Apocalypse: King of Zombies

"And hey, all of you—stay sharp. Don't let those bastards catch you slippin'," Ethan added, giving one last reminder. Judging by his crew's skills, he figured they'd be fine.

"Don't worry, boss!" Bulldozer said with a confident grin, pounding his chest.

Big Ears chimed in too, puffing himself up. "Yeah, come on. With my skills? No way they're catching me."

"Actually, scratch that—I should be the one catching them!"

"Right? If they run into me, it's game over for them!"

"Damn straight!"

With that, the crew scattered, each heading off to handle their part of the mission.

Ethan, meanwhile, headed back home.

Now that Mia was out hunting for the Star Map tablet and his guys were digging up intel on San Diego, he could finally kick back a little—playing the role of the hands-off boss suited him just fine.

But the looming showdown between the two zombie hives was still brewing in the background, and it wasn't long before word got out.

The first to catch wind of it? Genesis Biotech's Los Angeles branch.

Even though Nathan had been slacking off lately, his team never stopped monitoring the movements of nearby zombie hives, constantly gathering intel.

"The two major zombie hives are about to go to war. Did they even bother asking me, the California State Director?" Nathan said coolly, eyes narrowed as he sat at the head of the conference table.

The room was filled with upper management.

Sophia, of course, was among them.

"Why would they ask you? What's it got to do with you?" she shot back, arms crossed.

"It's got everything to do with me!" Nathan snapped.

He wasn't just being dramatic—if the Los Angeles Zombie King lost, the entire power structure would shift. And if the San Diego Zombie King came out on top, there was a real chance he'd come north and wipe Nathan out.

"This is a serious threat. We need to come up with a plan..."

"Well, well, look who's finally using his brain," Sophia said, raising an eyebrow. "So what's your big idea?"

Nathan's eyes darted around for a second before he smirked. "Obviously, we report it to HQ."

Sophia leaned back in her chair, arms still folded, and let out a sigh. "Figures. That's about as far as your ambition goes..."

"Hmph. Still better than letting your base get overrun," Nathan shot back.

He picked up the satellite phone on the table and dialed the North American regional HQ in Texas.

After a few beeps, the line connected.

"Yeah? What is it? Don't tell me the L.A. Zombie King's on the move again?" Richard's voice came through immediately, tense and impatient.

"Uh..." Nathan paused, caught off guard. Clearly, Richard was still traumatized from the last time.

"No, it's not that. The L.A. Zombie King is about to go head-to-head with the San Diego Zombie King!"

"What?!"

Richard's voice spiked with shock. He'd known this kind of clash was inevitable in a post-apocalyptic world, but hearing it was actually happening still hit hard.

After all, both of those Zombie Kings were listed in the archives as SS-class threats—top-tier monsters. The kind of battle they'd unleash? It'd be absolute carnage.

Nothing like this had ever happened in North America before. This was a first.

"This is huge..." Richard muttered.

Once one of those two came out on top, they'd be the undisputed ruler of the region—and a massive threat to everyone else, including him.

"Last time, the L.A. Zombie King didn't even finish off San Diego before charging into our territory. If he actually wins this time... we're screwed," Richard thought grimly.

Nathan pressed on. "Richard, you know how powerful those two are. They're both SS-class Zombie Kings. Even if I were ten times stronger, I couldn't take them on alone!"

"Yeah, I get it..." Richard nodded, his tone more serious now. He knew it wasn't fair to expect Nathan to handle this solo.

"I'll report this to HQ," Richard said. "And I'll make sure the other branches back you up."

"Oh—great, thanks!" Nathan nodded quickly, relieved.

There were still two other Genesis Biotech branches in California, though they hadn't really worked together before.

"You're the State Director, so you've got the authority to coordinate with them. I'll also notify the other state branches to send reinforcements. Bottom line—no matter who wins that zombie war, you hold the damn line. Got it?"

"Got it! Loud and clear!" Nathan replied immediately, though deep down, he knew—if he couldn't hold the line, Richard wouldn't be far behind him on the chopping block.

"Oh, right—one more thing," Richard said, as if something had just come to mind. His voice turned a little hesitant. "I heard from Sophia that…"

"What?" Nathan asked, confused.

But Richard paused, reconsidering.

"Never mind. It's nothing. Just do your best. We'll talk again if anything comes up."

"Alright," Nathan replied.

With that, the call ended.

What Richard had almost said was that Sophia told him Nathan had been slacking off—spending his days playing poker in the office and showing zero urgency when it came to dealing with the Zombie Kings.

But in the end, Richard decided to let it slide. For now.

He sat back in his office chair, idly spinning a pen between his fingers, eyes distant, deep in thought.

"Maybe… when we send reinforcements, we should throw in a surprise inspection…"

...

Across the region, tensions were rising. Every major faction was quietly making moves, preparing for the storm of bloodshed that was about to break.

Meanwhile…

As the sun dipped low in the sky, casting long shadows across the land, Travis and his team finally reached the base of Mount Elbert after a grueling day's journey.

They were covered in dust and grime, utterly exhausted—both physically and mentally. They'd fought through countless skirmishes along the way, but thankfully, hadn't run into any more high-level Zombie Kings.

Honestly, it felt like they'd already met every freakishly powerful Zombie King in existence the night before…

After making contact with the shelter, they boarded a cable car that carried them up the mountain to the refuge nestled near the summit.

The sunset at the peak was breathtaking—golden light spilled across a sea of clouds, painting the sky in brilliant hues. It was the kind of view that made you forget, just for a moment, that the world had gone to hell.

"We made it… we actually made it… oh my god…" one of the team members choked out, voice trembling.

Staring at the stunning vista, the tension that had gripped them for so long finally began to ease. Some of them felt tears welling up, the kind that came from sheer relief.

A welcoming party from the shelter was already waiting for them.

The captain at the front of the group greeted them with a warm smile.

"You're Travis, right? Awakener 007 from Tecate?"

"Yeah, that's me," Travis nodded quickly.

The captain took one look at their worn-out faces and dusty gear and knew they'd been through hell. Most people who made it here looked the same—on the edge of collapse, but alive.

"It's alright now. You're safe. Everything's behind you," the captain said gently. "Come on, let's get you inside."

"Thank you…" one of the team members murmured, eyes red, nodding over and over.

They followed the captain up the path, and soon a massive platform came into view—like someone had sliced the top off the mountain to make room for it. It was wide and flat, with buildings scattered across it, people moving about, busy with their tasks.

But this was just the surface.

With so many survivors, the current space wasn't nearly enough. The real shelter was built beneath the platform, carved deep into the mountain itself.ity had taken to digging into the earth, expanding their last bastions of safety underground.

As they walked, Travis and the welcoming team chatted, slowly getting to know each other.

Eventually, the captain couldn't help but ask, curiosity getting the better of him.

"So… how many zombies did you guys run into on the way here?"

Travis gave a tired laugh. "You're not gonna believe this, but… we ran into two SS-class Zombie Kings. At least. Plus their S-class lieutenants—each one had freaky powers. Oh, and twice we got hit by zombie hordes, three to four thousand strong…"

"...Holy shit."