Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Huh? That’s weird!”

The four zombies froze, their expressions tightening in confusion.

Why the hell are there thorn vines growing here?

They were sure—just a second ago, there was nothing.

”Something’s off! This is definitely not right!” Big Ears’ mind raced, and then it hit him. ”We must’ve run into a mutated plant-type fusion Zombie King!”

”What?! Again?!”

The other three zombies were just as shocked.

But before they could react further, the vines began to squirm and twist, coiling together until they formed a massive skull-shaped head. Its eye sockets were pitch black, and its face was covered in sharp, menacing spikes.

”Well, well… you’re a clever little thing, aren’t you…”

A raspy female voice echoed from within the skull.

”Holy shit!”

The four zombies jumped out of their skins, fur bristling in terror.

They didn’t even try to stay hidden anymore—dry grass flew everywhere as they scrambled to escape the haystack they’d been hiding in.

But as the straw scattered, more and more thorny vines came into view, woven together like a massive net.

They were already trapped.

The four zombies realized, too late, that they’d walked right into an ambush.

Not far ahead stood a tall, slender figure—clearly a Zombie King. Her body had a feminine shape, and thorny vines wrapped around her neck and wrists, each one bristling with razor-sharp spikes. She looked dangerous… but in a weirdly stylish way.

Her eyes gleamed with a savage glint, and a smirk tugged at the corner of her lips.

”Zombies from Southvale, huh? You’ve got some nerve coming back here. Let’s see if I can’t skewer you bastards to death!”

As soon as she finished speaking, the vines around the four zombies snapped tight, wrapping them up like prey in a spider’s web.

”AAARGH—!”

The spikes pierced their flesh, sending waves of searing pain through their bodies. They couldn’t help but scream.

Big Ears clenched his jaw, trying to hold it together. ”Shit… this is it. This is how we die. After all my glory, is this really the end?”

”It hurts so bad… I can’t take it anymore…” Shrimpy groaned, his voice trembling.

Big Ears gritted his teeth, refusing to give in. ”Even if we die today, we die as Overlords!”

”...”

The Violet Thorn Queen—Thornessa—watched them with a raised brow, clearly amused.

”Well then, let me help you on your way.”

She didn’t hesitate. The vines began to tighten again, ready to crush them.

But just then, a group of zombies came stumbling over from behind, covered in soot and dirt, looking like they’d just crawled out of an explosion.

Leading them was Pickle.

”Queen Thornessa, wait! Don’t kill them yet!” he shouted.

”Oh?” Thornessa turned her head, pausing mid-strike.

She gave Pickle a once-over, noting his scorched and battered appearance. ”What happened to you? Someone beat the crap out of you?”

”It was them!” Pickle pointed at the four bound zombies, his voice full of fury. ”We agreed to a fair fight, but they blasted me with an S-Class Crystal Core Hand-Cannon! I’m not letting them off easy—I want to take them out myself.”

Thornessa glanced at the four captives again. From their energy levels, it was obvious they were just low-tier Zombie Leaders from the outskirts—not exactly major players from Southvale.

She shrugged. ”Fine. They’re all yours.”

”Thanks, Queen Thornessa,” Pickle said, nodding quickly.

He and a few of his injured zombie underlings stepped forward, eyes gleaming with vengeance.

”Heh heh heh…”

”Looks like the tables have turned, huh?”

Their faces twisted with anticipation, eager to settle the score.

Big Ears and the rest of the ”Overlord Squad” were still tangled in the thorny vines, spikes digging deep into their flesh. Their faces were contorted in pain, and now, seeing Pickle and his crew closing in, their hearts sank even further.

”This… this is gonna be even worse…”

”Oh? What was that you guys were saying earlier? Talking shit about me, weren’t you?” Pickle sneered, his tone dripping with mockery.

The four zombies of the ”Overlord Squad”—Big Ears and the others—fell silent, faces stiff with frustration.

Without warning, Pickle swung his arm, which morphed into a thick, whip-like vine, and lashed it across Big Ears’ face.

CRACK!

Flesh split open, black blood splattered, and even Big Ears’ signature oversized ear got a nasty tear in it.

”Hey! Don’t hit Big Ears! If you’ve got the guts, hit me instead!” Shrimpy shouted, eyes blazing with urgency.

”Oh? You guys are real ride-or-die, huh?” Pickle grinned wickedly. ”Well, I’m gonna keep hitting him. What’re you gonna do about it?”

He raised his arm again and whipped Big Ears a second time.

Shrimpy’s panic grew. ”You hit Big Ears again?! Try hitting someone else, I dare you!”

”I’ll hit whoever the hell I want!” Pickle snapped, and crack-crack!—two more lashes landed.

Big Ears’ face twitched in agony, his mind screaming. Shrimpy, I get that you mean well, but maybe stop helping now?!

Shrimpy, however, was fuming. ”You lay one more vine on Big Ears, and you’re dead meat! We already called for backup—any minute now, a Zombie King’s gonna show up and wipe the floor with you!”

Pickle snorted. ”Oh please. Let them come. Queen Thornessa’s here—whoever shows up is getting hunted down. Classic bait-and-ambush, baby.”

Thornessa, arms crossed, chuckled from the side. ”Don’t get your hopes up. Zombies like them—low-tier leaders from the outskirts—aren’t exactly popular in the hive. No one’s coming for them. Their corpse karma sucks.”

”Yeah, good point,” Pickle nodded, then turned back to the four. ”You guys really are just a bunch of sad sacks…”

”Bullshit!” Shrimpy snapped. ”We’re the Overlord Squad! We’ve done big things! We’re respected in the hive—someone will come for us!”

”Hah! Big things? You’re just lying to yourselves. And worse—you actually believe it!” Pickle’s smirk turned cold.

He knew the pain of being a nobody in the hive. He was a fringe-zone Zombie Leader too, barely scraping by. The only reason he had any clout was because, like Thornessa, he’d fused with a mutant plant. That connection gave him a sliver of status.

So yeah—he knew exactly what it felt like to be overlooked, unwanted.

”Whatever. I’m done playing with you. Time to die.”

Pickle lashed Big Ears a few more times, venting the last of his rage. Then his vine-arm slithered like a serpent, coiling tightly around Big Ears’ neck.

It began to squeeze.

Crack…

Big Ears’ neck bones creaked under the pressure. His vision blurred, pain exploding in his skull. He was seconds away from blacking out.

But then—something strange.

A pale white mist drifted in on the wind, curling around the vines.

The moment it touched them, the mist began to infect—red, fleshy tumors sprouted along the vines, growing rapidly, spreading like wildfire toward Pickle’s arm.

”What the hell???”

Pickle’s eyes went wide. He sensed danger and immediately severed the vine, stumbling backward to escape the creeping fog.

But what happened next made his blood run cold.

The red tumors hit the ground and began to squirm, merging together—then rising up, morphing into mimic zombies, dozens of them, standing tall and twitching.

Even Thornessa’s brow furrowed. Her expression turned serious.

”A Zombie King from Southvale just arrived.”

”What? Someone actually came to save them??” Pickle froze, stunned. His face twisted with disbelief… and something else. Something darker, harder to name.

But the Overlord Squad?

Their faces lit up with joy, eyes wide with disbelief and emotion. Big Ears, barely conscious, managed a weak smile. Shrimpy’s eyes welled up.

”She’s here… Shroom, sis! Shroom, sis came!”

”I told you! I told you someone would come for us!”

...