First everything was darkness; then the notion of her own existence emerged in the void and in moments she remembered who she was, and then fleetingly remembered the remains of what could not have been anything other than a terrible nightmare, a red dream of fear, pain and destruction like she'd never imagined experimenting in so short a lifespan. The consolation of unreality, however, faded when the memories repeated themselves in a suffocating loop, burning her skin like hellfire, a skin existing again in the real world along with a pair of eyes pouring saline acidity, lungs, mouth and nose breathing raggedly, agitatedly. Amid the damp miasma of her own tears, her sight made an almost superhuman effort to focus after yielding her eyelids to a blinding light right above her; she tried to move even though her body responded heavily, however, due to the intense pain, she wasn't able to get up in any way.
Little by little her vision became clearer, and the first thing she realized was that she had been placed on a flat steel bed without sheets, wearing a clinical gown; her fear only increased when she realized that thick metal grips hugged her ankles and wrists, limiting her movements. She then began to stir, uttering desperate moans, in a futile attempt to free herself from the four steel semicircles that imprisoned her, gasping in despair; she began to whimper, struggling in vain, and finally shouted with all her strenght in the direction of the enormous window of the hospital room in which she seemed to be:
- Help! Please help me!
Immediately, and panel by panel, the image of her surroundings disappeared in front of her until only an empty room remained, the walls completely covered by screen panels, smooth as screens; Mari collapsed in tears, terrified, shaking full of hopelessness in her heart, because it seemed like it was the end of the road. She didn't want to die; she wanted to continue living, doing what she loved most, return home, hug her parents once again, get every last breath of air out of her while boxing, traveling, cleaning her summer house, even getting tired from overwork. Anything, anything she could imagine, except being locked up there, but if this was really to be the end of it, she wanted to at least not be gone sad, scared and alone in such dark and cold corner; but what could she do?
The thoughts in her mind were interrupted when she heard the sound of a metal door sliding aside; looking more clearly, she saw a blonde woman enter in a long robe, Caucasian appearance, narrow chin, huge rectangular glasses, carrying a small flashlight and a magnifying glass in one hand:
- The prisoner is conscious; motor responses normal – she said, writing down on a sheet of paper.
He began to review the drip rate of the serum tubes connected to her patient's arm:
- Please help me. I don't want to die, please...- Mari begged.
The doctor paid no attention to her, and then turned on her flashlight, focusing her sight on each of the actress's eyes with her magnifying glass; The latter's head was forcibly laid down by two small mechanical arms that came out from the upper sides of the bed, using the clamps at their distal end to open her eyelids wide. In this way, she reviewed the patient's state of consciousness through her ocular response, and once finished, she went on to test her nervous reflexes with a little hammer she kept in one of her pockets.
Once this was finished, the woman walked away and left the room while Mari shouted at her:
- No! Do not go! For heaven's sake, don't leave me here...
Only when the door closed did the mechanical arms release her and retract back into their sockets; she turned her head to the side, resting one cheek on the icy metal, sighing defeatedly, her eyelids burning, staring at the wall opposite the entrance and noticing something strange. One of the panels was larger, and thinking about it for a moment, she remembered those police thriller series as well as some horror movies, concluding someone was watching her from behind, thus deciding to stay still and waiting for whoever to come. For a while her head laid down, but it wouldn't be for long, as before any fatigue overcame her the door opened again.
She felt cool air passing over her sore wrists, and it took her a few seconds but finally reacted instinctively, suddenly sitting down; she looked around, confirming that the shackles had opened, but before taking the first impulse to get off and run, not only did she feel her ankles tightened but also a vision right in front made her back away in disbelief.
One of Mari's hands slipped, almost making her hit her head against the bed's edge, but the impact never came. She realized her torso was completely suspended in the air, leaning back at an angle where the back and abdomen couldn't have supported the weight on their own. Now that she thought about it, she almost didn't feel her physical pain at all.
"Hey, wait…it doesn't hurt to breathe and…my sides…feel better…but how…" - Mari thought
Instantly she was pulled forward, not by her own body, but by an external, invisible force equal to the one that held her just a moment ago; she hugged and lowered her head, closing her eyes. When she looked up again, there she was, contemplating a living reflection face to face; a young woman with a long coat who smiled like a fox and wore her hair in a bun, a white shirt, a tight black skirt and low heels. She had a pin on, which the actress read with difficulty, distinguishing a name that chilled her blood; meanwhile, the young woman approached her, stopping right beside her:
- You woke up, at last.
- You…y…y…y…you…
Mari was left speechless; the voice that had just spoken to her was none other than her own. Even more unlikely was the person there, indeed being herself but using a different attire. No, it wasn't just that; there was something in her presence which made the actress's spine run glacially cold:
- Don't you know how to speak? – she asked.
- Impossible...you...you are...
She felt the invisible force pulled her head forward, placing her chin just at the hands of the unreal:
- Kim...Ra-on?
- Kang Ma-ri, isn't it? – replied the director, entertained – You look almost identical to me indeed.
The director looked at her features upside down and leaned forward to look behind; Raon would let go of her gently and take a step back without losing her imposing look and inquisitive attitude:
- No, no, no... - the actress said in denial - this can't be happening, it cannot be real.
- Ah, but it is happening. The question is how, why now and why there?
- No, I'm still unconscious, this is a nightmare... - she denied further, closing her eyes.
- Not seeing me and ignoring me won't make me disappear, dumb idol – Raon responded.
She held back a laugh and turned her back on Mari, walking a little further away:
- I still don't understand how those civilians and even my sister could mistake me with you.
- Your sister...but what...
- It's funny, you know? They think it was you who betrayed them or some stupid thing like that.
- Betray? What?
- Yes, I mean it seriously, they'll love me bringing you along.
Mari started to become alarmed when thinking about her filming colleagues once again:
- What did you do? You...you mean you lied to my colleagues?
- Are you deaf now too? Yes, I did, not intentionally, but it was fun nonetheless.
- No, why?
- If I remember correctly, we found three women, the old fleabag and – she muttered uncomfortably –… that other guy. Ah, and that unbearable hag who looks like S-1.
- Mr. Bae, Young-ho, Hee-hong. Where are they? Did you do something to them?!
- Me? I made them no hurt, for now. That will depend on you… – she responded, turning around –… so, tell me what I want to know, and they will be fine.
- Please don't hurt them; I'll tell you what you want, okay? But promise me you'll let us go.
Raon slowly shook her head, never losing that mocking smile:
- You think it's that easy? You're my exact double, I can't let you go out there bearing my face just like that, it would be inconvenient.
- I'm not... I'm not afraid of you... if you don't let us go... I...
- What are you gonna do? You can't run away, and thus I can make all of you as much as I want.
- If you're so interested in me, then so be it - Mari exclaimed desperately - but don't touch them...
- Aw, but look how brave - Raon mocked - stop being ridiculous, and spill it all.
- Okay...okay...just promise me one thing, or I won't say anything. Don't hurt…anyone, please.
- You're not in a position to negotiate. Evenmore, you should thank me for leaving them unscathed.
- I hope they're at least okay, even Hee-hong – Mari said to herself.
- Enough of your nonsense; let's begin our business.
- And what do you want to know…? – the actress said, breaking out in a cold sweat – I don't know if... I don't know if I...- she stammered, remembering.
- That's better...but come on, stop trembling, don't pick on me – said Raon, imperatively - First of all, I want you to explain this.
Another person entered the room, carrying a booklet; Mari recognized the document, dirty and covered in coffee stains, and in turn, with amazement, the face of Rao's henchman:
- You...but how could you join her - she muttered.
- Why do you look at him like that? – Raon asked – It's like you've seen a ghost.
- Why is he working with you?
The man arched a brow, baffled:
- Ow, I see what is it - Raon replied - No, no, it's not who you think. Whoever that could be.
It was a young man with a long coat up to his ankles, being practically an exact replica of Heon Seol Nam, a former colleague with whom she worked in one of her kdramas, The man approached her, waving the script in front of her face:
- How you got access to this information? – asked the man.
- But how...you look just like him, are you his twin brother or something?
- No. Now answer the question.
- Huh, you're such an idiot... - Raon said - He's my bodyguard, I named him Chae Gun.
Mari did not respond further; her brain worked quickly to give her an answer to such a bizarre situation, and she could only come to two conclusions that weren't necessarily exclusive; the first was that she was in a coma, hallucinating, and the other, that she somehow found herself in a world where Kim Ra-on and her story were real and, as it seemed, ongoing beyond what she had thought.
Meanwhile, elsewhere, inside a white high-ceiling room, Jin Hee-hong was strapped to a metal chair, being overwhelmed by the intense white light emanating from buzzing spotlights above her head; she had just woken up, and was looking from one end to the other of that monotonous place, disoriented, unable to perceive anything other than the rusty table in front of her:
- Hello? Anyone hear me?! – the actress began to call, agitated – Please, I need help!
No one responded to her words; some time passed, and she resumed her attempt to be heard:
- Why am I tied, huh?! I shouldn't be here! This is a mistake! – she exclaimed, impatiently.
From an upper corner of the room, the loudspeaker emitted a muffled beep; some static was heard and finally a voice, deep and distorted, interrupted the hitherto deafening silence:
- Correct - said the voice - Your mere presence has been a mistake.
- Yes - the actress responded, smiling - Yes, that's right - she replied, nodding desperately - I swear I'm not the one you're looking for.
- I'm not looking for anyone - the voice stated - It was you who entered a restricted facility.
- What?! No, no, no... - she denied - That's not true. Look...I'm broke, okay? I can't pay a ransom...
- Your money is irrelevant to me – the voice responded – but how you breached our security is not.
- Security? What security...? Heh...no, no, I didn't trespass your property, I'm no thief I swear.
- You are bold to lie like that in the face of the obvious. How did you get in? Speak now…
- You didn't hear me, did you? Ah...ok, hey, look, if it's because of what I think it is...I don't know anything, I never asked.
- What are you talking about? Ask who?
- You know, my "happy-trip friend" - Hee-hong responded - Yes, it's true, sometimes...I ask him for something, you know, to have a good day and relax.
- Your personal habits doesn't matter to me either.
- What do you want from me? I'll speak, okay? I won't tell anyone else if...you just let me go and...
- That is not possible.
- What do you mean with "not possible"? Please tell me this a jest – the actress said, nervously.
- I cannot allow you to leave this room until you tell me everything.
- And what does that mean?
- How did you go inside? Who are your accomplices? Who sent you? What were you looking for?
- Are you insane? I am a TV actress! I'm no fucking secret agent, stop making me stupid questions!
- If you don't answer, you leave me no option but to apply other methods.
- Come on, what is this? - the hostage laughed anxiously - I think you read too many comics, loser.
- Stop evading the questions. Next time I will resort to intel extraction by force.
- Why the hell are you talking to me like that? Ow, I see, you're surely a frustrated freak aren't you?
- I think you are confused…
- No, I'm perfectly fine. You don't scare me, do you hear me idiot?! You pathetic nerd!
- You don't want to continue with this.
- If you don't want your mommy to hear me scream in her basement, you better come here and show your ugly face! Let go of me and let's see if you're so rough, I will beat the crap out of you!
After a brief silence, the voice finally responded:
- So be it.
The actress, more confident than ever, only continued:
- I'm here waiting, you...!
Hee-hong couldn't finish the sentence when the author of that distorted voice on the speaker entered through the door; her jaw dropped, and her eyes widened when she saw that it was not a fat, hairy and filthy forty-year-old full of acne on his greasy head, but, quite the contrary.
It was a she, a woman with the same face as hers; the actress stirred in surprise:
- What the…?! Are you me?!
She approached walking at a firm pace, back straight, looking at her with an inscrutable expression, dressed in casual military clothing, a white T-shirt with a dragon face printed on it, pants and boots. While she had skinny arms and legs like noodles, her double had firm muscles throughout her body, and was also half a head taller than the actress, a complexion that could only be expected from an olympic athlete.
- No - she stated - I'm not you. At least not in an ordinary sense.
It was what Hee-hong had once aspired to be after seeing her colleague Yoo Song Na on the set during her first film, although she never bothered to put much effort into achieving that perfect, statuesque figure. She was admired to the point of being incapable of taking her eyes off of her; at that moment the woman made her fingers on one hand creak against the other:
- I'm Dragon Division's vice-director, S-1 is my label. Well then, will you speak now?
- Ahhhh… yes of course, I'll tell you everything… – Hee-hong said, nodding.
The actress swallowed, and as much as possible tried to evade her counterpart's intense gaze.