Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Found it!”

Ethan’s eyes lit up as he pocketed the sixth Radiant Crystal. According to what the alien creature had told him, there were seven in total—meaning only one remained.

If he could collect them all, maybe he’d finally unlock their true power.

Without wasting time, he stored the massive corpse of the octopus-like monster into his spatial storage ring. The thing had devoured way too many parasitic monsters, so its body was probably radioactive.

Still, his underlings could pick out the good meat to snack on. The rest? Trash it.

With a flicker, Ethan reappeared in front of Mia and the others. All around them, parasitic monsters still roamed, their snarls and screeches echoing through the air.

Though the black sludge spewed by the giant octopus had scattered them for now, they were regrouping fast. Their obsession with the Radiant Crystals made them relentless—they could attack again at any moment.

”Let’s move,” Ethan said, not even sparing the creatures a glance.

”Yeah, yeah,” Chris and the others nodded quickly, more than ready to get the hell out of this nightmare.

No one wanted to come back to this hellhole. The radiation zone was crawling with monsters—twisted, grotesque things straight out of a horror movie. Not a single living human in sight.

...

The trip back went surprisingly smooth. A few monsters tried to block their path, but Mia and the others made quick work of them.

Elara even picked up readings from several useful meteorites along the way—perfect for forging weapons. Ethan scooped them all up without hesitation.

All in all, the mission had been dangerous as hell, but the payoff was massive. Just the SS-grade crystal cores alone—they’d scored two of them.

Sure, they weren’t as pure as the energy from Nightbane, but they’d still give Ethan a serious power boost.

Back in Saint Gaia City, everything was running like clockwork.

While Ethan had been off in the radiation zone, Lil’ D had taken the opportunity to seize control of every nearby town.

He’d wiped out all the vampires in the area.

His Zombie Horde had grown from ten thousand to over thirty or forty thousand strong—no longer a force anyone could ignore.

And Lil’ D had even started copying the vampires’ methods—keeping humans alive in captivity to harvest a steady supply of fresh meat and crystal cores.

”Boss! You’re back!”

Lil’ D came running up, grinning from ear to ear, eager to report everything he’d accomplished.

Ethan gave him a nod of approval. ”Not bad. You’ve done well.”

”Hehehe…”

Lil’ D beamed, his dark face lighting up with pride. ”Boss, those humans are super cooperative. They’re handing over their blood and meat without even putting up a fight. I swear, give it a little more time and we’ll be unstoppable! Bigger, stronger—hell, we’ll be legendary!”

”I’m leaving the island,” Ethan said suddenly.

”What?”

Lil’ D’s grin froze, disbelief flashing across his face.

”Boss, where are you going?”

”Back to the States.”

Ethan couldn’t stay here. Bulldozer and the rest of his crew were deep into the ’Continental Sweep’ by now. It had been a while—by this point, they were probably nearing the northern territories. He had no idea what the situation was like over there.

Lil’ D looked genuinely bummed, but he understood. The foundation they’d built on the island was still fresh, and the surrounding forests were teeming with mutated beasts.

All that fresh meat—just waiting to be harvested.

”Boss, once I’ve fully developed this island, I’ll come find you in America!”

”Alright. Sounds good.” Ethan nodded.

The Monroe faction that once served under The Crimson Count had now been completely replaced by Lil’ D and his forces. This entire island? It was Ethan’s territory now.

The battle between Ethan and The Crimson Count… had officially begun.

Aside from the zombies, there was another faction on the island—The Ember Ring, made up of international students led by Aiden and Emily. The two of them could’ve left with Mia and the others, headed for the Los Angeles safe zone.

But after thinking it through, they decided to stay.

The aircraft didn’t have enough room for all the members of The Ember Ring, so... they chose to gather materials and build a large ship themselves, planning to sail back to the U.S. on their own terms.

”Well, I wish you guys the best of luck,” Mia said simply.

Chris was genuinely impressed. Aiden might come off as a bit of a goofball, but when it counted, the guy had guts. Choosing to stay behind and stick it out with his crew? That took loyalty. Not bad for a spoiled rich kid.

”Kid, I like your style!”

Aiden grinned. ”Once we make it back to the States, we’re throwing a show—something wild, like a Vegas revue. You’re totally invited.”

Chris chuckled, clapping him on the shoulder. ”Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about.”

After a quick rest and some final checks, Ethan and his team prepared to leave the island.

Aiden, Emily, and the rest of The Ember Ring came to see them off as they boarded the aircraft.

”Mia! Take care! We’ll make it back to the States, just you wait!”

”We’ll meet again!”

”Safe travels!”

”...”

As the goodbyes echoed behind them, the aircraft’s hatch sealed shut with a metallic clunk. The engines roared to life, blue flames bursting from the thrusters.

With a powerful surge, the aircraft lifted off the ground.

By some stroke of luck, the storm that had been swirling around the island had finally cleared. The thick clouds parted, and for the first time in days, golden sunlight broke through, casting a warm glow over the land.

The aircraft shot into the sky, a glowing dot racing toward the light...

...

Ethan’s trip to the island of Tasmania had been more than worth it. He’d secured another Radiant Crystal, hunted down a stash of high-grade crystal cores, and uncovered key intel about the vampires and the Black Hand Legion.

Now, the aircraft cruised smoothly through the sky, gliding like a ship across a sea of clouds.

Mia and the others were busy examining the meteorites they’d collected—over a hundred in total. Elara had already scanned them, confirming that many contained rare materials perfect for forging weapons.

”Rough estimate? We’ve got enough to make three superweapons,” Elara reported.

”Only three? That’s it?” Chris frowned, clearly disappointed.

Elara nodded. ”That’s actually pretty good. Superweapons aren’t exactly something you find lying around in a pawn shop.”

”Ugh, fine. Guess that means I’m outta luck.” Chris shrugged dramatically.

”Uncle Chris, you don’t even fight in S-class battles. Regular weapons are more than enough for you,” Brandon chimed in.

Chris shot him a glare. ”Zip it, kid! Nobody asked you.”

The group laughed and bantered as the journey continued, the mood light and full of energy.

About two hours later...

The aircraft crossed the ocean, and land finally came into view beneath them. They were back—home. The United States.

”We’re finally back,” Chris murmured, staring out the window, a mix of relief and nostalgia in his eyes. He couldn’t wait to get back to the safe zone. After everything they’d seen, he had a whole new batch of stories to tell his students—especially about the freakish monsters in the radiation zone.

Mia stayed quiet most of the way, her mind already racing with ideas for her new weapon. She’d even come up with a name for it during the flight.

She glanced over at Ethan, who looked deep in thought, eyes narrowed like he was already scheming something.

”Hey,” she nudged him, ”once your weapon’s done, what are you gonna name it?”

”Name it?” Ethan blinked, then smirked. ”Guess I’ll wait and see what the crystal core looks like—color, energy type, that kind of thing. I’m pretty good at naming stuff.”

”Alright, fair enough. Let’s head back first,” Mia said.

Now that they were back on U.S. soil, it was time to part ways.

Mia would head off to meet with the research team and start forging their new weapons.

Ethan, on the other hand, had a different path—he needed to head north.

His Zombie Horde was waiting.

...