Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”When were they supposed to get here?” Richard asked, his tone sharp with concern.

”They left yesterday. By all accounts, they should’ve arrived already,” replied the head of Genesis Biotech’s Corpus Christi branch.

Richard’s brow furrowed deeply. A bad feeling was creeping in, cold and unwelcome.

”But I haven’t seen a single one of them.”

”What?” The branch head on the video call looked stunned.

”I specifically had Wade lead the team. Where the hell are they? Don’t tell me they got lost.”

”That doesn’t make sense. Hold on, let me check with someone.” Richard paused, thinking quickly.

He had sent someone to meet the team precisely to avoid this kind of screw-up.

A moment later, he called in the staff member responsible for the pickup—the same guy who’d messaged Clint. His name was Frank Mitchell.

”You needed me, Richard?” A lean, middle-aged man stepped into the room.

Richard nodded, eyes locking onto him. ”Frank, the Awakeners from Corpus Christi—did your team meet them?”

”I had Clint go pick them up. He should’ve gotten them,” Frank replied, hesitating. He didn’t sound too sure.

”Should’ve?” Richard’s voice rose slightly, his expression tightening. ”Where are they now?”

”I... I don’t know. I messaged Clint last night, but he never got back to me,” Frank admitted, his voice low.

Richard’s eyes narrowed. Something was definitely off.

Frank caught the shift in Richard’s expression and suddenly realized the gravity of the situation.

”Holy crap. You don’t think something happened to them, do you?”

The room fell dead silent.

After a few tense minutes of back-and-forth between the three parties, the truth started to sink in—an entire team had vanished without a trace.

The Corpus Christi branch head’s voice came through the screen again, more anxious now. ”Richard, what the hell is going on?”

”Could be an accident,” Richard said, thinking aloud. ”But don’t worry. I’m not about to let our people disappear without answers. I’ll get to the bottom of this.”

”Alright. I’m counting on you, Richard.” With that, the video call ended.

Now it was just Richard and Frank in the office. The silence that followed was thick with tension.

Frank sat stiffly, clearly on edge. His team had lost track of an entire group of Awakeners—he knew he wasn’t walking away from this clean.

Richard had a reputation for being strict, no-nonsense. He didn’t tolerate mistakes, and he sure as hell didn’t hand out second chances.

But Richard wasn’t yelling. He wasn’t even looking at Frank anymore. He was pacing, deep in thought, trying to piece together what could’ve gone so wrong.

Frank stayed quiet, but the silence was suffocating. It wrapped around him like a noose, tightening with every second.

Riiing! Riiing!

The sudden shrill of the desk phone shattered the silence.

Richard snapped out of his thoughts and turned toward the phone. When he saw the caller ID, his eyes widened in surprise.

This wasn’t just anyone.

It was someone from the other side—an enemy.

Vanessa. One of the top leaders of the Black Hand Legion.

”Hello? What do you want?” Richard snapped as he picked up the phone.

Vanessa, the infamous leader of the Black Hand Legion, didn’t waste time. Her voice came through sharp and pissed. ”Cut the crap, Richard. Your Genesis Biotech Awakeners just wiped out one of our outposts. What do you think I’m calling about?”

”Oh?” Richard raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised. Right now, he was neck-deep in mobilizing forces to build a defensive line against the zombie surge in L.A.—he didn’t have time to babysit a bunch of street thugs like the Black Hand Legion.

”I didn’t send anyone to hit your base. Don’t go throwing accusations around without proof.”

”Hah! You’re really gonna play dumb?” Vanessa scoffed. ”The damage was clearly caused by Crystal Core Firearms. Who else uses that tech besides your people?”

Richard’s expression darkened.

Crystal Core Firearms…

Could it have been the Awakeners from Corpus Christi?

”Vanessa, I don’t hide behind lies. If I’d ordered a hit on your outpost, I’d own it. You think I’m scared of you?”

”There’s gotta be some kind of misunderstanding here. I’ll get to the bottom of it, but you need to calm the hell down.”

Vanessa paused. Despite being on opposite sides, she knew Richard’s reputation—straight-laced, no bullshit, and not the type to play games. And with Genesis Biotech’s power, he didn’t need to lie to her.

”…Fine. But I expect answers,” she said, her tone still sharp.

Richard didn’t appreciate her attitude. He was the North American regional director of Genesis Biotech, not some street-level punk who owed the Black Hand Legion explanations. If anything, they had a few debts to settle with him.

”You want answers? Then tell me this—where the hell is Sophia?”

”Sophia?” Vanessa replied with a smirk in her voice. ”She’s in my arms.”

”…” Richard fell silent.

What the hell is wrong with these people? he thought. The Black Hand Legion was full of degenerates and psychos. Just picturing Sophia—beautiful, proud Sophia—curled up in Vanessa’s arms was… disturbing, to say the least.

Vanessa kept going. ”Sophia’s mine now. I hope you’ll be reasonable and stop giving her a hard time.”

”Fine,” Richard said with a nod. He didn’t really care that much about Sophia. She could wait.

”But what about our T-09?”

”T-09? What’s that? Sounds like a Powerball number. I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Vanessa replied, feigning ignorance.

Richard’s face darkened further.

According to Nathan’s report, the fourth-generation Cyborg—T-09—had also been taken. That thing was a walking war machine. There was no way Vanessa didn’t know what it was.

Now it was clear—she was the one playing dumb.

And doing a damn good job of it.

”Sophia, I can let slide. But the T-09? You’re giving it back.”

”Huh? Sorry, bad signal—gotta go!” Vanessa said quickly.

Click.

Richard stared at the phone, now dead, the dial tone buzzing in his ear.

”…Unbelievable.”

The Black Hand Legion was nothing but a gang of thugs. No honor, no rules. If he wanted the T-09 back, he’d have to take it by force.

He turned toward Frank.

”Frank.”

”Y-Yes?” Frank jumped, stiffening like a soldier caught sleeping on duty.

”You lost the team that was supposed to reinforce us. That’s on you, right?”

”Uh… yes, sir.” Frank’s heart sank. He knew it—Richard wasn’t going to let this slide.

But then Richard’s tone shifted.

”That said… this situation’s not exactly normal. I can’t pin it all on you.”

”Exactly! That’s what I was thinking too!” Frank laughed nervously, nodding like a bobblehead. Maybe he’d get off with a warning.

Richard paused, then said slowly, ”So here’s what you’re gonna do—go find them.”

”…What?”

Frank froze, eyes wide.

The missing team from Corpus Christi wasn’t just a few rookies—they were over a hundred elite Awakeners, fully armed and trained. If they vanished, what chance did he have?

”You’ve gotta be kidding me…”

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