Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Huh?”

The Black Hand Legion members stared in confusion. They’d called Big Hugo over for backup—so why the hell was he suddenly on his knees?

But Hugo was drenched in sweat, his whole body trembling like a leaf. He looked like he’d just seen death itself.

He could feel it—an overwhelming pressure, a suffocating sense of danger. It was the kind of aura only a Zombie King could give off.

The Black Hand Legion didn’t have much intel on Zombie Kings—their info was always a bit behind—but they’d all heard the rumors about the one from Los Angeles.

Word was, the LA Zombie King was freakishly handsome, always wore a spotless white dress shirt, and carried himself like he owned the world.

Now, staring at Ethan, Hugo’s eyes widened in horror as the pieces clicked into place.

”H-He’s the Zombie King from Los Angeles!”

”What?!”

The rest of the Black Hand Legion froze, their faces twisting in disbelief.

They’d heard whispers that the LA Zombie King had come to Texas—but they never expected to run into him here. And with humans from a shelter, no less?

”Wait a second… does that mean we just tried to rob the LA Zombie King?”

”They’re not lost little lambs… they’re wolves in sheep’s clothing!”

”They came here with a plan!”

”Shit…”

The realization hit them like a freight train. They’d been idiots—charging in blind, thinking they were the predators, when they were actually the prey.

And this Zombie King? He was terrifying. The kind of monster you ran from, not picked a fight with.

”Run! Get the hell out of here!”

Seeing their leader Hugo drop like a sack of bricks, the rest of the crew completely lost their nerve. They scattered in panic, dropping weapons, tripping over each other in their rush to escape.

The outpost wasn’t far from Blackhand City—they were hoping to make it back alive.

But Ethan crushed that hope in an instant.

The Domain of the Dead expanded, its oppressive force crashing down like a tidal wave. The air turned heavy, suffocating. Bones cracked and popped under the pressure, bodies twisted unnaturally, and one by one, they collapsed to the ground like broken dolls.

Screams filled the air—raw, human, agonizing. It was like hell had opened its gates.

Hugo, still on his knees, stared in shock. If he hadn’t messed with the LA Zombie King, maybe his men would’ve lived a little longer. But he’d pushed the wrong button—and now they were all dead.

Every last one of them. Over a hundred Black Hand Legion members, wiped out in seconds.

Mia and the others didn’t even have to lift a finger. They looked pretty pleased with how things turned out. Mia walked right up to Hugo and said casually:

”Not bad. You did great.”

”...” Hugo was speechless.

But the fear in his heart was real. He started begging, voice shaking. ”Please… don’t kill me. I’m begging you. Just give me one more chance…”

”Mm, we won’t kill you,” Mia said with a nod.

”Really?”

Hugo looked stunned. After watching all his men get slaughtered, he couldn’t believe they were sparing him.

Mia continued, ”All you have to do is get Slade to come out.”

”Uh…”

Hugo’s face turned the color of an overripe eggplant. He finally understood what they were after.

”But… Slade’s our boss. I’m just a lieutenant. I can’t just summon him like that.”

”That’s easy,” Leah chimed in. ”We’ll record a video of you and send it to the Black Hand Legion. Tell him to come save you. He’ll show up.”

She was getting a little too into this whole kidnapping thing—clearly still riding the high from how they’d handled Frank.

But Hugo looked like he’d just swallowed a cactus. ”This is the Black Hand Legion we’re talking about. You think they care about loyalty or morals? You could kill a hundred of me and Slade still wouldn’t show. Hell, he might even ask for more videos—say he’s enjoying the show.”

”What? Then what do we do?” Leah blinked, realizing that yeah, these guys didn’t exactly play by normal rules.

”So you’re saying keeping him alive is pointless?” Mia raised her Tachi, ready to finish the job. ”Might as well kill him, then.”

”No, no, no—don’t kill me!” Hugo begged, practically groveling now.

Ethan spoke up calmly from the side, ”If you try to threaten Slade, he won’t show. But if you tell him you scored a huge haul—tons of supplies, high-grade crystal cores, and some other valuable stuff—then yeah, he’ll come running.”

”Huh?”

Everyone paused, caught off guard.

But the more they thought about it, the more it made sense.

Everyone’s got a price. If you want to lure someone like Slade out, you don’t use fear—you dangle a fat reward in front of him.

Genius.

Mia and the others couldn’t help but admire Ethan’s cunning. The guy was a master manipulator—he understood human nature like it was second nature.

They quickly decided to go with his plan.

Lieutenant Hugo had no choice but to play along. Loyalty wasn’t exactly a thing in the Black Hand Legion. If he could throw someone under the bus to buy himself a little more time, he’d do it in a heartbeat.

Together, they headed deeper into the mountain hideout.

As they moved, Ethan casually absorbed the corpses and even the bloodstains into his Domain, erasing every trace of the massacre like it never happened.

Inside the mountain, the lighting was dim, but the air was thick with the smell of roasted meat and alcohol.

Hugo had clearly been partying before they showed up—there were tables piled high with food and drink.

”Hehehe, now we’re talkin’!” Sean’s eyes lit up as he rushed forward and started stuffing his face.

Brandon and Chris grabbed a few chunks of roasted beast meat and took big bites.

”Damn, looks like the Black Hand Legion’s been living pretty damn well,” Brandon said, chewing.

”No kidding,” Chris nodded, mouth full.

But then, out of the corner of his eye, Chris spotted something in the shadows.

A few young women were huddled in the corner—slim figures, beautiful faces. Clearly the girls Hugo had kidnapped earlier for his little ”Sexy Dance” show.

”Ladies, don’t be scared! Your hero’s here!” Chris called out dramatically, puffing out his chest.

…

Meanwhile, in another chamber—

Mia and the others had brought Hugo into a stone room equipped with a comms terminal that could connect directly to Blackhand City.

”Go on,” Mia said coldly. ”Tell him you found a huge stash of supplies. Lure him out. If you can’t… well, then you’re dead.”

”O-Okay, okay!” Hugo nodded like a bobblehead, sweat pouring down his face as he stepped up to the console.

As a lieutenant, he had direct access to Slade’s private line.

A few seconds later—

The comms crackled to life. In the background, there were faint moans and the rhythmic creaking of a bedframe.

Then came Slade’s irritated voice, laced with annoyance.

”What? What the hell do you want? I’m busy… real busy!”

”Uh…” Hugo hesitated, then forced a smile. ”Boss Slade, I, uh, just hit a big score. Got way more loot than I can use. Thought I’d share the love, y’know?”

”Oh?” Slade’s tone immediately softened. He’d been in a foul mood lately—thanks to Sophia.

He’d dragged her back to Blackhand City, had everything set up for a long, screaming night—only for that bitch Vanessa to snatch her away at the last second. No wonder he was pissed.

”Where’d you get the loot?”

”From a migrating shelter convoy,” Hugo said quickly. ”Tons of food, weapons, high-grade crystal cores… and some top-tier babes too!”

Slade perked up instantly. He knew Hugo had a sharp eye for women—if Hugo called them top-tier, they had to be something special.

”Alright, sit tight. I’m on my way.”

”Y-Yes, sir!” Hugo replied, then ended the call.

The stone chamber fell silent again.

Hugo wiped the sweat from his brow and looked nervously at Mia and the others.

”He’s… coming.”

...