Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”She’s here to save me!” Chris thought, relief washing over him as Mia burst into the tent. Behind her, Brandon and the others followed closely, weapons at the ready.

”Uncle Chris, are you okay???” Mia’s voice was urgent, her eyes scanning him for injuries.

”I… I’m fine. I was just fighting a monster,” Chris said, trying to sound tough, though his shaky voice betrayed him.

Brandon raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical. Fighting? Was that what Chris called flailing around like that?

Meanwhile, Daisy stood frozen, her face dark and her eyes locked on Mia. Her mind raced. She had planned everything so perfectly—how had they figured it out? How had her cover been blown?

”Die!” Daisy suddenly screamed, her voice sharp and venomous. Several tentacles shot out from her body, whipping through the air like steel cables, aiming straight for Mia.

Mia’s tachi flashed, her movements swift and precise. Each strike severed a tentacle cleanly, sending them crashing to the ground with a wet thud.

”Go help her!” Brandon barked, his tone commanding.

The others didn’t hesitate. They drew their weapons and charged forward to assist.

Daisy’s expression twisted as she realized she was outmatched. Without wasting another second, she turned to flee. Her back split open grotesquely, and from the gaping wound, a monstrous creature with writhing tentacles burst forth. It smashed through the tent wall and bolted into the open.

”A decoy?” Brandon muttered, his gaze dropping to the ground where Daisy’s lifeless, shriveled skin lay crumpled like an empty husk.

”After it,” Mia said coldly, already moving to follow the creature outside.

The scene outside was chaos. Human survivors—men, women, and children—were everywhere, their faces pale with terror as they caught sight of the parasitic monster.

”Ahhh! A monster!”

”Run!”

”What… what is that thing?!”

The crowd erupted into panic. Most of them were ordinary survivors, completely defenseless. They could do nothing but scream and scatter in every direction.

A few Awakeners nearby noticed the commotion. One of them, a young man, shouted, ”Another monster’s infiltrated! Let’s go help!”

But before he could act, the companion standing next to him didn’t move. Instead, the man’s expression darkened ominously.

”Shhhk—”

A tentacle shot out from the companion’s body, piercing the young man’s chest in one brutal motion.

”You… you…” The young man’s eyes widened in shock as blood poured from his mouth. He couldn’t even finish his sentence before collapsing. He had never imagined that his own teammate was a monster in disguise.

The monsters stopped hiding. One after another, they revealed their true forms, their grotesque bodies twisting and shifting. This time, they weren’t planning to run. They were here to attack head-on. Their goal was clear: take over the human refuge and use it as a base to challenge the zombie king ruling the nearby city.

”Raaaghhh!” A monstrous roar echoed through the air, signaling the start of the assault. All around the refuge, hidden monsters emerged, attacking survivors. Some began devouring humans outright, while others infected them, turning them into new hosts.

Even more monsters, which had been lying in wait outside the refuge, surged in through the gates and over the walls. The scene descended into utter chaos.

Screams of terror, cries of pain, and the clash of weapons filled the air. Blood splattered everywhere as humans and monsters clashed in a desperate fight for survival.

”There are so many of them,” Mia muttered, her sharp eyes scanning the battlefield. Her face remained calm, though her mind raced. Why were the monsters launching such a large-scale attack on the refuge? If she knew the reason, she’d probably mutter something like, ”This is all Ethan’s fault.”

The refuge was built against a mountain, with high walls surrounding the other three sides. But the defenses were quickly being overwhelmed. Monsters climbed over the walls in droves, leaping into the refuge one after another. Some were parasitic mutant animals—rats, wild boars, deer—and even birds, which dove from the sky in relentless attacks. There was no way to stop them all.

The survivors were in complete disarray, running for their lives.

”Run! Get to the mountain!”

”The caves inside the mountain are safer!”

”Waaaahhh! Monsters! They’re everywhere!”

Families clung to each other, dragging children and the elderly as they fled toward the mountain. The mountain’s interior had been hollowed out to serve as a shelter, and it was the safest place they could think of.

The refuge’s leadership wasn’t idle, either. While directing the defense, they urgently contacted Awakeners who were outside the refuge, calling them back for reinforcements. They also issued an emergency announcement on the official network.

The message was written in bold red letters, marked with urgent symbols:

”Emergency Announcement: The refuge is under large-scale monster attack. Our home is being destroyed, and our people are dying. Awakeners, return immediately to defend your families!”

The same announcement was sent out three times in a row.

This crisis was clearly no small matter.

...

City Center.

Ethan lounged on a sofa, his posture relaxed, exuding a lazy, almost indifferent vibe. Life had been unusually calm for him lately—nothing noteworthy had happened in a while.

After all, his territory was crawling with powerful zombies, and no creature dared to disturb him.

Since the last time he wiped out that human squad and foiled Griff’s plans, even Azure Scaled and their crew had been keeping their heads down. Not a peep from them since.

As for Genesis Biotech? They were a non-factor now. Completely deflated. Even when Ethan had generously tried to encourage them to make a move, they just couldn’t muster the strength to rise again.

At the moment, Ethan was scrolling through his phone, idly passing the time. It didn’t take long for him to stumble upon the emergency announcement from the human refuge.

”Well, well… looks like things are getting lively,” he muttered to himself, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. He glanced out the window, his sharp eyes catching sight of a dense flock of birds in the distance, all heading toward the refuge.

He didn’t need to think too hard about it—those were definitely parasitic monsters, joining the assault on the humans.

It was clear now: the parasitic monsters in Santa Clarita had declared all-out war on humanity.

”They’re coming for me,” Ethan murmured under his breath. His mind wandered back to the forest, to the time he’d snatched that Radiant Crystal. That parasitic creature had warned him back then—it wouldn’t let him go.

And now, this relentless attack on the refuge? It was all about stockpiling ”supplies” for the final showdown with him.

Ethan rose from the sofa, his gaze shifting back to the window. From his vantage point, he could see half the city sprawling below him. The human refuge was technically within the greater Los Angeles area, part of his domain.

This whole situation… it felt like someone was trashing the food on his dinner table.

”That’s not gonna fly.”

Meanwhile, back at the refuge…

The battle raged on. The parasitic monsters continued their slaughter, cutting through the humans like a scythe through wheat. The ordinary survivors were utterly helpless, little more than lambs to the slaughter.

Even the Awakeners—those who had managed to condense Neurocores—were struggling. They weren’t a match for the monsters either.

What made things even worse was the monsters’ horrifying ability to multiply. Every time they devoured a human, they spawned a new creature.

One moment, the person fighting beside you was your ally. The next? They were your enemy, trying to tear you apart.

”This method of spreading… it’s no less terrifying than the zombies,” Mia thought grimly, her mind racing as she analyzed the situation.

Her gaze lifted to the horizon, and her heart sank. A massive flock of birds was approaching, darkening the sky. There were all kinds—blackbirds, red-tailed hawks, pigeons, sparrows, egrets.

But now, they were all flying together in a grotesque, unnatural swarm. It was a chilling sight, surreal and deeply unsettling. There was no doubt about it—they were all parasitic monsters.

”Oh my god… there are so many!” Brandon’s voice trembled as he supported the injured Chris, his face pale with fear. A wave of despair washed over him, threatening to crush his spirit.

Mia turned her head, glancing toward the mountain behind them. A stream of survivors was still fleeing toward the hollowed-out mountain caves, desperately trying to escape the monsters chasing them.

But Mia knew the truth. If the refuge fell, those people would be trapped. Cornered. They’d have nowhere left to run.

”We need to break through and lead some of the survivors out,”

...