It was everywhere.
The once-busy streets of New York had become rivers of crimson. Skyscrapers were blackened by fire, abandoned cars clogged every road, and the deafening roars of zombies echoed through the ruined city.
The smell of blood and decay filled the air.
Julian Ashford leaned heavily against a broken concrete wall, his breathing ragged. His expensive clothes had long since been replaced by torn rags stained with dirt and dried blood.
His lips were cracked.
His stomach ached with hunger.
It had been three days since he had eaten anything more than a piece of stale bread.
If someone had told him six months ago that he, the billionaire heir to the Ashford Empire, would one day risk his life for a mouthful of moldy bread, he would have laughed.
Now...
He couldn't even laugh anymore.
"Julian!"
A familiar voice called out.
Julian looked up and forced a weak smile.
Ryan.
His only friend in this cruel world.
Ryan rushed toward him carrying a backpack.
"I found food!"
Julian's tired eyes lit up.
"You did?"
Ryan nodded excitedly before opening the bag.
Inside were two cans of beans, bottled water, biscuits, and dried meat.
Julian swallowed hard.
Food.
Real food.
The sight alone made his empty stomach twist painfully.
"I knew we'd make it," Ryan said with a grin.
Julian smiled for the first time in days.
"So did I."
Ryan handed him a bottle of water.
"Drink."
Julian accepted it gratefully.
In this apocalypse, trust was priceless.
And Ryan was the only person Julian believed in.
After all...
Ryan had saved him countless times.
Or so Julian thought.
Suddenly—
BOOM!
The building beside them exploded.
Glass shattered into the street.
A horrifying roar shook the air.
Both men froze.
From the smoke emerged a gigantic zombie nearly four meters tall.
Its gray skin was covered in thick armor-like scales.
One glowing crimson eye stared directly at them.
Ryan's face turned pale.
"A... Commander Zombie..."
Julian's expression darkened.
Commander Zombies.
Monsters capable of commanding thousands of ordinary zombies.
Even elite survivors avoided fighting them.
"Run!"
Julian shouted.
The two sprinted through the broken streets.
Behind them came hundreds...
No...
Thousands...
Of zombies.
Their roars echoed like thunder.
Julian's exhausted body screamed in protest.
He hadn't eaten properly for weeks.
Every step felt heavier than the last.
Ryan suddenly grabbed Julian's wrist.
"This way!"
They turned into a narrow alley.
At the end stood a steel gate.
Hope.
If they reached it, they could escape.
Only twenty meters remained.
Fifteen...
Ten...
Five...
Then...
Ryan stopped.
Julian frowned.
"What are you doing?"
Ryan slowly turned around.
There was no fear on his face anymore.
Only guilt...
And determination.
"I'm sorry."
Julian blinked.
"...What?"
Ryan looked away.
"I don't want to die."
Before Julian could react—
THUD!
Ryan shoved him with all his strength.
Julian stumbled backward.
Straight into the middle of the charging zombie horde.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
"Ryan..."
The gate slammed shut.
Ryan stood safely behind it.
Tears streamed down his face.
"I'm sorry, Julian."
"I really am."
"But... if one of us has to die..."
"It won't be me."
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Julian pounded desperately on the steel gate.
"Ryan!"
"Open it!"
"Ryan!"
The zombies reached him.
Sharp claws tore into his back.
"Agh!"
Another bit into his shoulder.
Then another.
Pain exploded through his body.
He screamed.
Blood soaked the ground beneath him.
Behind the gate, Ryan covered his ears.
"I had no choice..."
"I wanted to live..."
Julian laughed weakly.
So...
This was the truth.
There had never been friendship.
Only survival.
Only selfishness.
His vision blurred.
He remembered his parents' warm smiles.
The grand Ashford mansion.
The funeral.
The fortune he had wasted.
Three billion dollars...
Enough to buy warehouses full of food.
Enough to build shelters.
Enough to prepare.
Instead...
He had drowned his grief in parties, expensive cars, and meaningless luxuries.
If only...
If only he had known...
Another zombie tore into his arm.
Julian fell to his knees.
The Commander Zombie slowly walked toward him.
Its crimson eyes met his.
For a brief moment...
Everything became silent.
Julian closed his eyes.
"If..."
"If Heaven truly exists..."
"Give me one more chance."
"I won't trust anyone again."
"I won't waste my parents' fortune."
"I'll prepare."
"I'll survive."
"And everyone who betrayed me..."
"They'll regret it."
The Commander Zombie raised its enormous claw.
Slash!
A blinding pain shot through Julian's chest.
Darkness swallowed him whole.
...
...
...
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The sound of rain echoed softly.
Julian frowned.
Rain?
How could he hear rain?
Wasn't he dead?
Slowly...
He opened his eyes.
Above him was an elegant crystal chandelier.
The familiar scent of sandalwood filled the room.
Silk curtains fluttered beside a large window.
His heartbeat stopped.
This...
This was his bedroom.
In the Ashford Mansion.
"No..."
He whispered hoarsely.
His trembling hands reached for the bedside table.
There...
Lay a framed family photograph.
His father smiled proudly.
His mother wrapped an arm around him.
Julian's breath caught in his throat.
A newspaper lay beside the frame.
The date printed across the front made his pupils shrink.
June 3rd.
The day after his parents' funeral.
Exactly two months before the apocalypse.
Julian sat frozen.
Then, for the first time since his parents' deaths...
He smiled.
A cold.
Determined.
Almost frightening smile.
"This time..."
"I'll be ready."
To be continued