Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”So damn ugly?” Big Ears couldn’t help blurting out.

The oversized head in front of him belonged to a Zombie King from the outskirts of San Diego—nothing too powerful, really.

Just like Ethan, this guy barely lifted a finger when his territory got poked at. He left the dirty work to his underlings.

Right then, another figure stepped out from behind the Bighead Zombie King—a zombie beast. It looked like a wolf at first glance, black and white fur, but with huge patches missing, its skin raw and streaked with blood. Its mouth was full of jagged, razor-sharp teeth, giving it a vicious, feral look.

But its eyes… there was something strange in them. A glint of intelligence. Sharp. Calculating.

”A Husky?” Big Ears squinted, surprised. His eyes widened. So that howling in the woods earlier? Not a wolf. Just a zombie Husky.

”Awoooo—!”

The zombie Husky let out another excited howl, echoing through the night sky as it watched the other zombies chase down humans. It was practically buzzing with bloodlust.

”Oh, it’s just a dog? I thought it was something serious,” Shrimpy said, sounding unimpressed.

”Yeah, looks like they’re not all that tough,” Locomotive added, a little more relaxed now.

But just then, the Husky stopped howling. Its nose twitched. It sniffed the ground, then the air, like it had caught a scent.

Its lips curled back, baring those nasty fangs. A low growl rumbled from its throat, thick with hostility.

”Huh?” Bighead Zombie King noticed the change and frowned. What’s got it riled up?

He followed the Husky’s gaze—and spotted four heads peeking out from the edge of a large dirt pit in the distance, all staring straight at them.

The four zombies realized they’d been spotted and immediately ducked back down.

”Shit, I think we’ve been made!” Mist whispered, hugging the ground.

”That mutt’s nose is insane! It can smell us from here?” Big Ears looked stunned.

Locomotive scowled. ”Yeah, who the hell saw that coming?”

Bighead Zombie King’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint flashing through them. He’d figured it out—there were other zombies nearby, from a different territory.

”Spying on me, huh? You little punks picked the wrong day. Let’s go!”

With that, Bighead took off, the zombie Husky sprinting beside him. The rest of the zombies, who’d been chasing humans, suddenly changed direction and charged toward the pit.

Big Ears, still crouched in the dirt, felt the ground start to tremble. The thunder of footsteps, the snarls and screeches—it was like a damn army was stampeding straight at them.

”We’re screwed! They’re coming right for us!”

The four zombies peeked out again—and saw the horde barreling toward them, kicking up dust and chaos.

”Woof! Woof! Woof woof woof!”

The zombie Husky was leading the charge, sprinting on all fours like a predator locked onto its prey.

The four of them freaked out. Shrimpy, acting on instinct, grabbed a rock and hurled it with a wild swing.

”What the hell are you barking at?!” he shouted.

The rock arced through the night sky like a catapult shot. Shrimpy was a strength-type zombie, so the throw packed a punch—even if his aim sucked.

Instead of hitting the dog, the rock veered off course… and headed straight for Bighead.

”Huh?” Bighead’s eyes widened as he saw a shadow flying toward him, growing larger in his vision.

CRACK!

The rock nailed him right in the face. Bits of stone exploded off on impact, leaving a nasty, bloody mark across his already grotesque mug.

”You little shit! You dare throw a rock at me?!” Bighead roared, his face twisting into something even more monstrous. He picked up speed, fury driving him forward.

”Oh crap!” The four zombies realized things had gone from bad to worse. Time to pull out the last resort.

”Run!”

Big Ears was the first to bolt, spinning on his heel and taking off.

But Locomotive and Shrimpy were even faster. Their legs blurred as they sprinted, leaving afterimages behind them like gusts of wind. They blew past Big Ears in a flash.

”Damn it, those two are still freakishly fast. Without a meteor boost, I can’t keep up…” Big Ears muttered, gritting his teeth.

Then Mist made his move. Black mist started pouring off his body, thick and swirling. In the blink of an eye, it exploded outward, cloaking him in a dense fog.

Then—whoosh!—he shot forward like a jet, a blur of darkness streaking past Big Ears and vanishing into the night, leaving only a trail of black smoke behind.

”What the hell just flew past me?” Big Ears blinked, completely lost.

But there was no time to think. He kept running for his unlife, heart pounding, the roar of the horde closing in behind him.

...

By the time Bighead and his crew reached the edge of the pit, the whole area ahead was shrouded in thick black fog.

They waved their claws through the air, trying to clear the smoke.

But when the mist finally thinned out, the four zombies—Big Ears and his crew—were already long gone. Not a trace left behind.

”???”

Bighead stood there, the imprint of a rock still stamped across his face, looking completely dumbfounded.

They ran that fast?

He glanced around, scanning the area, but there wasn’t even a footprint to follow. With no leads, he had no choice but to give up the chase.

Thanks to Big Ears and his gang stirring up trouble, a few of the Japanese Awakeners the horde had been hunting managed to slip away too.

Bighead was fuming.

He reached up and touched his face—his fingers came away bloody, and the stone-shaped bruise was still throbbing. That just made him even more pissed off.

”...Those four bastards! I, Bighead, won’t forget this! I swear on my rotten corpse, I’ll get my revenge!” he growled to himself, seething.

Still, the fact that humans had shown up in his territory—and four other zombies had been spying on him—was no small matter. He needed to report this to the boss.

...

Meanwhile, Big Ears had been running nonstop, putting as much distance between himself and the town as possible. Once he was sure Bighead wasn’t chasing them anymore, he finally slowed down, panting.

Not long after, he spotted Shrimpy and Locomotive up ahead, waiting for him.

”We’re good. Looks like we made it,” Big Ears said, catching his breath.

”Yeah,” Shrimpy nodded. ”Spared those zombies today... lucky them.”

Big Ears glanced around, suddenly realizing someone was missing.

”Wait—where’s Mist?”

”No clue,” Locomotive said, shaking his head. ”Didn’t see where he went.”

”Same here,” Shrimpy added.

Big Ears frowned. Crap. The boss had just brought Mist into the crew—what if he’d lost him already?

”Let’s head back. We gotta report this to the boss!”

”Yeah, let’s move.” The three of them turned and started making their way home.

But as soon as they reached the outskirts of Rancho Cucamonga, they spotted a figure standing at the highway entrance, black mist still swirling faintly around him.

It was Mist. He’d gotten so hyped during the escape, he’d accidentally sprinted all the way back to the territory.

Big Ears blinked in disbelief. ”Mist, bro? You... you already made it back here?”

”Of course,” Mist said matter-of-factly. ”It’s safer here.”

”...” Big Ears was speechless. This guy was a damn professional when it came to running away.

”Well... whatever. As long as you’re okay.” The four zombies regrouped at Rancho Cucamonga, then made their way back to Los Angeles, heading straight for the tower.

By now, the sky was starting to lighten. Dawn was creeping in.

The long, chaotic night was finally coming to an end.

”Caw—caw caw!” A flock of red-eyed crows circled the tower, their cries echoing through the early morning air.

Below, the elite zombie squad stood tall, radiating a fierce, intimidating aura.

As they reached the heart of the corpse nest, the four of them finally felt safe again. Thinking back on everything that had happened that night, it all felt surreal—like something out of a twisted adventure novel.

If they ever wrote a book about it, Big Ears thought, it’d be called The Overlord Squad Chronicles...

Then he looked up and shouted toward the tower.

”Boss! We’ve got a situation—we got chased by a damn dog!”

...