Apocalypse: King of Zombies

The cyborg chasing from behind was gaining speed, closing the distance between them rapidly.

Big Ears glanced back and immediately looked horrified. His two brothers were already far ahead, leaving him behind. Guess sometimes you don't need to outrun the enemy—just your teammates.

"Mamma mia! Somebody save me!" Big Ears screamed at the top of his lungs.

Luckily, he wasn't too far from the other Zombie Kings. A dark shadow suddenly darted forward from the front.

Shadow moved like a ghost, silent and swift.

The cyborg kept running, seemingly unaware. But halfway through, the dark shadow abruptly rose from the ground, transforming into a humanoid figure. It raised its sharp claws and struck with lightning speed.

"Squish!" The cyborg was caught off guard by the ambush. Its chest was pierced clean through in an instant.

[Scanning… A-Class Zombie King detected. Combat power: 361. Awakened ability: Shadow Morph and Stealth.]

The cyborg didn't panic. Its cold, mechanical eyes scanned its surroundings.

Its brain began analyzing the situation at lightning speed.

"Huh?" Little Shadow was taken aback. Normally, when humans were ambushed, they'd scream in agony and show fear. But this guy? Nothing. No reaction at all.

And the sensation of piercing its body… it felt different.

Suddenly, the cyborg's body began to flow like liquid, slipping away from Little Shadow's claws and reforming itself a few steps away.

"What the…?" Little Shadow was even more shocked now. This was something he'd never encountered before.

The next second, the sound of air being sliced reached his ears. The cyborg raised its steel spike of an arm and lunged straight at him.

Startled, Little Shadow quickly morphed back into a shadowy form, retreating in a blur. But even so, its shoulder got nicked in the process.

The cyborg stood its ground, not pursuing further. It had noticed the reinforcements arriving behind Little Shadow—several elite zombies, and among them, the hulking figure of Bulldozer, charging forward like a raging bull.

With each of Bulldozer's steps, the ground trembled.

The zombie horde exuded a menacing aura.

[Scanning targets… Unable to execute hunt.]

[Calculating optimal retreat route…]

After a quick calculation, the cyborg turned and retreated without hesitation.

With its A+ combat rating, it was confident these zombies couldn't hold it back.

"It ran away!" Bulldozer grumbled, stopping in his tracks when he realized he couldn't catch up. He turned to Little Shadow. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, but that thing was weird. I don't know what it is, but it's unkillable!" Little Shadow said, his expression puzzled.

Bulldozer nodded. "I saw it too. Its body was… fluid. Definitely not Laura."

"Yeah, I think we should report this to the boss," Little Shadow suggested.

"Agreed." Bulldozer nodded, though there was a hint of regret in his eyes. "Too bad I didn't get to smash it…"

With that, the group of zombies left, heading back to report to their "parent."

Big Ears, still shaken from the encounter, stuck close behind Bulldozer, not daring to wander off anymore.

A little while later, his two brothers caught up.

"Big Ears, you okay?" Locomotive asked, eyeing him carefully.

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"I'm fine, I'm fine," Big Ears waved it off. "If that thing hadn't run so fast, I'd have taken it down myself. Next time, it won't be so lucky!"

"Yeah, I saw Little Shadow got hurt back there, but you came out unscathed. Looks like you've got some real skills, Big Ears!" Shrimpy said, clearly impressed.

Big Ears beamed at the compliment, slapping Shrimpy on the shoulder. "Bro, you've got a sharp eye. That's why they call me the boss of Santa Monica!"

…

Of course, while they were heading back to report, someone else had already made it home in a sorry state.

Scissorhands stumbled into their base, blood dripping from his injured shoulder, soaking his already tattered clothes. His fierce eyes burned with rage, his whole demeanor radiating violence.

"Boss, Genesis Biotech let loose some kind of freak. It hurt me!" he growled.

"Oh? A freak… that could hurt you?" Nightmare turned to look at him, his mismatched black-and-white eyes gleaming with interest.

Scissorhands nodded, clearly frustrated. "Yeah! That thing could turn into a zombie, sneak around in the shadows, and it couldn't be killed!"

"Then it's probably not a living creature…" Nightmare mused. He was familiar with Genesis Biotech's methods and figured it was likely some kind of technological creation. With Scissorhands' limited brainpower, it was no surprise he couldn't grasp the concept.

Still… it seemed to be high-level tech.

"This thing sounds interesting. I think I'll go check it out myself…"

…

And so, another day of bloodshed came to an end.

At Genesis Biotech's San Bernardino branch, the mood was celebratory. Sophia was so close to throwing a victory party—after all, it had been ages since they'd had a reason to feel this good.

Today, three cyborgs had been deployed, successfully driving back several Zombie Kings and temporarily easing the crisis in San Bernardino.

They'd also managed to rescue a number of survivors and secure some critical supplies.

"Headquarters really came through for us. Sending those three cyborgs turned the tide," Sophia said, full of admiration.

Her secretary nodded. "But Sophia, our real heavy hitters haven't even arrived yet, right?"

"Right, exactly!" Sophia's eyes lit up. Headquarters had issued a global bounty, and a wave of high-level Awakeners was on their way. Their strength… would undoubtedly surpass even the cyborgs.

"I've already received word. Some of the top fighters are making their way here through the branch network. They should be arriving soon."

"Once they're here, the crisis will be completely resolved," the secretary said, her face bright with hope.

She was exhausted from the constant stress of recent days and couldn't wait for the crisis to end so she could finally get some rest.

Sophia nodded, sharing the sentiment. She was looking forward to the day when the zombie threat in Los Angeles would be eliminated...

…

Night had fallen, and the darkness outside was thick and oppressive. Heavy clouds blanketed the sky, and the wind howled through the night, making the horizon seem even more foreboding.

At the edge of San Bernardino, the Awakeners' camp offered a faint glow of light amidst the gloom.

Drones buzzed overhead, patrolling the skies, while Awakeners stood guard, keeping watch through the night. Most of the camp's inhabitants, worn out from the day's efforts, were beginning to succumb to their exhaustion.

Among them was the squad that had worked alongside the cyborgs earlier—David and his team. Despite their fatigue, the day's successes had left them feeling a bit exhilarated.

"Man, it's a shame we didn't manage to take down Scissorhands today. That would've been a huge win," one of the younger team members said, a hint of regret in his voice.

"Heh…" A teammate nearby chuckled, flashing a grin. "You're talking about an A-Class speed-type Zombie King. You think he's that easy to kill? If we actually pulled that off, we'd be legends across the entire company."

"Hey, a guy can dream, right?" The young man shrugged, clearly not ready to give up on his ambitions.

David, meanwhile, had just finished cleaning his weapon. He placed it carefully by his pillow and glanced at his team. "Alright, enough chatter. Get some sleep. We've got another mission tomorrow. But keep your guard up—even in your sleep. You don't want to wake up dead."

"Got it, Captain," the others replied, nodding. Each of them kept their weapons close—some slid daggers under their pillows, while others outright hugged their gear as they lay down.

It seemed like the only way to feel safe.

Because even in their dreams, danger was never far away…