Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Late at night, Garrick followed Ethan, Chris, Henry, Sean, Big Mike, and Skinny Pete up to the rooftop terrace.

When he realized that ”stargazing” literally meant just staring at stars, his face froze in awkward disbelief.

Thankfully, Ethan took a moment to explain—every night, they absorbed mysterious energy from the stars, and it actually boosted their powers.

After that, Garrick stared harder than anyone.

He’d spent over ten brutal days surviving the apocalypse, and if there was one thing he understood, it was the value of strength.

The fact that Ethan’s team had shared something this important with him—on his very first day—without holding anything back, hit him right in the chest. He’d made the right call joining them. No doubt about it.

Sure, the whole ”we’ll slice you open for science” line had rattled him at first, but he hadn’t made the decision lightly. He’d thought it through the entire way here.

In the past ten days, he’d clawed his way to Tier 4 by grinding through zombies with nothing but grit and his ability. He knew exactly how hard that climb was.

And Ethan’s crew? Just six people. In the same amount of time, they had one Tier 5 and five Tier 4s. That said everything.

This team had something the rest of the world didn’t. Something rare. Something powerful.

In the apocalypse, a group like this was the kind of dream people would kill to be part of. Garrick was no different.

He’d expected it would take weeks—maybe longer—before they’d fully accept him.

But here he was, day one, and they’d already handed him a secret that could change everything. No tests. No hoops. Just trust.

It warmed him more than he expected. He’d led teams before, and he knew damn well he wouldn’t have done the same. That alone told him Ethan was playing on a whole different level.

They spent the whole night under the stars, each of them soaking in what they could. Unsurprisingly, Ethan came out ahead—again. He gained sixty pounds of strength every night — a full forty more than anyone else, and even if this method went public, no one was catching up to him anytime soon.

When they finally wrapped up, Ethan’s eyes drifted toward the backyard of Ray’s luxury home, just a few rooftops away.

But whatever he saw there made his expression twist with reluctant frustration.

”What’s up, Ethan?” Chris asked. ”No crystal cores tonight?”

”Yeah,” Ethan sighed. ”Looks like they’ve wised up. They’re already checking the zombies for Tier upgrades.”

Chris snorted. ”So what? Screw stealing—let’s just take ’em.”

Ethan didn’t answer right away. The idea was tempting. They were still short on Tier 4 crystal cores, and those weren’t exactly growing on trees.

Yesterday, they’d slaughtered over two thousand zombies and only pulled seventeen Tier 4s out of the mess. Chris and Henry were already maxed out at Tier 4, but Sean, Big Mike, Skinny Pete—and now Garrick—still needed a good chunk more to catch up.

But going in guns blazing meant picking a fight with the Harlan family. Not that Ethan was scared of them—he just knew it wasn’t time yet. Not until they were strong enough to shrug off conventional firepower like it was nothing.

”Forget it,” Ethan said with a sigh. ”Tier 4 cores aren’t that hard for us anymore. We’ll wait until they get their hands on a cage strong enough to raise Tier 5 zombies. Then we’ll talk.”

”Fine,” Chris muttered. ”Let ’em have their little win.”

Garrick blinked. ”Wait—what are you guys talking about?”

”Nothing major,” Ethan said with a shrug. ”Some folks over there are raising zombies. We used to swing by at night and help ourselves to the crystal cores. Looks like that party’s over.”

”C’mon,” he added, stretching. ”Let’s get some sleep.”

”Yeah,” the others murmured, already heading for the stairs.

Over at Ray’s luxury home, his eyes lit up the moment he saw the Tier 4 crystal core brought up from below.

Just as he’d hoped—their method was working like a charm. At this rate, he’d hit Tier 4 peak in no time.

Once the special containment cage arrived, he could finally start cultivating a Tier 5 zombie.

And once he reached Tier 5 himself? No one out there would be able to touch him.

A slow smile curled across his lips. He was starting to think he actually liked the apocalypse.

...

Over the next few days, Ethan kept leading the team on zombie hunts across the city.

With Garrick now on board, their combat power had taken another solid leap forward.

Especially when they ran into large swarms—Garrick could raise walls on the spot, boxing them in and keeping the horde from surrounding them. The walls only held for a few minutes, but those minutes made all the difference.

The others were seriously impressed. Ethan had made the call to bring Garrick in, and now it looked like a stroke of genius.

As for Garrick, the more time he spent with them, the more he understood just how different this team was.

He’d suspected there might be an Awakened or two among them—but three?

And while none of their abilities were traditional combat types, Ethan’s and Henry’s powers were far more useful than any brute-force skill he’d seen.

Chris, though… Chris was something else entirely.

Garrick had assumed Ethan was the only one in the group he couldn’t beat in a fight. Then he saw what Chris could do—and realized he’d been dead wrong.

Chris’s ability wasn’t flashy. It was terrifying. That seamless, traceless invisibility? It was the kind of thing that could haunt your dreams. Sure, it wasn’t as handy in a zombie swarm, but in a one-on-one? Chris could take his head off before he even knew he was there.

Even Sean, Big Mike, and Skinny Pete—none of whom had powers—weren’t to be underestimated. When they fought, they fought dirty, fast, and mean.

In just three days, under Ethan’s lead, they’d taken down over forty Tier 4 zombies—and even managed to kill another Tier 5.

That one had been a lucky find. Ethan had been scanning rooftops for Tier 4s when he spotted it—hiding inside a building, trying to stay out of sight.

He didn’t say a word. Just signaled the others, circled around to the back, and led them up through the building. Seven of them swarmed the thing before it even knew what hit it.

It tried to leap out a window to escape, but Garrick sealed it shut with a wall. Trapped and cornered, the Tier 5 zombie died a slow, ugly death under their combined assault.

Probably the most pitiful end a Tier 5 had ever met.

But Ethan noticed something: Tier 5 zombies weren’t roaming the streets anymore. They were hiding indoors, waiting to ambush.

That had its pros and cons.

If you spotted them first, you could do exactly what they’d just done—trap and crush. But if they saw you first? You might not even realize you were dead until it was over.

And spotting them first? That took eyes like Ethan’s. Without that, you were just prey.

After the kill, Ethan—as always—offered the Tier 5 crystal core to Chris.

But Chris shook his head. ”Ethan, after Tier 5 comes Stage D, right? You said that’s where the real transformation happens. So I think you should take the core. Get to Tier 5 peak first. Once you’re maxed out, then pass the rest to us. If we ever find a Tier 6 core, you’ll be ready to hit Stage D immediately.”

”He’s right,” Sean added, serious for once. ”We need to rethink how we’re splitting these. We need one of us to break ahead of the curve. You’re the best bet. We’ll take whatever you can’t use—but only after you’ve gotten everything you need.”

”I agree,” Henry said. ”Even if you hit Tier 5 peak and only then start sharing, we’ll still be ahead of everyone else. But we need a top-tier fighter—someone who’s not just ahead of most people, but ahead of everyone.”

Garrick watched them pass the crystal core around, each one insisting Ethan take it. He thought back to his old team—how they’d hoarded cores, lied about their kills, even stole from each other.

And now, watching this?

This was what a real team looked like.

Ethan was quiet for a moment, weighing their words. Then he nodded.

”Alright,” he said. ”I’ll take it.”

...