It was 2:15 am on a snowy Christmas morning when the plane landed at Incheon International Airport, but no one was celebrating. Instead, most of the passengers were glued to their phones, reading and watching the horrendous news in disbelief. While they were up in the air, the ‘plague’ had swept across the whole of the Middle East and a major part of Europe. Many were trying to call their loved ones back home, some were lucky to have their calls answered, others, were left in tears.
Both Suzanne and Tom kept their heads down and hurried out of the plane.
They sat in silence for the rest of the ride, save for Hans who tried to cheer them up by pointing out all the landmarks of Seoul that they passed by. Suzanne stared blankly out the window, the snow was knee-deep by now and there was no sign of the snow letting up. They drove past a bearded man with a beanie holding up a cardboard, it read;
Suzanne closed the door behind them as Tom wheeled their bags into the bedroom. It was a simple but spacious room, with a king-sized bed against the wall and an adjoining bathroom next to it. The room even had a little balcony with a view of the backyard, not that there was much to see at the moment. Outside, the sky was still dark and heavy with snowfall. Tom walked over to the sliding glass door and pulled the curtain to a close, he didn’t want any ghosts peeking in on them.Suzanne looked at Tom silently as he went about with their toiletries and clothes. He was a good man, and she was endangering his life. What chance would he have if the mist came for them a second time? This was a mistake, she shouldn’t have let him come here.
Seven. The number echoed in Suzanne’s mind. All her life, the number seven had played a significant role in her upbringing. Grandmother had told her that the number seven was
Thomas laughed,” Hans, you’re kidding right? I mean if it was you, or Marcelino I would understand. But this is Suzanne we’re talking about.”He was exasperated, they all were. Thomas shook his head, “We all travelled from different continents of the world to gather here at your sanctuary. I don’t know about the rest of you but I was hoping to find solace and protection here, and now you’re telling us we have to fight? Based on some weird inscription and a freaky looking tattoo on Suzanne’s palm? Hans are you out of your mind?!”The twins ignored Thomas and went over to inspect Suzanne’s palm in awe. Marcelino remained silent and unmoving.Thomas started to storm out of the room when Hans quietly said, “Suzanne is the only one who survived the black mist. And if you don’t believe in us, you can at least believe in Hendricks.”Thomas whirled around, his eyes were tearing up now.
“Stay away from me!!” Suzanne screamed, her arms flailing and legs kicking. They were grabbing her and dragging her to the Abyss, she was sure if it. She punched and shoved at the hands that were holding onto her, trying to claw her way out.“Suzanne!”The grip was strong but she wasn’t giving up.I’ll be damned before you get me…oh wait, I’m already damned. Damn it!“Suzanne…wake up!”With great difficulty, Suzanne opened her eyes only to be greeted by two worried faces looking down at her. It was Tom and Hans. This was the best sight to wake up to, Suzanne smiled at them in relief.Tom pulled her into his arms tightly, his hand holding onto the back of her head as he gently rocked her back and forth like how a mother would rock her child. Her shirt was damp with sweat and her heart was pounding.“It’s alright Suzanne, we’re here,” To
Hans cupped her chin in his hands and ever so gently lifted her head to meet her gaze. There were dark circles under her eyes, she had not been sleeping well. But to Hans, she was still the most beautiful girl he had laid eyes upon many years ago.“Suzanne,” he tucked a lock of hair that had fallen over her eye behind her ears, “I have faith in you. The Suzanne Summers I know is a strong woman and she’s gonna kick some serious ass when the time comes.”Suzanne rolled her eyes and gave him a dorky smile. Hans reached out for her hands and brought them to his face, her hands were icy cold against his warm skin and he gave them a rub to give them some warmth.“Tom’s extremely lucky to have you,” Hans said, his voice soft and gentle. He then proceeded to pull out a long silver necklace from under his high collared sweater and slipped it over Suzanne’s head.Suzanne’s eye widened at this for she recog
D-Day-6It was past midnight and a lone figure wrapped in black fog stood atop a hill overlooking a snow-capped village below. All around, a blizzard began to pick up speed and the fierce wind blew at blinding speed, smashing everything in its way. An unnaturally thick mist began to form below, shrouding the village.The lone figure in long dark cloak was soon joined by another.“Suzanne Summers refused to join us,” the second figure said, its voice dripping with malice.The black fog around the first wavered slightly and an eerie laugh came from it, “Fool.”“There are only a few gifted ones left. It will be easy to take them down. The Dark Lord will be pleased.”The first figure leaned forward slightly and stretched out a hand. Black mist seeped out from within its long sleeves, gathering under the hand of the dark figure. Around them, the blizzard grew even stronger and the wind howled through the hill like the beginning of creation.The f
D-Day-5Suzanne stood in the shower, allowing the scalding hot water to blast her skin. As the steam rose from the bathroom floor, lacing around her body and over her head, Suzanne scrubbed furiously at her palm trying to rid herself of the mark. In a matter of hours, the black mark had spread like cancer all the way up to her elbow and her once pale pinkish arm now looked as if it had been dipped in black ink, with black looking roots snaking all the way up her arm.Refuse us and you will surely die, the figure had whispered deep into her mind the other day. It was the same voice that had called out to her at the airport.Fuck you, she had said to the faceless dark figure. She would rather perish a child of the light than be a servant of the dark. But for all her bravado, Suzanne Summers was afraid.No, she was not afraid. She was terrified. She did not want to die.She had seldom thought of dying, death had always struck her as