Apocalypse: King of Zombies

After dropping off the weapons at the shelter, Mia and the others didn’t stick around. Without missing a beat, they turned and headed straight back toward the aircraft.

”Where are you guys off to now?” Robert called out.

”Delivering weapons to a certain Zombie King,” Mia replied casually.

Robert immediately got the hint. Honestly, it was kind of impressive—this was top-tier service. And with something as valuable as a Katana, yeah, it made sense they’d want to hand-deliver it.

Mia tossed a quick warning over her shoulder. ”Hold down the fort, alright? Keep an eye out for the Black Hand Legion.”

With that, the group boarded the aircraft once again.

Chris let out a long, dramatic sigh.

”Man… why does this feel like I’m doing apocalypse-era Amazon Prime?”

…

Meanwhile, Ethan’s zombie underlings had already set out. They were trudging across the vast, frozen borderlands, splitting up to search for a very specific Zombie King.

Naturally, the ”Overlord Squad”—Big Ears and his crew—stuck together.

The four zombies moved steadily across the endless snowfield. Big Ears, as always, dragged his massive ears behind him, carving a deep trench through the pristine white snow.

Shrimpy and the others scanned the area, muttering to themselves.

”Big Chompers… Long Beard… where the hell are you guys? Come on out already…”

But the snowfield was just too damn big. Trying to find one zombie out here was like hunting for treasure in the middle of the ocean.

Locomotive broke the silence. ”Big Ears, you hear anything?”

Big Ears straightened up, brushing snow off his oversized ears. ”Nothing. Just us. Not a peep from anything else.” His eyes swept the landscape, alert and focused.

The terrain around them was uneven, dotted with snow-covered hills and jagged ridges. From time to time, low zombie growls echoed from the mountaintops.

Those were Logan’s guys—Redgaze Zombie King’s minions. They were stationed up high, keeping watch for any foreign undead trying to sneak in. The defense was tight.

”No good here,” Big Ears said. ”We’ll have to push further ahead.”

”Got it, let’s go!” Shrimpy and the others responded in unison.

The further they went, the closer they got to the border. That meant a higher chance of running into foreign zombies—but also a hell of a lot more danger.

Soon, the snow was no longer pristine. Corpses littered the ground—some foreign zombies, some of Logan’s men. Signs of past battles were everywhere.

Brownish-black blood had soaked into the snow, now frozen into jagged crystals. The sight was chilling.

”This place feels dangerous,” Shrimpy muttered. ”We’re probably gonna run into some foreign undead.”

”No shit,” Mist snapped. ”That’s the whole point. We’re looking for foreign zombies. How are we supposed to find them if we don’t run into any?”

”…Oh. Yeah. That actually makes sense,” Shrimpy said, blinking like he’d just had a revelation.

They kept trudging through the snow, each step sinking deep. The wind howled around them, whipping up flurries that stung like needles.

Up ahead, the border was just within reach.

Suddenly, Big Ears froze. His massive ears twitched, tuning in to the faintest sounds.

”Guys… I think I hear something.”

”For real? Is it the Zombie King we’re looking for?” Shrimpy’s eyes lit up with a feral gleam.

”Hard to say. Let’s check it out.” Big Ears started wading through the snow, his body swaying with each step.

The others followed close behind.

Not far off, a large group of zombies had gathered—easily over a thousand of them. They were clearly preparing to cross into U.S. territory and stir up some chaos.

Leading them was a hulking Zombie King—bald, jacked, and radiating menace. Thick black veins bulged across his scalp like twisted tree roots.

His fangs jutted out from his mouth, sharp and gleaming. The guy looked like pure aggression.

”I heard there’s a bunch of humans in Redgaze’s territory,” he growled. ”Let’s hit their heartland and tear it apart!”

”Humans… I freaking love humans!” one of his underlings howled, practically drooling with excitement.

Among them were also some high-functioning zombies—clearly the elite.

”Boss, Redgaze’s guys are all over the snowfield,” one of them warned. ”They’re posted on every hilltop, watching everything. It’s locked down tight. We can’t get in from the outside.”

”Hmph! Who said anything about going through the snowfield?” the bald Zombie King—Chrome Dome—snorted. ”If we wanna find humans, we gotta take the road less traveled.”

”Oh?” The underlings exchanged confused glances. That sounded cool and all, but… what the hell did he mean by that?

Chrome Dome Zombie King raised a hand and gave a sharp wave.

”Follow me!”

The horde of zombies surged forward behind him, a grim procession of rotting bodies cutting a stark contrast against the pristine white snow. Their filthy, decaying forms stood out like ink stains on a blank page.

Meanwhile, on a nearby slope, four heads slowly poked up from beneath the snow.

”Look! Over there! Those are all foreign zombies!” Big Ears whispered, eyes wide with awe.

”No kidding! Quick, see if you can spot Big Chompers!” Shrimpy said, squinting hard.

They all focused in, watching the zombie horde trudge forward. The group was still a ways off, so it was hard to make out any details—especially their teeth, which was kind of important when you were looking for someone named Big Chompers.

But according to Buddy Crow’s intel, the Zombie King they were after was on the shorter side. Even in a crowd of undead, he should’ve stood out.

Big Ears scanned the group carefully, but after a full sweep, he shook his head.

”Doesn’t look like he’s here,” he muttered.

”Damn,” Shrimpy scratched his head. ”I thought we had something.”

”Hey, it was a long shot,” Big Ears said, not sounding too disappointed. Then his tone shifted. ”But one thing’s for sure—those foreign zombies aren’t here for a snowball fight.”

”Judging by the direction they’re headed, I’d bet they’re planning to cross into U.S. territory and stir up some trouble,” Mist added, eyes narrowing.

The four of them exchanged a look—and without a word, they started tailing the horde.

They moved like pros, ducking behind rocks, belly-crawling through the snow, staying low and silent. Their tracking skills were top-notch, and none of the foreign zombies noticed a thing.

Up ahead, Chrome Dome Zombie King led his crew to the base of a snow-covered mountain. The path forward ended in a sheer wall of rock and ice.

The underlings looked around, confused.

”Boss? I thought we were invading U.S. territory. What are we doing here?”

”Patience,” Chrome Dome said coolly. ”Start digging. Clear the snow from this wall.”

”Uh… okay…”

The zombies didn’t get it, but they weren’t about to question him. They rushed to the base of the mountain and started shoveling snow with their bare, rotting hands.

The wind had piled snow high against the cliffside, and it was thick—packed tight from years of storms. But the zombies worked fast, driven by instinct and the promise of blood.

Big Ears and his crew finally caught up and crouched behind a nearby boulder, watching the scene unfold.

”What is this, zombie-style road work?” Mist muttered. ”Do all snowfield zombies do weird crap like this?”

”Maybe they’re trying to dig through the mountain. Make a new route into the U.S.,” Shrimpy guessed.

”That’s gotta be the dumbest plan I’ve ever heard,” Locomotive grunted.

”...Still, kinda curious to see where this goes,” Big Ears added.

They kept watching.

The foreign zombies were relentless, digging like maniacs. Snow flew everywhere, and the white ground was quickly stained with dirt and grime.

Finally, after what felt like forever, they hit something solid.

The last of the snow was cleared away, revealing a dark, gaping hole in the icy rock face. It was about five feet wide, and cold air poured out of it in steady gusts. The tunnel beyond was pitch black—no telling where it led.

”Boss… there’s a hole here?” one of the underlings asked, clearly baffled.

”Damn right there is,” Chrome Dome said with a grin. ”Had Dirtferret dig it out special. It’s a shortcut into the U.S.—and best part? We won’t trip any of Redgaze’s patrols.”

”Whoa… that’s genius.”

The underlings’ eyes lit up, glowing faintly with excitement. The thought of reaching the other side—of finding humans—had them practically vibrating with anticipation.

”Let’s go! Time to attack!”

With a roar, the horde surged forward, pouring into the tunnel like a flood of death.

…