The time rainbow test, number seven, took only a moment longer to complete than test number four, what Sungjoon had started to think of as the chess test.
Sicheng and Serra had shown him to the small table in the big room, standing behind him as he'd uprighted the colored tiles and laid them out.
Beneath the heap of nine rainbow-shaded pieces was an elongated indentation, perhaps a foot long and two inches across; it was clear that just seven of the tiles would fit.
Seven colors in the rainbow, seven tiles.
Simple.
So why are there nine of them?
Hyeopil ordered the pieces by their colors, placing them in a row beneath the indentation. Each bore a different letter on the top, inked in black. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and three violet tiles with three different letters.
"Is it supposed to spell something?" Sicheng asked.
Going from left to right, the first six tiles read, J F M AM J.
"Not in English," Serra said mildly.
The three violet pieces were J, M and P. Sungjoon sighed.
"It's one of those where you have to figure out
the next in the series," he said. "Apparently relating to time. Any thoughts?"
Sicheng and Serra both stared down at the puzzle, studying the letters; he wondered if they were as tired as he was starting to feel.
Sicheng seemed distinctly less chipper than usual, and Serra looked fairly wiped out, her skin pale and gaze somewhat distant.
Hyeopil often stared Serra as if examining her carefully and that gives him a creep. He starting to act weird ever since he lost his glasses.
But aside of that they're tired, but at least they’re making an attempt.
Hyeopil can feel Sungjoon's wondering gaze at him but he ignored it and looked at the colored pieces and tried to focus.
Sungjoon looked back at the colored peices and thought an ideq but couldn't seem to manage a single coherent idea.
It had been an awfully long day, periods of intense concentration interspersed with violent rushes of adrenaline. He had run through fear, self-doubt, determination and then fear again, plus a handful of less clear-cut emotions.
Now he just felt frazzled, waiting to see what would come next.
Hyeopil raised his right hand and pointed the pieces as he tried to say his answer, a triumphant light in his eyes.
"The letters stand for the months- January,
February, March, April, May, June, July. It's J, the last letter is J."
"I admire your intelligence," Sungjoon said. He started to place the tiles in the indentation as Sicheng nudged Serra with his elbow, grinning sarcastically.
"I can be brilliant too just like that young agent and you will not thought all I was good for was easy sex."
As usual, Serra didn't bother answering.
Relieved to be through the second test, Sungjoon pushed the last piece into place.
There was a faint click and the rainbow lowered very slightly, perhaps a millimeter.
From above them, a gentle chime sounded from a speaker, this one hidden by a fluorescent bar.
"That all we get?" Sicheng quipped. "No parade?"
Sungjoon stood up, smiling tiredly. "I felt the same way with the other one. We should get moving, see how Doyoung and Sunoo are making out- "
"Interesting way of putting it, Sungjoon," Sicheng said, chuckling. "Nice one."
It took Sungjoon a moment to get it, though Serra rolled her eyes almost immediately then scratched at them.
When she took her hand away, Hyeopil saw that her right eye was extremely bloodshot.
The left was also slightly discolored, though not as badly. She noticed his scrutiny and smiled at him, shrugging.
"I irritated it somehow. It itches, but it's fine."
"Don't rub it, you'll make it worse," Sungjoon said when he noticed too, leading them toward the door. "And have Sunoo take a look when we get across."
They walked back into a connecting corridor and started for the back exit, Sungjoon steeling himself for another dash across the compound.
By his count, they'd managed to take down three of the SBHsquads in full; three men outside of the boathouse and a fourth on the run to the first building, then Sicheng and Serra's five between blocks C and D.
"Useful information, if you happen to know how many of the squads there were to begin with."
Sungjoon ignored Hyeopil sarcasm as they reached the metal door, Serra leaning back to turn off the over-head light.
They pulled out weapons and took deep breaths, preparing and Sungjoon felt a familiar sensation wash over him, one that he'd experienced before in tight situations but had never been able to name.
It wasn't a feeling so much as a state of existence and although not a religious man, it was the closest thing he'd found to a belief in fate, a sense that there were patterns at play beyond the realm of human influence.
Whatever was going to happen, whatever was already happening even as they readied themselves to step back outside- all of the deciding factors were now firmly in place, interlocking like pieces of a puzzle.
He felt it with a certainty that denied reason.
It was as though a great wheel of chance that
determined outcome, that would show them life or death, success or failure, had been set into motion and was now spinning toward its inevitable conclusion only instead of slowing down, the wheel would turn steadily faster, speeding up as it revealed to them what the cosmos had planned.
In the past, he'd often found comfort in the sudden awareness of that spinning wheel, the undefinable sense that the outcome had been decided and all anyone could do was watch it unfold.
When he had been a child and his father had been on one of his drunken, abusive rampages, the belief in a bigger picture had sometimes been the only thing that saved him from total despair.
This time, though... this time, it felt like a
terrible thing, a dark and whirling carnival ride that they had boarded by mistake, not realizing the truth until it was too late... that they couldn't go back, and there was no avoiding whatever lay ahead.
Sungjoon stepped to the door, flicking the gun's safety off.
Whether or not they had any control over what was to come, Sunoo and Doyoung were waiting.
-
The test room was quiet except for the soft hum from the machines marked with blue numbers, nine through twelve, and the occasional rustle of a turning page as Sunoo went through Fiona's journal. Doyoung sat on the edge of a table and watched him read, his thoughts restless and uneasy as they waited for the others to show up.
His chest ached mildly, both from the small caliber round he'd taken earlier and the anxious build of worry for Sicheng and Serra.
After a quick look at the other rooms in the building, they'd both agreed that the test room was the place to wait. It seemed that block B of the G. Inc. facility was mostly devoted to surgical aspects of the bio-weapons research, the rooms all white and steel, ominously stark and unpleasant.
Although the building was as stuffy and warm as the others they'd been in, Doyoung had felt a physical chill as they'd passed the empty operating rooms as if the chambers themselves had taken on the characteristics of the A-Virus creatures.
Cold and lifeless and somehow mindlessly black with purpose.
Sunoo looked up, his eyes flashing with excitement but he can sense the worry in it- knowing that Hyeopil just separated from him and decided to go with Sungjoon instead.
Maybe Hyeopil thought about going alone wasn't very safe.
"Listen to this... They're still waiting for our feedback on expansion ever since Monika revved up the amp time. We've got the space for up to twenty units, but I'm going to hold strong on a max of twelve; we wouldn't be able to concentrate on training more than four squads at a time. Amazon said he'll back me up if there's any hassle."
Doyoung nodded, half dismayed and half relieved by the information. They'd already knocked one of the SBHsquads out of the running, plus seriously wounded or killed a couple of the individuals on another team; that was good.
On the other hand, it meant that there were still a couple of the squads roaming around out there unless they're currently engaged with Sungjoon and the others.
Doyoung scowled inwardly, grasping for something else to think about.
"Do you know what that means, revved up the amp time?"
Sunoo nodded slowly, worry creasing his brow. "I'm pretty sure she means that Monika sped up the amplification process. Amplification is the term for a virus's spread through a host."
That didn't sound like something he wanted to think about either. By some unspoken agreement, they hadn't talked about the possibility of Sicheng or Serra being infected since Sungjoon and Hyeopil had left.
"Great. You find anything else in there?"
Sunoo shook his head. "Not really. He mentions the Nc127 a couple of times, but nothing more specific than that they're a A-Virus experiment that didn't work. And she's definitely kind of an asshole."
"Kind of?"
Sunoo smiled briefly. "Okay, that's an understatement. She's a money-hungry, amoral bastard."
Doyoung nodded, thinking about the partial report they'd found on the SBHsquads and for that matter, the.very existence of the facility.
Calling the A-Virus victims units, setting up operating rooms and aptitude tests to run them through like rats in a maze; it's like they can't acknowledge that they're performing their experiments on human beings, on real people.
"How could they do this?" he asked softly, as much to himself as to Sunoo. "How did they sleep at night?"
Sunoo gazed at him solemnly, as if he had an answer but wasn't sure how to say it. Finally, he
sighed.
"When you specialize in one field, particularly when it's a field that demands linear thinking and a very defined focus on only one tiny element of something- it's kind of hard to explain, but it's frighteningly easy to get lost in that single element, to forget there's a world outside of that element. When you spend your days looking into a microscope, surrounded by numbers and letters and processes... some people get lost. And if they were unstable to begin with, the ambition to pursue that element can take over, making everything else unimportant."
Doyoung saw what Sunoo was getting at and was impressed anew with how thoughtful he was, how clearly he communicated himself- all that and a smile that lights up a room; if... when they get out of this, he'll moving to Seoul City. Or
he'll at least find out if Sunoo's seeing anyone.
There was a sound from somewhere in the building, footsteps. Doyoung pushed himself off the table and walked quickly to the door.
He leaned out into the corridor and heard Sungjoon's voice calling through the empty block.
"In the back!" Doyoung shouted, then waited, anxiously watching the corner in the hall for Sungjoon to walk into view with Hyeopil behind, Sicheng and Serra both healthy and smiling beside him.
Sunoo move to stand next to Doyoung, and he saw the same concern and hope written across Sunoo's delicate features.
Instinctively, he groped for his hand, feeling a tingling jolt as their fingers touched, half expecting him to pull away but he didn't, leaning against him instead as he held Doyoung's hand gently, Sunoo's skin soft and warm on his.
Sicheng's booming voice preceded Doyoung down the corridor, loud and full of bright good humor.
"Get your clothes on, kids, you've got company!"
Sunoo dropped his hand quickly, but the look that he flashed him more than made up for it- a sweet and wistful expression that made his heart skip a beat but there was a maturity there, too, a realization of the circumstances they were in, an acknowledgment of priorities.
No more until they were out of here.
Doyoung nodded slightly, and they turned to wait for the others.
Sunoo could still feel the lingering warmth of Doyoung's hand in him as Sungjoon, Sicheng, and Serra walked around the corner, Sicheng grinning broadly.
"Sorry to crash, but we figured you guys could use a little chaperoning," he said. "Nothing like young love, though, am I right? Besides, there's no issue for me if you both are gays."
As the three stepped into the room, Sunoo struggled to quash the blush he felt creeping up on him, suddenly feeling horribly unprofessional. All they'd done was hold hands, and only for a second but they were in the middle of an operation, in hostile territory where even a moment's lapse of concentration could get them killed.
Sicheng must have picked up on him embarrassment. "Ah, don't mind me," he said, his grin fading. "I'm just giving Doyoung-o a hard time, I didn't mean anything by it- "
Sunoo only smiled and moved to run to Hyeopil and again, scold him like a child. The older only smiled and ruffled his hair, looking down at the smaller boy. "I got glasses now, no need to take care of me. I can handle myself... "
Sunoo stared at him for a few moments before sighing. Hyeopil was like a brother to him. He don't know but it feels like he want to take care of him. Someday, in the near future, Hyeopil will need his care.
Hyeopil ignored the cliche romance in front of him and focused on the situation, watching his companions. Soon, they'll all back to the city and he can be with Jeongsun... but that's impossible now since he got Bona. And he doesn't want to be with Jihae or Minhee but... they were good to accompany with.
Sungjoon interrupted, shooting Sicheng a pointed glance. "I think we have more important things to discuss," he said evenly. "We need to update, and I have a few things I'd like to go over."
He nodded toward the journal Sunoo still held.
"They found the room, but didn't touch anything. Did you find anything else useful?"
Sunoo nodded, relieved by the news and glad for the change of subject. "It looks like there are only four SBHsquads, though the entry that mentioned it is six months old."
Sungjoon looked relieved. "That's excellent. Sicheng and Serra had another encounter outside of D, managed to get five of them- that means there may only be one team left."
They pulled chairs away from the small tables that lined the walls, forming them in a loose semi-circle in the middle of the room. Sungjoon stayed standing, addressing them solemnly.
"I'd like to do a quick recap, to make certain we're all on the same page before we go any further. In short, this facility was used for A-Virus experimentation and has been taken over by one of the researchers for reasons unknown. The other workers have been killed and the offices purged of incriminating evidence. Sunoo believes that the biochemist Monika Chu is responsible, and the fact that the grounds are still being patrolled suggests that she's alive, somewhere in the compound- though I don't feel we should concern ourselves with trying to find him. We've already completed two of the tests given to us by Dr. Amazon, through San, and my hope is that the material she has hidden for us will be the evidence we need to formally charge G. Inc. with criminal activity."
He folded his arms and started to pace slowly as he talked, glancing between them.
"Obviously there's already plenty of proof that illegalities have occurred here; we could leave now and turn the matter over to federal authorities. My concern is that we still don't have enough hard evidence on G. Inc. involvement- other than the computer system's software and the journal that Doyoung and Sunoo found, G Inc.'s name isn't on anything, and both of those could be explained away. My feeling is that we should continue with the tests and find whatever Dr. Amazon meant for us to have before we evac- but I want to hear from each of you about it first. This isn't an authorized op, we're not following orders here, and if you think we should go, we go."
Sunoo was surprised, could see that the others felt the same by their expressions except of course Hyeopil who still wears blank face.
Sungjoon had seemed so certain before, so enthusiastic about their chances. The look on his face now told a different story.
He seemed almost apologetic about wanting to continue, and looked as though he wanted for one of them to suggest otherwise.
Why the change?
What happened?
Sicheng spoke first, glancing at the rest of them before looking at Sungjoon. "Well, we've made it this far. And if there's only one more group of eyed-creatures out there, I say we finish up."
Sunoo nodded. "Yeah, and we still haven't found the main lab, we don't know why Monika Chu did
this- whether she suffered a psychotic break or is actually hiding something. We may not find out, but it's worth a look. Plus, what if she destroys more evidence after we've gone?"
"I agree," Doyoung said. "If the Alpha force are as deeply involved with G. Inc. as it looks, we're not
going to get another chance. This may be our only opportunity to dig up a connection. And we're already so close, the third test is right here- we do that one, we're one step away from finishing."
"I'm up for it," Serra said softly.
At the strained sound of her voice, Sunoo turned to look at her, noticing for the first time that Serra didn't look so good. Her eyes were bloodshot, her complexion almost a pallor.
"Are you okay?" Sunoo asked.
Serra nodded, sighing. "Yeah. Headache."