Story 571: March of the Petrified Horde

The wasteland stretched endlessly, a barren expanse of cracked earth and ash-covered ground. A thick fog rolled across the horizon, shrouding the advancing horde in an eerie silhouette. These were not the typical zombies ZETU had faced before. Their forms were skeletal and encrusted with stone-like growths, their movements deliberate and unnervingly synchronized.

“Petrified zombies?” Riley “Quick Shot” Bennett muttered, squinting through the scope of her sniper rifle. “That’s…new.”

Captain Marcus Kane surveyed the scene from the vantage point atop a crumbling overpass. “It’s not just new. It’s a problem,” he said, tightening his grip on his shotgun. “They’re heading straight for Sector 3B. That’s where we evacuated the survivors.”

Ethan “Brain” O’Connor tapped furiously on his tablet, scanning the swarm for data. “These things are giving off minimal heat signatures. Their bodies are… calcified. Standard rounds might not work as effectively.”