Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Three miles outside Eastwood Heights, inside a rundown house, the three scouts huddled in a corner, catching their breath.

”Whew… thank god we ran fast. Thought for sure we were gonna get spotted,” one of them said, still shaken.

”I don’t think the zombies care about us anymore,” another muttered, raising his binoculars to peer back toward the chaos. ”They’re going nuts over there. Feels like it’s got something to do with those people.”

The other two quickly lifted their binoculars as well.

But they were too far away. All they could see was the horde in a frenzy—no clear view of what was actually happening.

”What the hell are those guys doing? They knew there was a Tier 9 zombie here and still went in? Are they trying to die?”

”I dunno…” the older soldier said slowly. ”Kinda feels like they came here for the Tier 9.”

”!!!”

The other two froze. Thinking back on everything they’d seen, it suddenly clicked.

”Shit. They’re insane. Suicidal.”

”Or maybe… they’ve got a plan.”

”A plan? Even HQ doesn’t have a solution for this mess. What could a handful of Enhanced possibly do?”

”Forget the Tier 9—there’s over a hundred thousand zombies down there. Just the numbers alone would bury them.”

”Yeah, true. So what now? Should we head back and call for backup?”

”Pointless. By the time we get reinforcements, they’ll be zombie chow. And General Cross already said—no direct engagement with the Tier 9.”

”Then I guess they’re screwed.”

”Let’s just stay put for now. Once the horde settles down, we’ll sneak back in and check what’s left.”

”Yeah… okay.”

Back in Eastwood Heights, the battle was still raging.

The mansion had long since been reduced to rubble. Ethan was still going toe-to-toe with the Tier 9 zombie, pressing it hard. Chris and the others had already taken down two of the Tier 8s. One more Tier 8 and seven Tier 7s were still fighting, but barely hanging on.

Up above, Big Mike was still riding high on Nugget’s back, gleefully raining down [Rain of Flames] like a kid in an arcade. In just a short time, he’d probably wiped out thousands of zombies.

Chris had considered going over to help Ethan, but Ethan had waved him off.

Ever since getting his new poleaxe, Ethan hadn’t had a real fight to test it out. Most zombies couldn’t even survive a single hit from him. This Tier 9 was the perfect sparring partner.

And honestly, the Tier 9 was almost human—aside from not being able to speak.

Unlike lower-tier zombies that just tanked hits without caring about pain or injury, this one protected its limbs, dodged smart, and clearly understood that damage could weaken it.

Every time Ethan attacked, it either blocked or evaded, constantly looking for an opening to close the distance and stab him.

Too bad for it, Ethan’s poleaxe had reach. It never got close.

Their strength was evenly matched, but with the superior weapon, Ethan had the upper hand. He was practically untouchable.

The other zombies tried to break through and help, but Chris and the rest held the line tight. No one was getting through.

But no defense is perfect forever.

After who knew how many swings, Ethan finally landed a clean hit—his poleaxe slammed into the zombie’s hand, slicing off four fingers in one brutal arc.

The dagger clattered to the ground.

The zombie lunged for it with its other hand—but the blade suddenly shot through the air and landed beside Ethan.

”Hmph. Let’s see how you fight without your toy,” Ethan said coldly.

He charged again, poleaxe raised.

The zombie hesitated for a split second—then turned and bolted.

Too late.

Ethan teleported straight into its path, reappearing right in front of it.

With a roar, he brought the poleaxe down in a deadly arc, aiming straight for its skull.

The Tier 9 zombie ducked low and suddenly lunged at Ethan with a burst of speed.

”Boom—!”

Ethan slammed a boot into its chest, kicking it back hard—but not without cost. The zombie managed to rake his leg with its claws on the way out, sending a sharp jolt of pain up his side.

He winced. ”Damn, that’s the downside of long weapons… too many openings up close.”

Still, every weapon had its trade-offs. And all things considered, the poleaxe was one of the best he could ask for.

The zombie, knocked back but not down, immediately turned and bolted in the opposite direction.

Ethan didn’t hesitate. He grabbed his poleaxe and teleported again, reappearing right behind it. Without missing a beat, he brought the weapon down in a vicious overhead strike.

The blade slammed into the zombie’s back before it could react, carving a deep gash across its spine.

But Ethan’s eyes narrowed.

That hit should’ve split it in two.

Instead, it only left a deep wound—and the zombie kept running like it barely noticed.

”What the hell…?” Ethan muttered, frowning. ”That defense isn’t normal.”

When he’d hit Nugget with a similar strike during training, it had nearly cleaved the beast in half. But this zombie? It took the same blow and just kept going.

Zombies weren’t supposed to have tougher defenses than mutant beasts.

Still, now wasn’t the time to overthink it.

Ethan teleported again, cutting off the zombie’s escape. He swept the poleaxe in a wide arc, forcing it back once more.

The two clashed again.

Without its dagger, the Tier 9 zombie was completely on the defensive. Wounds began piling up across its body—slashes, punctures, blunt-force trauma—but every time Ethan went for the kill shot, the zombie managed to dodge just enough to protect its head.

And the more Ethan fought, the more certain he became—something was off.

He activated [True Sight] again and focused on the zombie.

Then he saw it.

Near the crystal core in its head, there was a faint glow—just like the ones Enhanced had when they awakened abilities.

”This thing has an ability?” Ethan’s eyes widened.

The realization hit hard.

Up until now, Enhanced could usually take down zombies of the same Tier without too much trouble. Some could even punch above their weight class.

But that was assuming zombies didn’t have powers.

If they started developing abilities too… that changed everything.

This one’s ability wasn’t flashy—just a passive defense boost, and not even a huge one. But it was enough to make a difference. Enough to survive hits that should’ve been fatal.

And more importantly, it proved something terrifying: zombies could evolve abilities.

If there was one, there’d be more. Stronger ones. Smarter ones.

Sooner or later, they’d be facing zombies with real powers—and that was going to be a nightmare.

”Guess I’ll have to start looking at zombies a little closer from now on,” Ethan muttered.

Good thing he had the poleaxe. Without it, this fight might’ve gone very differently.

Even with the zombie’s modest defense boost, a regular weapon wouldn’t have done much. But the poleaxe? It was built for this.

Time to finish it.

Ethan gripped the poleaxe tight and launched into another brutal assault.

Strike after strike, he hammered the Tier 9 zombie, not letting up for a second.

Finally, after what felt like a hundred blows, the zombie’s legs gave out—both severed at the knees.

It collapsed.

Ethan didn’t hesitate. He drove the poleaxe straight through its neck.

The blade punched clean through.

The mighty Tier 9 zombie, enhanced and nearly unkillable, finally went still.

One clean kill.