Unnamed

Bang

Bang

Bang

"Shit!" The man cursed as he swung his massive hammer, cracking the skull of a bulky zombie that had lunged at him. His breath came in ragged gasps, his muscles burning with exertion. With each swing of his weapon, more zombies fell, but they kept coming—endlessly, mercilessly. His heart was pounding, not just from the physical effort, but from the gnawing fear growing within him. The horde was only getting bigger, and he could already see the signs: they weren't just aimlessly wandering.

At the center of the mass, a lean zombie with blades instead of hands, seemed to be *directing* the others. Its movement was unsettling—too purposeful, too coordinated. It didn't just stumble forward like the others; it moved with a chilling sort of intent, and the zombies followed its lead. The man's gut twisted with dread.

His team was losing ground. He had already watched three of his men get overwhelmed, torn apart in seconds by the relentless mob. His five remaining teammates were holding their own for now, but how long could they last? The air smelled of decay, sweat, and gunpowder, and the explosions from a nearby battle only seemed to draw more of the undead. His pulse raced as he realized the inevitable truth: They were trapped.

Another gunshot rang out in the distance, echoing through the empty streets, followed by a deafening explosion that shook the ground beneath their feet. The blast sent a ripple of noise that seemed to draw the zombies closer, their growls growing louder. His eyes flicked to the leader of the horde again, and he saw it push forward, dragging its mindless followers like a conductor leading a twisted orchestra.

He swallowed hard, knowing his time was running out. "We can't keep fighting like this," he muttered to himself, wiping the sweat from his brow as he swung his hammer once more, crushing multiple zombies on it's way.

"Andrew, over here" One of his teammates shouted, pulling him from his grim thoughts. He glanced over and saw the other man, crouched behind a vehicle, trying to catch his breath.

"What's the plan?" the man shouted, eyes wide with panic.

Andrew- the hammer-wielding man didn't have an answer. There was no plan anymore. "We hold out as long as we can before reinforcement arrived" he said, though even he didn't believe it. His fingers tightened around the handle of his weapon, but the weight of the situation bore down on him. Their chances were slim.

* * * * * * *

Meanwhile, Karl along with the rest of their group, stood at a distance, eyes on the chaos ahead. They could hear the gunshots and explosions, a violent symphony that had started to make them uneasy. The group was still visibly tired after their long trek, but the sounds of battle were too loud to ignore.

"Looks like someone's fighting over there," Karl said, his voice flat and uninterested. He wasn't in the mood for more trouble. The explosions would only attract more zombies, and their already tired body didn't have room for any more danger. He wanted nothing more than to return to camp and rest.

Leah, however, wasn't so quick to dismiss the situation. She squinted in the direction of the sounds. "Wanna check it out?" she asked, her curiosity piqued. Despite their grim reality, Leah had always been the type to want to help others when they could—something Karl never quite understood, especially in a world like this.

Karl considered the situation for a moment. "It's a bad idea," he muttered, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the horizon. The more noise there was, the more likely they were to attract unwanted attention—both from the living and the dead.

Leah didn't wait for a response. Instead, she turned and began walking toward the commotion. "I'm going. You can stay here if you want," she called over her shoulder.

Karl cursed under his breath, but he couldn't bring himself to leave her alone. "Dammit, Leah," he muttered, following after her. The others reluctantly followed suit, their expressions uncertain. No one wanted to risk their lives, but no one wanted to leave Leah to face whatever was out there alone.

As they moved closer to the source of the explosions, they noticed the zombies—a growing swarm of them—were heading in the same direction. It was strange. Zombies didn't usually *move* with purpose, but these were different. Some of them ignored the group completely, as though drawn to something else.

"What the hell?" Leah whispered, watching the mass of undead lumbering past them, their eyes vacant but intent on reaching the same destination.

"Something's wrong," Patrick said, his voice tight with tension. The sight of this many zombies moving in such a direction didn't sit right with him.

They crept forward cautiously, staying out of sight, and found a vantage point atop a nearby rooftop. What they saw below them made their blood run cold.

The bladed zombie at the center of the horde was unmistakable—a lean, muscular creature, its skin grey, with razor sharp teeth. It wasn't like the other zombies. It moved with purpose, raising its arm and directing the masses with disturbing coordination.

At the direction of the horde, Karl smirked seeing a familiar figure within the group. "Well, well, what a coincidence"

But the others didn't notice, instead focused at the leader of the horde. Patrick cursed under his breath. "That's no ordinary zombie."

Trish said in a low voice "That's the leader, If we don't take it out, this whole area is done for."

Karl agreed, finding the leader to be troublesome, with it's abilities to command the horde.

* * * * * * *

Back in the midst of the chaos, Andrew fought with everything he had left. He could see his teammates were barely hanging on, the weight of the zombies pressing in on them from every side. The air was thick with gunpowder, blood, and the stench of decay. They were out of time, and he knew it.

"Stay together!" he shouted, swinging his hammer in a wide arc killing the advancing zombies. The effort was exhausting, his body screaming for rest, but he couldn't afford to stop now. Not when death was so close.

Rumble

Then out of the sudden a stone spike appeared thrust on the ground impailing the leader.

ROAR!

The leader roared, suprisingly feeling the pain of his body as it really the other zombie.

However, it was useless as another spike appeared. But, this time it was driving towards it's skull.

"What the hell—?" Andrew gasped, surprised at the sudden intervention. Then his face went pale recognizing the attack, although it was only once, he knew it was him.