Apocalypse: King of Zombies

On the road, a three-row SUV lay flipped on its side, wheels still spinning, engine hissing steam like a dying beast.

Moments later, six battered figures crawled out through the shattered windows, coughing and groaning.

”Cough, cough…”

”So, uh… if I said I just misjudged the gas pedal, would you believe me?” Ethan asked, sheepish.

”Absolutely!” everyone chorused—without hesitation.

”Cool. Then how about we find another car and I give it another shot? I swear I’ll get it right this time.”

Every head shook in unison like bobbleheads in an earthquake. Even Pumpkin, the orange cat perched on Chris’s shoulder, gave a dramatic shake of his furry head.

”Ethan, even if we’re Awakened, our bodies still have limits,” Chris said, face dark with frustration.

”Yeah, man,” Sean added quickly. ”Why don’t you just sit back and enjoy the ride? Let me handle the driving.”

Ethan sighed, still trying to salvage his pride. ”It’s not like I have to drive. I just figured I could spot zombies ahead and give early warnings.”

”Then ride shotgun and call them out. That’s all we need,” Sean said firmly.

”Fine,” Ethan muttered, clearly disappointed. He liked driving. But after that little stunt, they absolutely refused to let him near the wheel again.

They resumed their search for a new ride. Luckily, the road was littered with abandoned vehicles, and after a bit of poking around, they found a minivan in decent shape.

Sean didn’t wait—he jumped into the driver’s seat like it was a lifeboat and Ethan was the iceberg.

The engine turned over, and the van began to roll forward, slow and steady.

Sean wasn’t exactly a seasoned driver—he’d passed the test but never really driven on the road. Still, compared to Ethan, he was Mario Andretti. His driving was cautious, maybe a little too slow, but at least they weren’t airborne.

The road was a mess. Wrecked cars everywhere, scattered zombies wandering between them. Every few minutes, they had to stop—either to clear the path or to put down a stray undead.

Fortunately, they were strong. Two of them could lift a car out of the way without breaking a sweat.

”Man, at this rate, we’ll get there next week,” Chris grumbled.

”Not much we can do,” Skinny Pete said. ”City’s packed. Once we’re out of the metro area, it’ll clear up. Just think of it as zombie cleanup duty.”

”Actually,” Ethan said, ”let’s ditch the van for now. We’ll clear the road ahead on foot. Sean, you follow behind in the van. Once we’re out of the city, we’ll ride again.”

”Got it.”

They moved out, clearing the way as they went.

The houses along this stretch were spaced out, and the zombies were scattered—most of them probably people who’d turned in their cars. It wasn’t hard work, just steady.

What they didn’t know was that their noise had drawn attention.

In a house not far off the road, a zombie in black clothing stood at a window, watching them. But unlike the others, it didn’t charge. It turned silently and descended the stairs.

...

Back on the road, Chris swung his barbell bar through another zombie’s skull and grinned. ”You know, this isn’t so bad. No massive hordes, just a few here and there. Honestly, it’s way better than the school—remember that time we had, like, five hundred of them on us?”

”I was thinking the same thing,” Big Mike said. ”We could just clear our way to Lakeview. It’s only, what, ten miles?”

”Yeah, not a bad idea,” Ethan said, though his voice was distant. His eyes kept scanning the shadows between houses.

Something felt off.

He couldn’t explain it, but the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up.

They kept moving, clearing zombies as they went. Two miles down, they were nearly at the overpass. Once they got on it, they could merge onto the beltway—less traffic, fewer obstacles.

But then they stopped.

Because ahead of them, blocking the road completely, was a wall of zombies.

Hundreds of them.

At least eight hundred, packed shoulder to shoulder, standing still.

Waiting.

Ethan’s eyes narrowed. It wasn’t the number that bothered him—it was the way they stood. Like they were expecting them.

”Back. Now,” Ethan said, voice sharp.

The others blinked, startled. It was the first time they’d seen Ethan look like that—tense, serious, almost… afraid?

Eight hundred zombies was a lot, sure, but they’d fought worse. Why was he so rattled?

Still, no one questioned him. They turned and started back the way they came.

Only to stop again.

Behind them, more zombies had appeared—dozens, then hundreds, pouring in from the rear.

Then from the sides.

Both flanks.

They were surrounded.

”What the hell is this?!” Sean shouted. ”Where did they all come from?!”

”It’s obvious,” Ethan said grimly, eyes scanning the tightening circle of undead. ”There’s a high-tier zombie directing them.”

”Tier 4?” Chris asked, already gripping his weapon tighter.

”No,” Ethan said, his voice dropping. ”Tier 4s don’t have that kind of coordination. If I’m right… we’re looking at a Tier 5.”

”Tier five?!” Everyone’s eyes went wide.

They hadn’t even seen a second Tier 4 zombie yet—and now they were staring down something even worse?

”The apocalypse only started, what, ten days ago?” Sean said, swallowing hard. ”How the hell is there already a Tier 5?”

”Zombies don’t evolve like us,” Ethan said. ”We need crystal cores. They just absorb mysterious energy from the environment. Some of them are born lucky—freaks of nature. It’s rare, but not impossible.”

”So what do we do now?” Big Mike asked, his voice low.

No one had expected this. They’d barely made it out of the university, and now they were surrounded by a coordinated horde, possibly led by a Tier 5 monster.

”Move fast,” Ethan said. ”Drag some cars over—stack them up. We need elevation. It’ll cut down the impact when they rush us.”

The zombies weren’t charging yet. They were closing in slowly, like predators savoring the moment. That gave them time.

The group sprang into action, hauling nearby cars into position and forming a makeshift barricade. Then they climbed onto the roofs, weapons ready.

From up high, the view was clearer—and far more terrifying.

Ethan’s face darkened.

There were at least three thousand zombies closing in from all directions. Dozens of them were Tier 3. Two were unmistakably Tier 4.

And the Tier 5? Still nowhere in sight.

That was the part that worried Ethan most.

He wasn’t sure he could take on a Tier 5. He’d only just broken into Tier 4 himself. Back when he fought high-end Tier 1s, he’d already been at the peak of that tier, plus he’d been absorbing mysterious energy every night under the stars. That edge had made the difference.

But now? He was fresh into Tier 4. If a Tier 5 showed up, he had no illusions—he might not walk away.

The horde was closing in fast now.

And then they saw it—zombies carrying weapons.

”Holy shit,” Big Mike muttered, eyes wide. ”Why do the college zombies feel like innocent kids compared to these psychos?”

”Tier 5’s influence,” Ethan said, jaw tight. ”It’s organizing them. That makes this a hell of a lot worse.”

He turned to the others. ”Stay sharp. This fight’s gonna be brutal.”

As if on cue, the horde surged.

It was like someone had flipped a switch. The zombies let out a unified roar and charged from all sides.

The group stood back-to-back on the car roofs, weapons swinging in every direction. Steel clanged, bones cracked, blood sprayed.

The elevation helped. The zombies couldn’t hit them directly, but the cars beneath them were taking a beating—metal groaning, frames warping under the relentless assault.

They wouldn’t hold forever.

The first wave was mostly Tier 1s and 2s—manageable. The team had fought worse. But then the Tier 3s joined the fray, and everything changed.

They were faster, stronger, smarter. They leapt higher, hit harder, and didn’t go down easy.

The fight turned savage.

And none of them noticed the black-clad zombie slipping through the crowd, silent and deliberate, inching closer with every passing second.

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