Chapter 199: Chapter 199: The Nest Beneath
The tunnel narrowed as they descended deeper, the air turning thick and cloying. At first, it smelled like mildew and rust, the natural rot of abandoned infrastructure. But the farther they went, the sharper the scent became—a metallic tang, mingled with the sourness of blood long since spilled.
Lin walked at the front, his steps measured, his chains twitching against the walls like feelers. He said nothing, but every breath came slower, more deliberate. The abyss’s whispers hadn’t stopped since they entered, and now they grew louder, pressing against the edges of his mind.
Behind him, Keller kept his rifle raised. Sweat trickled down his temple, but his stance was steady, trained soldier that he was. Min-joon clung to the straps of his pack, his eyes darting nervously at every ripple of shadow. Hwan brought up the rear, though he moved with unsettling confidence, his crimson eyes faintly glowing in the dark.
The concrete around them was no longer concrete. The walls pulsed faintly, veins glowing red beneath surfaces that looked more like flesh than stone. Rusted pipes warped into ridges that resembled bone. Where mold should have grown, there were instead clusters of spore-like sacs that throbbed as though alive.
"This isn’t a tunnel anymore," Keller muttered, his voice low. "It’s a wound."
Hwan chuckled softly. "You’re not wrong. The abyss doesn’t grow like a tree—it grows like infection. These tunnels aren’t collapsing; they’re being consumed, re-stitched, and repurposed."
Keller shot him a glare. "And you sound damn proud of it."
Hwan raised a brow. "I’m alive because I understand it. The abyss doesn’t waste—it recycles. Just as it did with Jin."
Lin stopped walking. His eyes flared red in the dim light, the chains rattling restlessly at his back. The temperature seemed to drop. "Say his name again, and I’ll silence you permanently."
Hwan spread his hands in mock surrender. "I only speak truth, Lin. And truth is the abyss’s most painful weapon."
Min-joon’s breathing quickened. He tugged at Lin’s sleeve, whispering shakily, "Hyung... we should keep moving. Please."
Lin exhaled slowly, forcing the chains to settle. He turned back and led them onward, though his skin crawled with every step.
The tunnel widened abruptly, sloping down into a cavern so vast it seemed to breathe on its own. The walls here were alive—veins pulsing in rhythmic waves, sacs pulsing with fluid, every surface glistening wet. The air thrummed with heat, the faint crimson glow illuminating horrors that made Min-joon stumble back against Keller with a strangled gasp.
Cocoons.
Dozens—no, hundreds—lined the cavern walls, hanging like grotesque fruit. Each was translucent, glowing faintly red. Inside them, shapes stirred: twisted limbs, distorted faces, forms caught halfway between human and something else. Some were grotesque parodies of people, their features melted into unrecognizable masses. Others were horribly familiar.
Keller’s breath caught. "Those... those are civilians."
Lin stepped forward, staring into the nearest cocoon. The face pressed against the membrane was pale, but unmistakably human—a young woman, her features slack with sleep. Her chest rose and fell faintly. Alive.
Min-joon clapped a hand over his mouth, trembling. "No... no, that’s not possible. They’re—these are people who’ve been missing for months... maybe years..."
"They are," Hwan confirmed softly, his tone disturbingly calm. "The abyss doesn’t waste. It takes what it finds and remakes it. Soldiers, civilians, anyone unlucky enough to be caught in its reach. It reshapes them into vessels."
Keller turned on him, fury sparking in his voice. "You knew this? You let this happen?"
Hwan’s lips curved into a bitter smile. "I warned them years ago what would happen if the abyss wasn’t contained. No one listened. And now your precious city stands on its stomach, ready to be digested."
Keller raised his rifle, rage boiling over. "You son of a—"
"Stop." Lin’s voice cut through like a blade. He didn’t look at Keller, didn’t look at Hwan. His eyes were fixed on the cocoons.
The whispers in his head surged. Not random, not chaotic. Unified.
Chained heir.
The words reverberated through the cavern, not from the cocoons themselves but from the abyss that bound them together. Lin staggered, clutching his skull as the chains writhed violently around him.
Min-joon stumbled toward him, panicked. "Hyung! What’s happening?"
Lin’s breath came ragged. He saw the faces in the cocoons more clearly now, not as strangers but as extensions of the abyss. Their eyes opened one by one, glowing faintly red, each pair locking onto him.
The whispers grew louder, a chorus in unison. Chained heir... chained heir... chained heir...
Keller swore under his breath, his rifle swinging toward the walls. "They’re waking up!"
The cavern trembled. The cocoons pulsed with crimson light, the fluid inside them bubbling. Some of the creatures pressed against the membranes hard enough to stretch them thin, claws scraping from within.
Lin dropped to one knee, teeth clenched. His veins glowed faintly beneath his skin, abyss energy sparking uncontrollably. The chains lashed out, cracking against the stone floor, tearing gouges as if trying to strike enemies that hadn’t yet emerged.
"Lin!" Keller barked. "Get a grip!"
Hwan’s voice cut through, calm yet edged with something sharper. "Don’t fight it."
Lin snapped his head up, eyes blazing. "What?"
"The abyss calls you its heir for a reason," Hwan said smoothly, his crimson gaze reflecting the pulsing cocoons. "You’ve bound it to yourself. That gives you power over it. If you resist, it will devour you. But if you accept... it will obey."
"Obey?" Keller spat. "You want him to become one of them?"
Hwan shook his head slowly. "No. I want him to lead them."
Lin’s heart hammered. The whispers pressed harder, almost breaking his mind apart. He heard Jin’s voice among them now—clearer than ever.
Lin...
His chest constricted. It couldn’t be real. It had to be another abyss trick. But the sound of it—the way his name fell from that voice—it was Jin’s. It had always been Jin’s.
The cocoons throbbed, splitting at the seams. Black fluid spilled onto the cavern floor. Creatures began to push through, their bodies snapping free with sickening cracks. Their voices, unified and alien, echoed through the chamber.
Chained heir.
Dozens of them. Hundreds. All of them turning toward him.
Min-joon’s voice cracked with panic. "Hyung, what do we do?!"
Lin rose slowly, the chains coiling around him like serpents, his crimson eyes reflecting the horde. His heart thundered with rage, grief, and the unbearable weight of the abyss’s will pressing down on him.
When he spoke, his voice was no longer just his own.
"Then let’s see if the abyss can obey its heir."