Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Ethan returned home. The long, dark night passed uneventfully, and by dawn, there was still no sign of an attack from across the river.

However, the massive Zombie Horde gathered on the other side showed no signs of dispersing. Instead, they seemed restless, as if preparing for something big.

Not long ago, three Zombie Kings—Bone-Claw, Cat-Faced, and Pregnant—had gathered at the heart of the zombie nest.

Surrounding them were elite zombies, and in the center of a small plaza stood a towering figure. This was the fourth Zombie King of the Eastern Region of the River, and the undisputed ruler of the area: the Crimson Titan. He was the absolute overlord of this territory.

Standing at a staggering 9 feet tall, his massive frame was covered in reddish-brown skin that looked like it was made of solid rock. His body was completely hairless, and his bald head was marked with deep grooves, giving him an intimidating, battle-hardened appearance.

It was the kind of look that screamed power.

”Boss, let’s cross the bridge and crush them!” Bone-Claw Zombie King growled angrily.

The Crimson Titan remained silent for a moment, deep in thought. He had already heard about what happened the previous night. ”I’m afraid... the timing isn’t right yet.”

”What do you mean it’s not the right time? When will it ever be the right time? They’ve already come knocking on our door!” Bone-Claw snapped, clearly unable to swallow his anger.

The Crimson Titan raised his gaze and said calmly, ”The enemy is no pushover. Even if we win, we’ll suffer heavy losses. That’ll leave us vulnerable to other factions.”

”Come on, Boss! Once you absorb that Zombie King’s crystal core, you’ll still be the top dog in Los Angeles,” Pregnant Zombie King chimed in with a sinister tone.

It was clear she supported an all-out attack; otherwise, she wouldn’t have come here with Bone-Claw.

The Crimson Titan liked what he was hearing. Her words hit him right in his weak spot, and he couldn’t help but want to hear more.

”What did you just say?”

”I said, you’ll still be the number one overlord of Los Angeles,” Pregnant Zombie King repeated.

The Crimson Titan nodded, satisfied.

”Of course…”

A high-level crystal core was a tempting prize for him, especially since he felt like he was on the verge of a breakthrough. He just needed one final push.

Seeing his subordinates so fired up, he decided to go along with their plan. In the back of his mind, though, he was already calculating his options. If things went south, they could always retreat and defend their position. Worst case scenario, they could destroy the bridge and cut off the enemy entirely.

With the terrain on their side, they wouldn’t lose too badly.

Over the next few days, zombies from the Eastern Region of the River began to gather in greater numbers. They even absorbed smaller factions from the surrounding areas, like the group led by ”Big Ears,” who were more like freelancers than a proper force.

As the Zombie Horde grew larger, their numbers soon swelled to over 40,000.

The sight was terrifying—an endless sea of grotesque faces, packed so tightly together it made Disneyland’s holiday lines look like a breeze.

Meanwhile, Ethan kept a close eye on the enemy’s movements. He frequently sent out Buddy Crow, his red-eyed raven, to scout the area from above.

When he noticed the Horde wasn’t dispersing but instead growing larger, he quickly pieced together their intentions.

”Time to gather our forces,” Ethan said decisively.

A red-eyed crow flew out from the windowsill, cawing loudly as it soared into the sky, its sharp cries echoing through the air.

Ethan’s commanders were immediately energized.

Especially the 500 elite warriors—since their evolution, they hadn’t had the chance to experience a real battle. Now, they were itching for bloodshed.

One by one, zombies began pouring out.

There was the towering Bulldozer, the ghostly Laura, the zombie tiger Snowy, and the elusive Little Shadow, each leading their own squads to assemble.

Among them was PhD, whose left eye was equipped with a cybernetic scanner.

Bulldozer glanced at him and said, ”I’ve been itching to crush those guys on the other side. Can you scan their ranks later? See if they’ve got any SB-class zombies?”

”No need,” PhD replied confidently, shaking his head. ”They definitely don’t.”

…

Ethan’s zombie army quickly grew to nearly 30,000, with 5,000 elite troops, including the 500 elite warriors.

”We’re going to need reinforcements,” Ethan muttered as he lounged on the sofa. Picking up his phone, he sent a message to Mia, as well as a few ice-element Awakeners he’d recruited recently to act as ”builders.”

Now, with two massive zombie factions gathering, the entire apocalyptic city was on edge, teetering on the brink of war.

Even Genesis Biotech had taken notice.

The sheer size of the Zombie Horde in the city forced them to act. Countless drones zipped through the skies, observing the chaos below.

Nathan sat in his office, staring at the massive screen in front of him. The live feed displayed a scene that made his jaw drop.

”Holy crap! That’s a lot of zombies!”

This was, without a doubt, the largest gathering of zombies Los Angeles had seen since the apocalypse began.

Before the outbreak, Los Angeles County had a population of around ten million. But on the day the world fell apart, 70% of the population perished almost instantly.

The survivors either fled, hid in shelters, or—unfortunately—became zombies. Among the undead, many were mindless and posed little threat, but the massive Zombie Horde now gathering was a terrifying exception.

”Boss, what are they planning to do? They’re not coming for us, are they?” asked his newly hired assistant, her voice trembling slightly with fear.

She was stunning—dressed in a pencil skirt and black stockings, her curvaceous figure exuded elegance and charm. Her beauty was undeniable, and if Justin were still alive to see her, he’d probably accuse Nathan of orchestrating his death just to hire her.

”They shouldn’t be coming for us,” Nathan replied, narrowing his eyes at the screen. ”Those two zombie nests are about to go to war.”

The battle would determine who the true overlord of Los Angeles was. It was an inevitable development in the post-apocalyptic world.

Nathan couldn’t help but start calculating. Which Zombie King winning would be more beneficial to him?

But no matter how he looked at it, the answer was the same: neither outcome was good. Whoever emerged victorious would pose a massive threat to Genesis Biotech.

The company had over a thousand Awakeners and access to advanced tech weaponry, but even that wouldn’t be enough to fend off a massive Zombie Horde. Especially not one with nearly ten thousand elite zombies and multiple Zombie Kings with bizarre and deadly abilities.

”What the hell am I supposed to do?” Nathan muttered to himself. He couldn’t afford to let either side grow too powerful. Ideally, the two factions would destroy each other, leaving him to swoop in and eliminate the remaining Zombie Kings.

But the odds of that happening were slim.

”Looks like I’ll need to call for reinforcements…” Nathan sighed. Now wasn’t the time to let pride get in the way. Reluctantly, he picked up his phone and dialed the number of his long-time rival, Sophia.

Clearing his throat, he said, ”Sophia, remember how Richard mentioned… you’d be available to back me up?”

”Oh? Mr. Nathan?” Sophia’s voice dripped with sarcasm. ”I never thought I’d see the day you’d come crawling to me for help.”

Nathan grimaced but kept his tone neutral. He quickly explained the situation—the two massive zombie nests on the brink of war.

Sophia, however, didn’t seem particularly concerned. To her, battles between zombie factions were nothing new.

”This kind of thing happens all the time,” she said dismissively. ”The solution is simple: find an opportunity to assassinate the Zombie Kings. Then replace them with one of our own engineered Zombie Kings. Once that’s done, we can take control of the situation.”

”But… these Zombie Kings aren’t ordinary. You can’t underestimate them,” Nathan warned.

”Ha! Maybe you think every Zombie King is extraordinary,” Sophia shot back, taking the opportunity to mock him. ”Don’t worry. I’ll send someone over soon.”

With that, the call ended...