Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Inside the central command center of the compound...

”What’s the latest? Any movement from that Tier 9 zombie today?” General Cross asked, glancing down at a soldier in camo standing before him.

”General Cross, just as you predicted, it doesn’t seem interested in attacking the compound. All day, it’s been gathering its forces and ambushing our Enhanced teams. As for the plan to provoke it into approaching the compound—it failed. The soldiers we sent suffered heavy casualties. The moment it gets within fifteen miles of the compound, it stops, then turns back. It’s like it’s deliberately avoiding us.”

General Cross let out a long sigh. ”Figures. The higher the Tier, the smarter they get. That thing probably senses there’s something here that could threaten it. It’s not willing to take the risk.”

”So what now?” asked a middle-aged man in a suit, frowning. ”If it won’t come to us, we’re stuck. We can’t exactly roll out the Super-Heavy Mobile Artillery Platforms and blast it from here.”

”That’s out of the question,” Colonel Mitchell said firmly. ”Those platforms are massive—too slow to deploy. By the time they got in range, the target would be long gone. And if we lose even one of them en route, the cost would be catastrophic.”

”Mitchell’s right,” Cross agreed. ”At this point, our best option is to push someone to Tier 9 as fast as possible. Starting tomorrow, mobilize everyone to hunt down Tier 8 zombies. We’ll throw everything we’ve got at wiping out that Tier 9’s top lieutenants. Focus on getting Rambo to Tier 9. With his ability, he might actually stand a chance.”

”Understood!”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

”And make it public,” Cross added. ”Post a bounty. Killing Tier 8 zombies isn’t easy—we’ll need to recruit high-Tier Enhanced to help. Offer crystal core rewards.”

”Got it.”

”How are the Enhanced behaving lately?” Cross turned to a younger officer nearby.

”More or less stable. No major conflicts, just the usual scuffles.”

”That’s fine. As long as it doesn’t escalate into full-blown fights, let them be. A little friction keeps them hungry to grow stronger.”

”Right. Oh, and word from the gate—an Enhanced team arrived yesterday from Saddle Ridge. Only eight of them, but all Tier 6.”

”All Tier 6?” Cross raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised.

”That’s not an easy threshold to cross. Either they’re backed by a powerful faction… or they’ve got a strong Awakened supporting them. What do you think?”

”My guess is Awakened,” the officer replied. ”Saddle Ridge is basically overrun. Not much left in terms of organized power.”

”Could also be they ran into a freshly evolved Tier 6 zombie in a low-population area,” another officer chimed in. ”Eight peak Tier 5s could take one down if they played it right.”

”Enough guessing,” Cross said. ”Just have someone keep an eye on them. As long as they’re in the compound, we’ll find out soon enough.”

”Yes, sir.”

...

The next morning...

Ethan and the others were up early.

Last night, they’d climbed to the rooftop of their building to stargaze and absorb mysterious energy—something they never skipped, no matter where they were or how rough things got.

After a quick breakfast, they headed straight for the compound gates.

There was still no word from the government staff about Henry’s parents.

But that wasn’t surprising. With communications and networks down, finding two people in a compound of 300,000 wasn’t exactly easy.

It might take a few days.

Henry was anxious, but there wasn’t much he could do. He couldn’t exactly expect the staff to drop everything and help him search full-time.

He’d already waited this long—what was another day or two?

Every morning, the compound’s gates were packed with people heading out.

Because of the registration process, everyone had to line up. Fortunately, it moved quickly. All you had to do was hand over your ID card for a quick scan and log.

”Hank, where you guys headed today?”

”Still hitting Maple Grove Neighborhood. We didn’t finish sweeping it yesterday—should be a few things left.”

”Wanna team up? Safer that way.”

”Get lost. If you don’t have a spot, go find a new one. There’s barely enough there for one team, let alone two.”

”Pfft, stingy much? I was gonna invite you to a spot I know no one’s touched yet. Guess I’ll keep it to myself.”

”You guys think you can just waltz into an untouched zone? What if a horde jumps you? You’ll get wiped before you even blink.”

”Hmph. Fortune favors the bold. You wanna rise above the rest, you’ve gotta take risks.”

”Well, good luck with that. Hope you come back in one piece.”

As they waited in line, Ethan and the others listened to the chatter around them. It made the time pass faster.

”Hey, did you hear? The military posted a new mission today—hunting Tier 8 zombies. Big crystal core rewards for anyone who helps.”

”Yeah, I heard. But that’s not for folks like us. Only the big factions can handle that. We’d just be cannon fodder.”

”Not necessarily. If we tag along with the military, it’s way safer. They’ve got three Tier 8 Enhanced on the team. We just hang back and clean up whatever slips through. If we’re lucky, maybe we catch a dying Tier 6 zombie. That’d be a jackpot.”

”True! Let’s go sign up!”

A whole group peeled off from the line, rushing toward the mission board.

Watching them go, Ethan couldn’t help but be impressed. The military’s system for managing Enhanced was actually pretty clever. They didn’t micromanage them day-to-day, but when they needed manpower, they could rally them instantly—and without spending much on training or upkeep. Efficient and effective.

After waiting in line for over half an hour, it was finally their turn.

The guards had changed shifts since yesterday, so these ones didn’t recognize Ethan’s group. They handed over their ID cards, got logged, and were cleared to leave.

”Hey, you guys heading out with just this few?” someone nearby asked, walking up. ”That’s risky. Want to team up?”

”No thanks,” Ethan replied calmly.

The man didn’t push it. He just shrugged and moved on.

They got a few more similar offers along the way, but Ethan turned them all down.

Most Enhanced teams were heading in different directions. Only one route was completely avoided—the east.

That was where the Tier 9 zombie had been spotted.

Naturally, that was exactly where Ethan and his team were headed.

”Hey! You guys can’t go that way!” someone shouted when they saw the group heading east. ”There’s a Tier 9 zombie out there!”

Ethan just waved a hand without looking back and kept walking.

People nearby shook their heads.

”Those must be the new arrivals from yesterday. No idea what they’re walking into.”

”Right? We literally told them there’s a Tier 9 out there, and they still went.”

”Probably think they’re tough enough to scavenge around the edges. Let ’em go. Once they run into the real thing, they’ll learn. Might not even get the chance to regret it.”

Not far away, another group of Enhanced had just exited the compound and caught sight of Ethan’s team heading east. Their expressions turned curious.

”That’s them, right? The ones Derek was talking about?” the young man in the lead asked.

”Looks like it.”

”Heh. Bold, I’ll give them that. Marching straight toward a Tier 9 zone like it’s nothing.”

”Maybe they’re just hoping to get lucky. That area’s huge—chances of actually running into the Tier 9 aren’t high. And if they don’t, the loot could be way better than anywhere else.”

”True. Keep an eye on them. If they make it back alive, we’ll go say hello.”

”Got it.”