Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Once Garrick and the others finished absorbing their crystal cores, Ethan and Chris sat down cross-legged and began refining theirs.

Ethan was pushing for Tier 10.

Chris—for Tier 9.

Breakthroughs like this took several minutes and couldn’t be interrupted under any circumstances. So the rest of the squad immediately formed a defensive ring around them, weapons ready, eyes scanning the trees.

Elsewhere—just a few miles away, deep in a narrow valley…

Hundreds of Titan Apes crowded together in a massive circle. Packed into the middle of them, a bunch of trembling humans huddled close like cornered prey—every one of them pale-eyed and terrified.

These were the last surviving members of the Silverfox Squad.

After fleeing to this remote town to hide from Ethan’s wrath, they’d hoped to lay low and rebuild—stay completely off the radar. But they’d stumbled onto something they shouldn’t have.

A spatial rift.

They’d thought they’d hit the jackpot. A new world, maybe. Unclaimed treasure. They imagined fat stashes of crystal cores and rare loot.

What they got was a nightmare.

The first time they saw these gorilla-like mutant beasts, they’d figured it was hunt time. Take one down, harvest the core, repeat.

Then the fighting started.

That’s when the horror set in.

The weakest Titan Ape was Tier 7. Tier 8s and 9s were everywhere. Some of them… were on levels they couldn’t even comprehend. The highest rank in Silverfox Squad had been Tier 7; they didn’t even have the perspective to guess what power tier the biggest ones were.

The result was predictable—and brutal.

Despite outnumbering the apes several times over, they’d been slaughtered. Most of their squad got torn apart and devoured on the spot. The handful left alive were now just prisoners—livestock waiting their turn.

That feeling—being prey, knowing you’re dinner—was soul-breaking.

And yeah, some of them had thought of fighting back. But that only made them get eaten sooner.

Sophia crouched low in the back of the group, her entire body trembling. Her face had gone bloodless.

Fear clutched every inch of her, but underneath that…

Hatred.

Boundless, seething hate.

Ethan.

She wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for him. She wouldn’t have run. Wouldn’t have had to flee into this hellhole.

What made her finally bring the squad into the rift wasn’t arrogance or greed... it was fear. When she saw that Golden Eagle hunting them down—tracking her—she’d made the call to escape through the gate, thinking it was the only way to survive.

And now look what happened.

All. His. Fault.

Her inner voice was screaming.

Suddenly, the largest Titan Ape—a monstrous beast slouched lazily on a boulder, half-asleep—opened its eyes.

It growled low, then barked a command across the valley.

”Roar…” (Weren’t scouts sent to retrieve Meathead and his crew? Why haven’t they returned?)

”Roar…” another one answered. (They went. Still no word.)

”Roar…” (Something’s wrong.)

”Roar…” (Send more. Find out what happened.)

”Roar…” (Understood.)

Within seconds, a massive search party of Titan Apes bounded out of the valley, heading toward the location where Meathead and his squad had last gone.

The lead Titan Ape’s gaze slid toward the huddled humans. It slowly licked across its jagged teeth.

Such delicious little morsels.

A pity—it was already full. Better to save them for a midnight snack.

Its eyes stopped on one person.

Then narrowed.

A moment later, the beast hauled its gigantic frame off the rock and stomped forward.

Everyone’s breath caught.

They all flinched back, trying to shrink away, scooting across the dirt without standing—just desperate to avoid notice.

But the leader ignored them.

It marched straight for Sophia.

She froze, then scrambled backward in a panic. It didn’t matter. The Titan Ape grabbed her leg with one thick-fingered hand and yanked her up like she weighed nothing.

Shrieking, kicking, clawing—none of it helped. It slung her over its shoulder and started walking toward a dark cave at the far side of the valley.

Not a single thing she did made it stop.

The others watched, stunned and helpless, as she was carried off.

Is the captain… going to be eaten too?

Not one of them moved. Not even Mark—the guy who’d followed Sophia like a lost puppy since day one. He gripped the earth, knuckles white, started to rise…

…and slumped back down in silence.

There was nothing he could do. Nothing any of them could do.

Sophia was dragged into the cave.

Moments later, her screams ripped through the valley—raw, guttural, and filled with agony.

The kind of sound that made blood run cold.

Every person outside froze. Breathing stopped. Hearts pounded.

The screams went on. Far too long to be just a quick kill.

Are these monsters torturing people before they eat them now?

The thought sent fresh chills down already terrified spines.

Eventually, the cave fell silent. The cries ceased. And then, the massive Titan Ape leader strolled out again, looking… relaxed. Satisfied.

It flopped back onto its usual perch—a broad flat boulder—and reclined like it had just finished a good meal.

Everyone assumed Sophia was dead.

Until—

She stumbled out of the cave.

Ragged. Shaking. Alive.

Her clothes were shredded, hair matted and tangled. Her eyes were bloodshot, her legs unsteady. Blood stained her thighs and feet.

The entire group stiffened.

Several gasped. And most knew, instantly, what had happened.

A few of the remaining women turned deathly pale. One girl let out a strangled whimper, clutching her arms tightly, knees buckling beneath her.

Mark… snapped.

He stood there, trembling—body shaking with rage, not fear.

His goddess. Violated. Used and discarded by a beast.

His mind went blank.

He’d adored Sophia for years. Followed her when the world ended. Helped her build Silverfox Squad from nothing. She had finally agreed—finally said they could try.

And now, before that future even began, this monster… had taken it away.

”AHHHHH!!!”

The scream ripped out of his chest. Fury short-circuited reason.

He would’ve rather seen her killed than live to carry this.

Mark pulled a dagger from his belt and charged at the reclining Titan Ape with all the force his Tier 7 strength could muster.

He didn’t make it ten feet.

A single Titan Ape standing nearby lashed out absentmindedly. One brutal slap sent Mark flying like a ragdoll into the dirt. He didn’t get up.

Unconscious.

The valley went quiet again.

No one moved. No one dared.

Back on Ethan’s side...

After several silent minutes of uninterrupted focus, both Ethan and Chris completed their breakthroughs and stood upright—energy surging, muscles taut with new power.

They exchanged a look, fists clenched experimentally.

Both of them were grinning.

”This place really is nuts,” Chris breathed, still a little stunned.

They hadn’t even been in this world that long—barely any real time—and their power levels had almost doubled.

Ethan had climbed from Tier 9 to Tier 10.

Skinny Pete, Chris, Goldie, and Speckles had all stepped into Tier 9.

Henry, Garrick, and Sean hit peak Tier 8.

The others hadn’t leveled up just yet, but it was only a matter of time. With this many high-tier mutant beasts roaming around, upgrades were basically just waiting to be claimed.

”Yeah,” Ethan agreed, eyes scanning the forest, ”it’s dangerous, no doubt. But the opportunity here? Insane. Like I always say, the bold eat well, the cautious starve.”

Chris smirked. ”Then let’s get bold. Nugget’s still waiting.”

”Right.” Ethan nodded.

The team didn’t waste time. They regrouped and moved out again, deeper into the forest.

But less than ten minutes in...

Ethan’s expression snapped into alarm.

”Up the trees. Now. Hide!”

No one hesitated. After everything they’d seen so far, the squad responded instantly—vaulting up nearby trunks, vanishing into the branches like trained acrobats.

Ethan blink-teleported high into the canopy.

Then held his breath.

Crashing through the woods below came a massive troop of Titan Apes—over a hundred strong.

Ethan tensed, every instinct screaming.

He scanned them in cold silence. Tier 8s… Tier 9s… and six Tier 10s.

Thirty-plus of those were Tier 9—each one a powerhouse on its own.

If they got spotted now… he was probably the only one who could get out alive.

They didn’t breathe a word. Barely even moved.

Thankfully, the horde kept running—blitzing past below them, not even slowing to sniff around.

Once they vanished into the trees, heading in the direction Ethan’s squad had come from, he exhaled carefully.

But his worry didn’t fade.

They weren’t just out for a jog.

They’re heading to check on the ones we killed...

And when they found the corpses?

They’d be back—and furious.