Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Captain, how about we head out farther today to hunt zombies,” the man on Sophia’s left suggested, then made another throat-slitting gesture. ”And while we’re out there…”

”Why are you always thinking about killing her?” the man on the right frowned. ”You know how important her ability is to our squad.”

”If we don’t kill her and her brother finds out what happened, Silverfox Squad is finished!” the man on the left shot back.

”Then just don’t let her meet him,” the right-hand man argued. ”She said herself she just got back from Nova City. Her brother doesn’t even know she’s in Clearford. And honestly, I don’t think those people are planning to stay here long. Once they leave, this whole thing blows over.”

”You’re dreaming,” the left-hand man scoffed. ”She knows her brother’s here now. You think she’s just gonna sit around and wait? I guarantee she’s already thinking about how to get to him. You won’t be able to stop her.”

”...”

The two argued back and forth, but neither had a real solution. Eventually, both turned to look at Sophia.

She had a pounding headache.

Honestly, she was starting to regret ever pulling that stunt to bring Emily into the squad.

After a long silence, Sophia finally spoke. ”Notify everyone in Silverfox Squad. We’re heading out immediately—destination: Union Plaza. Bring enough supplies. We’ll be camping out for a few days. No one is to be left behind.”

”Yes, ma’am!” the two men nodded and left to spread the word.

Sophia narrowed her eyes, muttering under her breath, ”No matter what, we need to get out of the compound first. Hopefully, she knows when to keep quiet. If not… I’ll have to make sure this threat disappears.”

...

Meanwhile…

With Ethan’s team having taken down the Tier 9 zombie, Colonel Mitchell had launched a full-scale sweep of the eastern sector.

Without the Tier 9 acting as a deterrent, the military’s power was overwhelming. Most zombies didn’t stand a chance.

Anything below Tier 6 was blasted apart with artillery. Tier 6 and above were handled by high-tier Enhanced soldiers.

Thanks to the 200 Tier 6 crystal cores they’d traded from Ethan’s group, combined with their existing forces, the military now had nearly a thousand Tier 6 Enhanced at their disposal.

With skill boosts and coordinated tactics, Tier 6 Enhanced could handle Tier 6 zombies with relative ease.

And with two Tier 8s and dozens of Tier 7s in the mix, the zombies were getting steamrolled.

Zombie society had a strict hierarchy, and their territorial structure was just as rigid.

If two high-tier zombies of equal strength appeared in the same area, it would split the local horde into rival factions.

And if the zombie population in that area was limited, both factions would end up with fewer underlings.

This rule held true even at Tier 8 and Tier 9.

High-tier zombies were prideful. They refused to serve equals. They only submitted to those stronger than themselves.

That arrogance worked in humanity’s favor.

As the military pushed forward, more and more of Clearford City’s eastern zones were reclaimed.

Due to tight schedules and heavy objectives, the military only collected essential supplies. The rest was left behind for Enhanced scavengers to pick through later.

...

Back at the mansion in the compound’s central district…

Henry tossed his empty beer can aside and looked at Ethan and Chris with a faint smile.

”Ethan, Chris… thanks. I’m good now.”

Ethan clapped him on the shoulder. ”No need for thanks between us. You’ve still got us—we’re your family now.”

”Yeah.” Henry nodded. ”But seriously, Ethan, where’d you get this beer? It’s gotta be fake. I drank so much and didn’t even feel a buzz.”

Chris rolled his eyes. ”You’re a Tier 8 Awakened now. You think a few cans of beer are gonna do anything?”

”Uh… fair point.” Henry scratched his head, a little embarrassed.

”Alright, since things are settled here, I’m heading back to Fallen Star City to drop off these crystal cores with Miles,” Ethan said. ”You guys are free today—rest up or go zombie hunting, your call.”

”You’re going back alone?” Chris asked.

”Yeah. I’ll ride Nugget. With its flight speed, I can make a round trip in a day. These crystal cores need to be put to use, not sitting around in my ring.”

”Alright, just be careful, boss.”

”I will. In the meantime, see if you can gather intel on any Tier 8 zombies in Clearford. We’re still short on Tier 8 cores.”

”Got it!”

”Cool. I’m heading out. Skinny Pete, have Nugget meet me at the ruins on the south side of the compound.”

Bringing Golden Eagle Nugget directly into the compound was out of the question. The place was heavily fortified. If a massive eagle suddenly appeared overhead, they’d probably open fire without hesitation.

Sure, Nugget could probably tank it, but there was no need to stir up that kind of trouble.

”On it,” Skinny Pete nodded and began using his Beast Control ability to contact Nugget.

Ethan left the compound not long after.

By the time he reached the ruins on the southern edge, Nugget’s massive silhouette was already soaring overhead.

With a quick use of Teleportation, Ethan landed cleanly on the golden eagle’s back. Nugget gave a powerful flap of its wings and shot into the sky like an arrow loosed from a bow.

Having a flying mount was a whole different level of freedom—nothing else even came close.

Sure, Speckles the jaguar was fast on land, but compared to Golden Eagle Nugget? Not even in the same league.

Back in the old world, traffic jams could trap you for hours. He used to daydream about owning a helicopter just to skip the gridlock. But between the cost and the airspace restrictions, that was never going to happen.

Funny how the apocalypse made that dream come true.

At Nugget’s speed, getting back to Fallen Star City would take maybe two, two and a half hours—way faster than the trip they made coming here.

Unfortunately, land travel had its dangers, but the skies weren’t exactly safe either.

About ten minutes into the flight, Ethan spotted a dense swarm of black shapes heading straight toward them.

He activated [True Sight]—and his expression darkened.

A massive flock of mutated crows.

Each one was nearly the size of a pre-apocalypse golden eagle, and there were hundreds—maybe thousands—of them. The sky was practically blotted out.

”Nugget, dive! Now!”

Even Ethan felt a chill crawl down his spine. That many crows in the air? No way to fight them all.

Nugget sensed the danger too and immediately tucked its wings, diving hard toward the ground.

The crows followed, diving in a chaotic wave. They’d clearly locked onto their target.

A Tier 9 golden eagle like Nugget? To them, it was a flying buffet.

Nugget weaved through the terrain at breakneck speed, dodging trees, cliffs, and ruined buildings. The crows couldn’t match its speed, but there were just too many of them. The sky was thick with flapping wings and shrieking cries.

To escape, they had to break through the swarm.

Ethan drew his poleaxe, gripping Nugget’s back with one hand while swinging the weapon with the other, cleaving through any crow that got too close.

He and Nugget worked in perfect sync, carving a bloody path through the air.

It wasn’t easy. They took hits.

By the time they finally broke free of the flock, Ethan’s clothes were shredded, his body covered in claw marks and bloody scratches.

Nugget didn’t look much better—patches of feathers were missing, and the once-majestic golden eagle now looked more like a half-plucked chicken.

It was pissed. Furious, even. It let out a screech and turned its head, clearly wanting to go back and tear those crows apart.

Ethan grabbed a handful of feathers and yanked gently. ”No. Too many. Not worth it. We’ve got somewhere to be.”

Nugget let out a low, frustrated cry...