Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Soon enough, Nathan and Sophia received a sudden meeting notification.

”A meeting? Outta nowhere? What for?” Nathan muttered, puzzled.

They’d just had a call not long ago, and the newly developed Crystal Core Armaments hadn’t even been delivered yet...

Still, curiosity got the better of him. He and Sophia logged into the virtual conference room together.

Moments later, beams of light shimmered in the digital space, gradually forming three figures.

Richard. Nathan. Sophia.

”Huh?”

Nathan immediately sensed something was off. The entire virtual hall was empty except for the three of them—none of the other branch leaders were present.

Why just the two of them? Did someone find out he’d been slacking off and playing cards?

Wait... was this some kind of disciplinary meeting?

Richard’s expression didn’t help—his face was dark, eyes sharp and brooding.

He glanced over the two of them. Nathan looked the same as always, but Sophia... she was a different story. She looked thinner, worn out, her usual fire completely gone. The confident, take-no-prisoners woman was nowhere to be seen.

”Do you know where the Zombie King from L.A. is right now?” Richard asked, his voice low.

”The Zombie King? Should still be holed up in his corpse nest, right?” Nathan replied, like it was obvious.

Richard shook his head.

”No. He’s in Texas.”

”What?” Nathan’s eyes widened. That was the last thing he expected.

”How the hell did he end up there?”

”I’d like to know that too,” Richard said, his tone heavy.

Sophia shifted uncomfortably, her face flushing with embarrassment. ”That Zombie King... he stole my crystal core aircraft.”

”...” Richard stared at her, speechless.

Of course. That explained it.

Well, mystery solved. But now wasn’t the time to point fingers.

”You’ve both had run-ins with that Zombie King,” Richard continued. ”Tell me—if we were to build the perfect team, no limits, ideal conditions... what kind of squad would it take to kill him?”

”Uh...” Both of them froze.

Ideal conditions meant they could ignore real-world limitations and just imagine the best-case scenario.

Nathan almost blurted out, ”Just send ten SSS-rank Awakeners and call it a day,” but he bit his tongue. Knowing Richard, he might just decide to use Nathan as a test subject if he said something that dumb.

Sophia, on the other hand, suddenly lit up. Her eyes sparkled with a fire that hadn’t been there in weeks.

She got it. Richard wasn’t just asking for fun—he was planning to build a team. A real one. A team that could take down the Zombie King.

Her mind drifted back to her past encounters with Ethan—the Zombie King—and the comrades she’d lost to him.

”Elemental-type Awakeners might be useful,” she said slowly. ”But strength and agility types? Practically useless. They can’t even get close to him.”

”Agreed,” Richard nodded. ”So far, we know we’ll need someone with tracking abilities, and definitely a psychic-type Awakener. That’s non-negotiable. Anything else you’d add?”

Nathan scratched his chin, grimacing.

Tough question. His fight with Ethan had been way back at the start of the apocalypse—hardly relevant now. And none of his people had ever even scratched the guy.

Sophia fell silent again, deep in thought.

Time ticked by, second by second.

The virtual conference room was dead quiet.

A moment later, Richard’s patience started to wear thin. ”You two seriously can’t come up with anything?”

”Wait... I’ve got it!” Sophia’s eyes lit up. ”Spatial-type! Yes, spatial abilities! One of my Bernardino Four Riders—Griff—he once managed to restrain the Zombie King using spatial powers!”

”Oh?” Richard’s brows lifted, clearly intrigued.

Trackers to locate him, spatial abilities to lock him down, psychics to counter his Absolute Domain... the blueprint for a perfect strike team was finally taking shape.

Sophia kept going, her voice gaining strength. ”And every member of the team needs to be at least S+ rank. Ideally, the core positions should be filled by SS-rank Awakeners. Otherwise, we’re just gambling.”

”Anything else?” Richard asked.

Sophia shook her head. That was all she could think of for now.

Nathan, meanwhile, was silently doing the math in his head. This whole ”perfect team” idea sounded great on paper, but in reality? Total fantasy. S+ Awakeners were already rare as hell, and now they needed ones with specific abilities?

Especially spatial-types... where the hell were they supposed to find one of those?

And even if they did, what kind of insane reward would it take to convince these elites to risk their lives against an SS-rank Zombie King?

”Richard, this perfect team plan of yours... it’s kinda impossible, isn’t it?”

”It’s definitely difficult,” Richard admitted without hesitation. ”But we need a direction. Even if it’s hard, it’s not completely out of reach.”

”Fair enough,” Nathan nodded.

Seeing that neither of them had anything else to add—and considering that even the three roles they’d identified were already a nightmare to fill—Richard decided to wrap it up.

”Alright, that’s it for today. Meeting adjourned.”

...

Los Angeles.

The golden light of sunset bathed the city in a warm, dusky glow.

A sleek aircraft descended slowly, its engines humming softly as it touched down.

”Finally back...”

With a soft click, the hatch slid open, revealing Ethan’s silhouette.

”Later, Ethan! We’ll be in touch!” Sean called out as he hopped out of the craft.

Chris and the others followed behind, each saying their goodbyes.

”Boss, I’m heading out. Call me next time you need a pilot,” Oliver said with a grin.

”I’ll check with the major shelters about that puzzle slab of yours,” Mia added. ”If I hear anything, I’ll let you know.”

”It’s not a puzzle. It’s the Star Map,” Ethan corrected immediately. No way was he letting anyone disrespect the name he’d come up with.

Mia nodded. ”Right, right. Star Map.”

”Alright then. See you around,” Ethan said.

”Bye!”

They waved him off, walking side by side toward the nearest shelter, their laughter echoing faintly as their figures faded into the sunset.

Then, from inside the aircraft, a zombie poked its head out, eyes scanning the city.

”Boss, this whole city’s your turf?” Mist asked, wide-eyed.

”Yeah. And a few others too.”

”Wait, what? Which ones?” Mist asked, curiosity piqued.

”Pretty much every city nearby,” Ethan replied casually.

”Damn...” Mist’s jaw dropped.

For a zombie who’d spent most of his life hiding and running, this was the first time he’d seen a territory this massive.

He’d hit the jackpot.

”Come on, I’ll introduce you to the rest of the crew.” Ethan waved his hand, storing the aircraft away with a flick of his wrist.

Then he and Mist headed toward the heart of the city.

The sunset cast long shadows across the streets.

Los Angeles was eerily quiet.

But not for long.

One by one, figures began to emerge—zombies, but not the mindless kind. These were evolved, their eyes gleaming with intelligence.

Especially the elite ones—their presence was overwhelming.

Soon, Bulldozer, Laura, and other Zombie Kings arrived, each leading their own squads of high-level undead. In no time, the area was packed.

And on a distant rooftop, a massive white zombie tiger stood watch. Its body was the size of a bull, muscles rippling beneath its fur, radiating raw, savage power.

Mist’s eyes darted around, taking it all in. One Zombie King after another stepped forward, each more terrifying than the last.

”They’re all this strong???”

...