like strands of tangled hair. The cords were the bridge connection between the computer and the much larger interfaces of the android lookalikes.

No longer feeling supported without Yunho at his side, Jongho wandered over to stand just behind Seonghwa. He was careful to stay out of his way, but he did lean over to peer at the open screen.

It was hard to keep up with the fast moving numbers on one of the open tabs, and the tab that the man was actually typing in was filled with nonsense code that meant nothing to Jongho.

"Any luck?" Jongho whispered to Seonghwa, trying to wrap his head around the rush of information that flew by on the man's black laptop. Jongho was completely out of his league when it came to his technology, so this felt alien to him.

Seonghwa glanced at him over his shoulder almost disinterestedly, quickly returning his attention to the screen. Though Seonghwa did decide to answer him, thankfully.

"Moonbin is trying a new approach right now. At first, he tried prying into their memory to try and track their previous locations. Which is kind of like retracing their steps, but there was a regenerative firewall that refused to break down. So now, instead, he's trying to trace their 'digital footprint'."

Jongho blinked, not quite processing, but Seonghwa continued anyway, "It's like tracing where they've connected to, and following that connection back to its source. By tracing where they originally appeared, there's a possibility of coming into contact with whoever created them."

When Seonghwa finally glanced back around to catch a glimpse at Jongho's face, and only saw pure confusion, he sighed.

"He's finding where they were made, to see if we can find where the real Yeosang and Mingi went," Seonghwa deadpanned, with his hand to his forehead in defeat.

Jongho made a small sound of surprise. Being as hopeless with technology as he was, he didn't even know that someone was even able to do that.

But then again, he reasoned, someone had been able to make these androids in the first place, and they clearly knew exactly what they were doing. And with all the features they were beginning to discover on these androids, he shouldn't be that surprised about the limits of technology anymore.

Out of the blue, Moonbin, who had been up until now concentrating fiercely, mumbled a string of curses under his breath. Several flashing pop-ups plagued his screen, blaring annoyingly like brightly coloured flies.

San, who was also hovering over Moonbin's shoulder on the opposite side, spoke frantically, "What's happening?"

Moonbin grit his teeth, "They're retaliating with a virus!" He resumed his frantic typing with more urgency behind his movements than before. It felt like everyone in the room simultaneously held their breath in anticipation.

Moonbin scrambled away when there was a sudden flash of bright red across the screen before it was sucked into black. And that's when it began sparking.

Their small group stared with slightly gaped mouths as the blackened computer they had just been hovering around smoked.

The tech genius groaned into his hands in utter defeat, unable to look at his ruined device any longer than a few moments. Seonghwa, in a strange step out of his businessman persona, patted Moonbin's back in a small act of comfort.

"Ugh," Moonbin swore a few times, pretty creatively too, "They just locked me out and fried my laptop. Whoever they are, they're willing to do anything to avoid getting caught."

Seonghwa rested his comforting hand on Moonbin's shoulder instead this time. Jongho was just able to catch Seonghwa's promise to personally make sure that his laptop was replaced, and he smiled. There were a few cracks in Seonghwa's outer professional shield, and he was beginning to see the light shine through them.

The rest of the Elites slipped away from the grieving hacker and left Seonghwa to do damage control. Jongho felt like he had nothing to contribute to Seonghwa's efforts so he followed the others without thinking.

There were a few ideas thrown around in their little circle gathering, as they tried to discuss and overcome their unfortunate results, but Jongho remained quiet.

There wasn't much they could do with a fried computer and no other blaring lead to steer them in the right direction. As far as Jongho was concerned, they were jumping in blindly, and it was only their first official day on the case.

Jongho felt twinges of hopelessness as he glanced around the sullen faces of the Elites. He could tell they shared his eagerness to snag a lead, but unless the chance literally fell in their laps, they were stuck.

Jongho tried to listen for the rest of that meeting, but he grew tired of the conversation running in circles like a game of fox and rabbit. He informed Yunho, who he'd been casually hanging around since their morning discussion, that he would be heading home. The others were so deep in their conversation that they didn't even notice Jongho slip away, or at least he thought so, before Wooyoung called out a loud farewell that made a chorus of goodbyes from the others follow.

Jongho broke into the street, squinting from the low and dying sun that was just a sliver now. It was already leading into evening, and Jongho had made a great decision to leave when he had. He already spotted a few stragglers lingering near the door, waiting for Wonderland's closed sign to flip to open for the night.

He would hate to get caught up in that crowd of customers, he'd heard they were deadly in the first few hours.

But alas, he was free of them. Walking to his apartment, looking forward to a nice shower, Jongho sighed at the thought of it.

Though there was a slight pang in his head when he considered all the things he had to mull over.

Jongho shoved away the immediate thought of a certain blond man, reaching up to brush the hair out of his face. He shouldn't be worrying about that, there were other things that should be occupying his mind.

It was like Wooyoung was a sticky burr that was hooked onto Jongho's train of thought, each little claw refusing to release its firm hold.

Getting to Yeosang and getting him out of his unknown prison was meant to be his first priority. He ignored those remaining sprigs of affection, he couldn't afford to linger on feelings that should have been buried after high school graduation.

Jongho turned his gaze to the darkening sky. There were a few scarce dark clouds blowing in from over the mountains, no doubt bearing a load of rain.

He focused once again on the scuffed sidewalk that passed beneath his ebony sneakers, eyeing the businesses he passed and finally landing on the upcoming bus stop.

There was a woman standing there.

She was standing up ramrod straight, staring daggers at the painted brick wall across the street from the side both Jongho and the woman were on.

The distance between them was shrinking slowly but surely as Jongho continued in the direction of his apartment building. He had no choice but to walk past her, and he was so close already that crossing the street would feel weird.

Jongho nearly cried out in surprise when her head suddenly snapped in his direction. But somehow he managed to hold his tongue.

Jongho felt a wave of uneasiness wash over him. It felt like her eyes were following him even when he weaved around a lamppost. He drew ever closer, and finally the obvious emptiness of the normally busy street came to his attention. The night had barely begun and there was no other body in sight. It was like the whole neighbourhood had become a ghost town.

Every step felt as if he was approaching a poised snake ready to strike. A viper ready to unhinge its hungry jaw to pump its prey with venom.

And Jongho was feeling a lot like the prey in this scenario.

A tense breath in and out, a beating heart that matched his rapid footsteps, Jongho kept his eyes locked on the ground in front of him.

The bus stop came and went by his side, as he passed without complications. It was only a few moments after that he realized he'd been holding his breath. Maybe he was being a little too paranoid after Yeosang went missing, and since finding out about the danger behind hatchings.

Anyone around him could be a robot.

With the bus stop behind him, he allowed his shoulders to relax. Foolishly believing that the potential danger had passed.

And as it had turned out, he'd let his guard down at the wrong moment.

There was a hand on his shoulder before he could blink. With a firm push, his momentum was thrown off to the right into just one of the darkened alleyways that dotted the street. He felt a sudden weight on his body and a tight grip on his neck. His back was against rough brick, and his eyes were blown open wide staring into foreign black eyes with panic.

The woman from the bus stop had followed him to the mouth of the alley and shoved him into it, pressing him firmly into the wall with inhuman strength. Her nails dug into his neck creating small grooves, and Jongho coughed desperately trying to breathe.

She appeared human, but all Jongho needed was a glimpse of where her shirt sleeve had ridden up to understand what her deal was. Tracing her shoulder was the cursed tattoo of a crane, it pulsed with blue light as if she found no reason to hide her true identity from him. The long legs of the crane etched onto her skin were outstretched as if to grab onto his neck just like her clawed hands.

Her eyes in turn began to glow a brilliant turquoise, "You dare to deviate from the Creators? They demand the restoration of balance, and that requires the removal of meddling pests who prance around thinking that the world is worth saving."

Her voice had taken on a synthetic coldness. No emotion was present in her brightly coloured eyes and Jongho felt her grip tighten. He had no idea what her words meant, but her actions spoke clearly instead. The fear that her use of the word 'removal' was meant to be more than just a hatching sent renewed thrums of panic through his veins. Once again he couldn't help but to think of a snake constricting around his throat, seeking to swallow him.

With his panic reaching the boiling point, he struck out blindly. Miraculously he managed to catch the robot woman off guard, successfully loosening her hold on his neck.

Jongho coughed, trying to catch his breath. He held onto his panic and adrenaline as his driving force as he firmly shoved her away from him.

She stumbled back, and Jongho leaned away to kick her directly in the stomach, knocking her back into the opposite wall. Though she wore the face of a human woman, Jongho felt no remorse for kicking her knowing that she was artificial and had pretty much just threatened his life.

Her head jerked back up with a glare that could wither flowers in seconds, her features arranged on a face of stone.

She sprinted at him again, and he dodged to the left. He was just able to duck under her outstretched arms in time, letting out a gasp of relief that was short lived.

He swiped the lid off a nearby garbage can, using it as a makeshift shield while she skidded into the can wildly swinging. Jongho thought that perhaps he'd enraged her, as she was no longer as calculated as she had first appeared.

She chose that moment to pivot on her heel and punch straight through the lid in Jongho's hands. Jongho gasped at her strength.

Her other hand curled onto the lip of his makeshift shield, ripping it cleanly away from him.

Jongho scrambled to get some distance between them, his panic still present in the back of his mind. How was he supposed to fight against a machine engineered to be superior in every way to the average human?

She grabbed for the back of his shirt as he twisted away, and her nails snagged. Jongho persisted in his attempt to escape, taking another step forward, ripping away from her grasp. He heard the shoulder of his shirt tear, but he didn't dwell on it and sprinted down the alleyway in the opposite direction of his attacker. She tried to follow, but he ducked into a random store as soon as he turned the corner.

At first he was afraid that the store would be closed, but the door fell open beneath his palms.

He recognized the interior instantaneously, and he made a break for the counter.

It was the bookstore Yeosang worked at.

He passed one of Yeosang's friendly co-workers who jumped in surprise, not expecting someone to streak past or even be in the store right before closing time.

Jongho cleared the counter in one of those effortless 'slide over the table' moves that one might see in an action movie, and ducked there breathing heavily.

There were a few moments of silence. Jongho was just waiting for the bell over the door to signal the woman's entrance, but there was nothing.

It appeared he was free from danger now, so he leaned back against the cool wood, finally able to catch his breath.

"You good?" Yeosang's co-worker, Yeonjun, asked, peering under the counter with concerned eyes. Yeonjun's blond bangs fell over his eyes and most of his face, but they didn't hide the confusion he was most definitely feeling.

"Yeah, there was this woman that attacked me, but she's gone now," Jongho shuddered, not keen on remembering her stone cold turquoise eyes and vice-like grip.

Yeonjun made his way around the counter and kneeled next to a criss crossed Jongho, giving him a once over. Yeonjun ran a hand down where there was a long tear in his shirt, "Looks like she got you good." He paused, "What's this?" He held up a finger with a strange black substance with a look of disgust.

Jongho furrowed his eyebrows, at a loss, "I have no idea where that came from."

Yeonjun leaned over to look at his shoulder again, and he tilted his head, "It's in the shape of what looks like the top of a handprint on the back of your shoulder."

Jongho's mind immediately flashed to when the robot woman had run into the rugged edges of the garbage can. She must have scraped her hands or arms then, meaning this black substance was like a substitute for blood.

He was struck with a sudden idea.

Maybe instead of trying to hack against people who were technological geniuses, they needed to try a different approach. Instead of tackling the massive task of hacking the mainframes and complicated software, they could track the individual puzzle pieces. It was impossible for 'the Creators' not to have overlooked something. The materials could lead them to manufacturers, then sellers and buyers, then eventually, the Creators that the woman had mentioned.

The smallest of smiles crept onto Jongho's mouth.

They might just have a chance after all.

------

oh hi ♡

it's been awhile

but i'm back *cues confetti*

aha maybe it's not that exciting.

this is one of my longest chapters (until we get to like the late 40s)

so that might be why it was such a monster to edit :')

♡ thank you for reading ♡