Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Shit! It’s Genesis Biotech!” Nora’s eyes widened the moment she realized who they were dealing with. Her instincts screamed danger—these people weren’t just passing through. They were here for them.

Genesis Biotech had a reputation, and it was nothing short of monstrous. They hunted down human survivors to use as lab rats in twisted experiments. Anyone caught by them was as good as dead—if not worse. Falling into their hands was no better than getting captured by the Black Hand Legion.

”Run!”

The four of them turned on their heels, bolting without hesitation.

But behind them, a Crystal Core Firearm flared to life. Two glowing energy spheres shot forward, exploding in front of them with twin thunderous blasts. The shockwaves rippled outward, slamming into the ground and cutting off their escape route.

A squad of Genesis Biotech Awakeners charged in right after, clearly aiming to take them alive.

”Then we fight!” Nora barked, her voice sharp and fierce. She’d rather die on her feet than be dragged off in chains.

The four of them drew their weapons, eyes hard with resolve, and clashed with the incoming Awakeners.

But it was no contest. It was like watching cats toy with mice.

Genesis Biotech didn’t want them dead, so they held back just enough to avoid killing blows—but that didn’t make it any less brutal.

”These survivors just don’t know when to quit,” Frank muttered from inside the armored vehicle, watching the scene unfold on a monitor. ”They’re all gonna end up in the same place anyway. Why bother struggling?”

On the screen, Nora and her team were completely surrounded—more than ten Awakeners closing in, hemming them in like predators circling prey. The four of them fought back desperately, blades flashing, trying to keep the enemy at bay.

Then one of the enemy—a brute of a man with strength-based powers—swung a heavy kukri with bone-crushing force. It smashed into Nora’s short blade with a metallic screech that rang through the air. The impact split the skin between her thumb and forefinger, blood spurting out as her weapon flew from her grasp.

The strength-type Awakener reached out with a massive hand, aiming straight for her slender neck.

”Shit!”

Nora clenched her jaw, knowing she couldn’t dodge in time.

But just then—everything changed.

A blur shot in from the distance, fast as lightning. A woman’s silhouette, moving so quickly she left afterimages in her wake. Her Tactical Rapier flashed as she closed the distance, striking with a flurry of metallic clangs that forced several Genesis Biotech Awakeners to fall back.

She landed in front of Nora, blade angled upward, and slashed across the brute’s arm.

Shhhk—

Steel met flesh. Blood sprayed. The man’s forearm was severed cleanly, the limb spinning through the air before hitting the ground with a wet thud.

The woman steadied herself, revealing a fierce, determined face—it was Leah, Nora’s teammate.

Leah had always been gifted, and now she’d grown into a full-fledged A-rank speed-type Awakener—the strongest among them.

”Go! I’ll hold them off!”

”Leah!” the others called out, worry etched across their faces.

But Leah didn’t hesitate. Her Tactical Rapier danced through the air, intercepting every strike that came her way. Even among Genesis Biotech’s elite, she was a force to be reckoned with.

For a moment, no one could get close to her.

Nora and the others seized the opportunity and took off running.

”Holy crap!”

Inside the armored vehicle, Frank slammed his fist against the console. He hadn’t expected a wild card like this to show up—let alone one that could injure his people.

”You just signed your own death warrant, sweetheart,” he growled.

Out in the field, Nora and her team were sprinting for their lives, but they could feel it—something powerful was coming up fast behind them.

In the blink of an eye, a tall, bald man with sharp features appeared in their path, cutting them off.

Frank wasn’t wasting any more time. He deployed the big gun—T-08.

”What the hell is that…” Nora muttered, her gut twisting with dread.

T-08’s body crackled with electricity, arcs of lightning dancing across his armor. Elemental energy surged around him—he was a dual-type Awakener, wielding both lightning and fire.

A searing ball of lightning formed in his palm, then launched toward them like a bolt from the gods.

BOOM!

They didn’t even have time to react.

The blast hit them dead-on. Lightning energy surged through their bodies, wrapping around them like a net of pure voltage. The shock was overwhelming—paralyzing. Their muscles seized, nerves fried, and they collapsed to the ground, twitching uncontrollably.

It was like being hit with a full-body anesthetic. They couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak. Couldn’t even control their bladders.

”Huh? What the—”

Leah’s eyes went wide in horror as she watched her teammates get taken down in an instant. Without thinking, she launched herself at T-08, Tactical Rapier slicing through the air like a silver flash, desperate to help.

She was fast—blisteringly fast—but to T-08, her movements were already calculated the moment she twitched. He casually raised one hand and caught her blade mid-swing with mechanical precision.

With his other hand, he reached out and clamped it around her throat.

Leah’s breath caught. Her lungs seized. She couldn’t breathe.

Then came the surge—lightning energy exploded from T-08’s palm, coursing through her body like a live wire.

”AAAHHH—!”

Her scream tore through the air as her body convulsed. In seconds, she was down, completely subdued.

T-08 handled them like they were nothing—like scooping up baby chicks. No effort, no resistance.

”Yes! Eight-ball, that’s what I’m talkin’ about!” Frank whooped from the armored vehicle, practically bouncing with excitement. He jumped out with his second-in-command and jogged over to the scene.

Leah, Nora, and the others were now restrained by Genesis Biotech Awakeners, limp and helpless, unable to move a muscle.

”You really thought you could fight me?” Frank sneered, walking up to Leah. He reached out and gave her cheek a few condescending pats.

Then he turned to Nora, his hand sliding down to grope her chest with a disgusting smirk.

”What’s the matter? Weren’t you just running your little heart out?”

”Fuck you!” Nora spat right in his face.

”Oh?” Frank’s expression darkened. He wiped the spit off slowly, then swung his arm back and slapped her hard across the face.

SMACK!

But that wasn’t enough for him. He slapped her again. And again. The sound of flesh meeting flesh echoed through the air as blood trickled from Nora’s nose and mouth. Her face was swelling, her eyes dazed from the pain.

”Nora!” a young man nearby shouted, his eyes blazing with fury. He looked like a bull about to charge, his whole body trembling with rage. Somehow, fueled by sheer adrenaline, he broke free from the two Awakeners holding him and lunged straight at Frank.

This was Nora’s new boyfriend—after Griffin. Strong, solid, and, from the way she smiled around him, clearly good in bed.

But before he could get close, T-08 stepped in. One hand shot out and clamped around the guy’s throat like a vice.

”Let me go!” the young man choked, thrashing wildly, fists pounding uselessly against T-08’s armored chest.

It was like trying to punch a wall. T-08 didn’t even flinch.

Then, without warning, T-08 lifted his knee and drove it straight into the guy’s groin.

CRACK!

The sound was sickening—like two eggs being smashed against a steel anvil.

”AAARRRGHHH!”

The guy’s scream was blood-curdling. He collapsed instantly, curling into a fetal position, writhing on the ground in agony, his face twisted in a grotesque mask of pain.

Nora and Leah both flinched, their eyes wide with shock.

”Balls... gone,” Frank chuckled, lips curling into a cruel grin.

”Now, if you wanna stay alive, you better start playing nice.”

”Save your breath,” Nora growled, blood dripping from her mouth. ”I’m not doing shit for you. Kill me, torture me, I don’t care.”

Frank just smirked. ”Relax. I’m not here to kill you. I didn’t go through all this trouble just to waste you.”

He leaned in, voice low and deliberate. ”I need you to scout something for me.”

That caught their attention.

Nora and the others exchanged confused glances. This wasn’t what they expected. If they were just going to be used as lab rats, why bother talking?

If he needed them for something else… maybe there was still a chance to survive.

”Where do you want us to go?” Leah asked, her voice steady but wary.

Wherever it was, it had to be bad. If even Genesis Biotech didn’t want to go themselves, it had to be a death trap.

Frank paused, then said the name slowly, like it carried weight.

”San Antonio…”

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